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The War Profiteers - War Crimes,
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September 27th,
2007 - U.S. Soldier Testifies He was Ordered to Shoot Unarmed Iraqi Man |
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U.S. Soldier Testifies
He was Ordered to Shoot Unarmed Iraqi Man By Katarina Kratovac Associated Press September 27, 2007 Baghdad - A U.S. soldier
testified Thursday that he was ordered to shoot an unarmed Iraqi man, then
his sergeant laughed and told the trooper to finish the job as the man
convulsed on the ground. Sgt. Evan Vela cried during
his testimony in the court-martial of Spc. Jorge G. Sandoval, of Laredo,
Texas. Sandoval is on trial for allegedly killing Iraqis and trying to cover
up the deaths by planting weapons at the scene. Vela said Sandoval, who was
nearby providing security, was not present during the May 11 killing near
Iskandariyah, a mostly Sunni Arab city 50 kilometers (30 miles) south of
Baghdad. Sandoval has pleaded not
guilty to five charges, including the April 27 murder of a second
unidentified Iraqi man and placing a detonation wire on his body. Prosecutors claim the May 11
case involved the killing an Iraqi man with a 9mm pistol, placing an AK-47
rifle by his body and failing to ensure humane treatment of a detainee - the
victim. Vela said Staff Sgt. Michael Hensley of Candler, N.C, told him to shoot
the man, although he was not armed and had his hands in the air when he
approached the soldiers. "He asked me if I was
ready. I had the pistol out. I heard the word shoot. I don't remember pulling
the trigger. It took me a second to realize that the shot came from the
pistol in my hand," he said, crying and speaking barely above a whisper. Vela said that as the Iraqi
man was convulsing on the ground, "Hensley laughed about it and hit the
guy on the throat and said shoot again." "After he (the Iraqi man)
was shot, Sgt. Hensley pulled an AK-47 out of his rucksack and said, 'this is
what we are going to say happened,'" Vela said. He was dismissed from
the witness stand to compose himself. Sandoval has been charged
with premeditated murder, wrongfully placing weapons with the remains of the
Iraqis and obstructing justice. He faces a maximum sentence of life in prison
if convicted. Both Vela of Rigby, Idaho,
and Hensley are also charged in the case. The three soldiers are part
of the Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 1st Battalion, 501st Infantry
Regiment, 4th Brigade (Airborne), 25th Infantry Division, based at Fort
Richardson, Alaska. Vela was flown from Kuwait
to testify under a deal that would bar his words from being used against him
when he stands before a court-martial. Military prosecutors said
the killings in which the three men are charged occurred between April and
June near Iskandariyah. The investigation began
after military authorities received reports of alleged wrongdoing from fellow
soldiers, the Army has said. Sandoval was arrested in
June while on a two-week leave visiting his family. Vela's defense attorney,
Gary Myers, claimed earlier this week that Army snipers hunting insurgents in
Iraq were under orders to "bait" their targets with suspicious
materials, such as detonation cords, then kill those who picked up the items.
He said his client was acting on "orders." The Washington Post, which
first reported the "baiting" program, said it was devised by the
U.S. Army's Asymmetric Warfare Group, which advises commanders in
unconventional conflicts. Within months of the
"baiting" program's introduction, Sandoval, Vela and Hensley were
charged with murder for allegedly using those tactics to make shootings seem
legitimate, according to the Post. The Army has declined to
confirm such a program existed. The Iraq war has seen U.S.
service members face prosecution in several high-profile incidents, including
abuse of detainees at Abu Ghraib prison, the killings of 24 civilians by
Marines in Haditha, and the rape and killing of a 14-year-old girl and the
slaying of her family south of Baghdad. Iraqis have accused American soldiers
of unnecessary killings or abuse. © 2007 The Associated Press External link: http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ap/tx/5169327.html |