| Topic: |
Politics > Politics-USA |
| User: |
"PagCal" |
| Date: |
22 Dec 2006 05:21:06 AM |
| Object: |
US Marines charged with murder |
Here's why we are loosing in Iraq: It's not about battle, but about
hearts and minds, and this article was just splashed all over the Middle
East.
---
US Marines charged with murder
US Marine colonel Stewart Navarette announced the charges at Camp
Pendleton, California [Reuters]
Four US marines have been charged with 13 counts of murder in connection
with the killing of 24 civilians in Haditha, western Iraq.
Four marines will face other charges related to the killings last
November, in the most serious war crime case involving US soldiers since
the invasion of Iraq in 2003, the US army said on Thursday.
The killing of the two dozen men, women and children is one of several
incidents in which US troops have been accused of killing civilians and
dereliction of duty.
Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki has called the Haditha killings a
"terrible crime".
In announcing the charges, Marine Col. Stewart Navarre said a press
release issued the day after the killings wrongly reported that 15 Iraqi
civilians were killed by a roadside bomb and that Marines and Iraqi army
soldiers killed eight insurgents in a subsequent firefight.
Lance Cpl Stephen Tatum:
Unpremeditated murder, negligent homicide and assault
Lance Cpl Justin L Sharratt:
Unpremeditated murder
Staff Sgt Frank D Wuterich:
Unpremeditated murder, soliciting another to commit an offence and lying
on an official statement
Sgt Sanick Dela Cruz:
Unpremeditated murder and providing a false official statement
1st Lt Andrew
Grayson:
Dereliction, providing a false official statement and obstructing justice
Capt Lucas McConnell: Dereliction
Capt Randy Stone: Violation of a lawful order and dereliction
Lt Col Jeffrey Chessani:
Violation of a lawful order and dereliction
"We now know with certainty ... that none of the civilians were killed
by the IED (improvised explosive device) explosion," Navarre said.
Marine Corps squad leader Staff Sgt. Frank Wuterich, 26, who led the
squad, was charged with 13 counts of murder.
The documents did not explain why Wuterich was not charged in all 24 deaths.
Others charged with murder are Sgt. Sanick Dela Cruz, 24, Lance Cpl.
Justin Sharratt, 22, and Lance Cpl. Stephen Tatum, 25.
The remaining four Marines are charged with "failure to properly report
and/or investigate the deaths.
"The reporting of the incident up the chain of command was inaccurate
and untimely," Navarre said.
John Sifton, senior researcher with New York-based Human Rights Watch,
welcomed the charges but said accountability for the killings needed to
run further up the chain of command.
"If the military really wants to stop future abuses it shouldn't just
focus on low-level offenders, it needs to focus on the systemic issues
that lead to war crimes," he said.
Massacre
The Iraqi civilians were shot dead in the western Iraqi town on November
19, 2005.
The incident is one in a series of cases in which US service members
have been accused, and in some cases convicted, of involvement in
killing civilians.
Few details have been made public about the charges, although a US
military investigation centred on a squad of marines lead by Staff
Sergeant Frank Wuterich.
Earlier in the year, Wuterich sued John Murtha, a Democratic
Representative, when he said US troops "killed innocent civilians in
cold blood".
Captain Lucas McConnell, who was monitoring fighting in and around
Haditha on the day of the incident, is also expected to face charges,
his lawyer told Reuters.
McConnell may be accused of dereliction of duty for his reports on the
incident.
Once charged, the defendants are entitled to an Article 32 hearing, in
which a military judge would decide if there is enough evidence to
convene a court martial.
Frank Wuterich's lawyers argued that the marines were engaged in a battle.
Iraqi witnesses say the marines shot civilians in their homes in
retaliation over the death of Lance Corporal Miguel Terrazas, who was
killed by a roadside bomb that exploded under a convoy rolling through
Haditha, 96km north of Baghdad.
Defence lawyers dispute that version of events and say the men were
engaged in a battle in Haditha after the bomb exploded and the civilians
may have died during the fighting.
Two inquiries were launched into the incident, one into the shooting and
another into the marines' procedures afterwards.
Earlier this year, George Bush, the US president, said that any US
marine guilty of shooting Iraqi civilians would be punished.
.
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| User: "Adam Whyte-Settlar" |
|
| Title: Re: US Marines charged with murder |
23 Dec 2006 08:12:35 AM |
|
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"PagCal" <pagcal@runbox.com> wrote in message
news:scPih.353$Sr3.13@newsfe06.lga...
Here's why we are losing in Iraq: It's not about battle, but about
hearts and minds, and this article was just splashed all over the Middle
East.
I think you will find that the Iraqis place far less emphasis on these
events than do the people of the US.
They have long taken for granted that the US troops have little or no
concern for the life of an Iraqi civilian.
It simply isn't big news over there - which is just about as sad an
indictment of US policy as is possible to imagine.
.
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| User: "PagCal" |
|
| Title: Re: US Marines charged with murder |
24 Dec 2006 02:39:15 AM |
|
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Adam Whyte-Settlar wrote:
"PagCal" <pagcal@runbox.com> wrote in message
news:scPih.353$Sr3.13@newsfe06.lga...
Here's why we are losing in Iraq: It's not about battle, but about
hearts and minds, and this article was just splashed all over the Middle
East.
I think you will find that the Iraqis place far less emphasis on these
events than do the people of the US.
They have long taken for granted that the US troops have little or no
concern for the life of an Iraqi civilian.
It simply isn't big news over there - which is just about as sad an
indictment of US policy as is possible to imagine.
I've herd that.
The post was more aimed at our US military, in the hopes that they will
change their mission and strategy to something that's workable and makes
sense vis-a-vie, counter terrorism, occupation, and nation building.
When you put 'tail gunners' on convoys, and have them open up with 50's
on civilian cars that are 'too close', you are doomed.
When you torture their civilians, such as we did in Abu-Ghraib, you are
doomed.
When you 'bust into houses' and defile their women and children, you are
doomed.
When you drop 250kg bombs on their homes and kill women and children,
you are doomed.
.
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| User: "Adam Whyte-Settlar" |
|
| Title: Re: US Marines charged with murder |
24 Dec 2006 03:49:54 AM |
|
|
"PagCal" <pagcal@runbox.com> wrote in message
news:u0rjh.2041$WD1.442@newsfe03.lga...
Adam Whyte-Settlar wrote:
"PagCal" <pagcal@runbox.com> wrote in message
news:scPih.353$Sr3.13@newsfe06.lga...
Here's why we are losing in Iraq: It's not about battle, but about
hearts and minds, and this article was just splashed all over the Middle
East.
I think you will find that the Iraqis place far less emphasis on these
events than do the people of the US.
They have long taken for granted that the US troops have little or no
concern for the life of an Iraqi civilian.
It simply isn't big news over there - which is just about as sad an
indictment of US policy as is possible to imagine.
I've herd that.
The post was more aimed at our US military, in the hopes that they will
change their mission and strategy to something that's workable and makes
sense vis-a-vie, counter terrorism, occupation, and nation building.
When you put 'tail gunners' on convoys, and have them open up with 50's
on civilian cars that are 'too close', you are doomed.
When you torture their civilians, such as we did in Abu-Ghraib, you are
doomed.
When you 'bust into houses' and defile their women and children, you are
doomed.
When you drop 250kg bombs on their homes and kill women and children,
you are doomed.
It was doomed from the very first day when - due to whatever failure of
command - US troops allowed the museums to be looted whilst securing the oil
ministry and staging the 'Statue of Saddam' photo-opportunity.
Initially even being so crass as to adorn the statue with the stars and
stripes FFS!
At least someone with an ounce of common sense was quick to remove it but
the wholesale ransacking and looting of Iraqi culture and numerous similar
acts fixed the mood within hours.
It's amazing how many ignorant rightards still yet fail to understand the
huge significance of those kind of actions at that early stage.
The first few days of an occupation set the tone. Start as you mean to go
on. What a signal to give - we don't give a ***** about your 5,000 years of
culture only your oil administration buildings. Some 'liberation' - and we
complain they didn't throw flowers?
The neocons completely blew the opportunity through ignorance, arrogance and
inexperience and it has been steadily downhill ever since. Managed properly
and with respect and with enough troops it is quite possible that we would
have had pro-western government puppets installed and running Iraq just as
we wanted it by now, instead of this insolvable shambles that looks like
ending in war. And I mean a *real* war not this fantasy SoCalledWarOnTerror
(SCWOT) *****.
Now it's even got to the stage that yet another family wiped out by
occupying troops is just seen as normal by the Iraqis. And you don't have to
be a detective to know that this isn't 'an isolated incident by a few rotten
apples' this was an incident where an Iraqi just happened to be on hand to
film the aftermath - otherwise it would have just gone down as another "7
'terrorists' killed and 15 civilians caught in the crossfire" or whatever
***** it was originally hushed up with.
If it was 'an isolated incident' the Iraqis would be ****ing outraged not
yawningly disinterested.
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