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The War Profiteers - War Crimes, Kidnappings,
Torture and Big Money |
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June 19th, 2006 - U.S. Soldiers
Charged With Murder of Iraqi Detainees |
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U.S. Soldiers Charged With
Murder of Iraqi Detainees By David Stout New York Times June 19, 2006 Washington, June 19 - Three
American soldiers have been charged with murder and other crimes in
connection with the deaths of three Iraqi detainees, military officials said
today. The charges against members
of the Third Brigade Combat Team of the 101st Airborne Division stem from
events during an operation near Thar Thar Canal in southern Salah ad Din
Province on May 9, the military said. The restive Sunni Arab region is north
of Baghdad. The soldiers, including a
noncommissioned officer, have also been charged with attempted murder,
conspiracy, communicating a threat and obstructing justice, the officials
said. The three have been confined pending a hearing to determine if there is
enough evidence to court-martial them. Officials have said
previously that the three soldiers said they had acted because they believed
the detainees were trying to escape. In their statement from Tikrit today,
military officials said the soldiers' unit commander ordered an inquiry into
the deaths the very day they occurred. The American military's
second-highest officer in Iraq, Lt. Gen. Peter W. Chiarelli, then ordered an
inquiry by the Army's Criminal Investigation Command. That investigation
began on May 17 and is continuing, the military said today. General Chiarelli is also
reviewing a formal report into whether marines covered up the circumstances
of the deaths of 24 Iraqi civilians at Haditha last November. Among the
questions addressed in the report are whether improper training or a poor
command climate contributed to the killings. Pentagon officials have said
that the Haditha incident has the potential to undermine the progress
achieved by the valor and sacrifice of the many thousands of American
military people who have done their duty under difficult and dangerous
conditions. Copyright 2006 The New York
Times Company External link:
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/06/19/world/middleeast/19cnd-soldiers.html |