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The War Profiteers - War Crimes,
Kidnappings, Torture and Big Money |
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September 25th,
2007 - U.S. Snipers Accused of ‘Baiting’ Iraqis |
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U.S. Snipers Accused of
‘Baiting’ Iraqis By Pauline Jelinek & Robert Burns Associated Press September 25, 2007 Washington - Army snipers
hunting insurgents in Iraq were under orders to "bait" their
targets with suspicious materials, such as detonation cords, and then kill
whoever picked up the items, according to the defense attorney for a soldier
accused of planting evidence on an Iraqi he killed. Gary Myers, an attorney
for Sgt. Evan Vela, said Monday his client had acted "pursuant to
orders." "We believe that our
client has done nothing more than he was instructed to do by superiors,"
Myers said in a telephone interview. Myers and Vela's father,
Curtis Carnahan of Idaho Falls, Idaho, said in separate interviews that sworn
statements and testimony in the cases of two other accused Ranger snipers
indicate that the Army has a classified program that encourages snipers to
"bait" potential targets and then kill whoever takes the bait. The Army on Monday declined
to confirm such a program exists. "To prevent the enemy
from learning about our tactics, techniques and training procedures, we don't
discuss specific methods targeting enemy combatants," said Paul Boyce,
an Army spokesman. Boyce also said there are no
classified programs that authorize the murder of Iraqi civilians or the use
of "drop weapons" to make killings appeared to be legally justified,
which is what Vela and the two other snipers are accused of doing. The transcript of a court
hearing for two of the three accused snipers makes several references to the
existence of a classified "baiting" program but provides few
details of how it works. A copy of the transcript was provided to The
Associated Press by Vela's father. The Washington Post, which
first reported the existence of the "baiting" program, cited the
sworn statement of Capt. Matthew P. Didier, the leader of a Ranger sniper
scout platoon. "Baiting is putting an
object out there that we know they will use, with the intention of destroying
the enemy," Didier said in the statement. "Basically, we would put
an item out there and watch it. If someone found the item, picked it up and
attempted to leave with the item, we would engage the individual as I saw
this as a sign they would use the item against U.S. forces." The Post said the program
was devised by the Army's Asymmetric Warfare Group, which advises commanders
on more effective methods in today's unconventional conflicts, including ways
to combat roadside bombs. Within months of the
"baiting" program's introduction, three snipers in Didier's platoon
were charged with murder for allegedly using those items and others to make
shootings seem legitimate, according to the Post. The Post said that although
it doesn't appear that the three alleged shootings were specifically part of
the classified program, defense attorneys argue that the program may have
encouraged them by blurring the legal lines in a complex war zone. The court martial of one of
the accused soldiers, Spec. Jorge Sandoval Jr., is scheduled to begin in
Baghdad on Wednesday. Also facing premeditated murder charges are Vela and
Staff Sgt. Michael Hensley. They are part of the
Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 1st Battalion, 501st Infantry
Regiment, 4th Brigade (Airborne), 25th Infantry Division, based at Fort
Richardson, Alaska. © 2007 The Associated Press External link: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/09/24/AR2007092401421.html |