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The War Profiteers - War Crimes,
Kidnappings & Torture |
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February 25th,
2009 - Translator Testifies He Saw Officer Shoot Iraqi 1st news article
from the Associated Press |
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Translator Testifies
He Saw Officer Shoot Iraqi By Kristin M. Hall Associated Press February 25, 2009 An Iraqi translator told a
military jury at Fort Campbell that he saw an Army officer shoot and kill an
Iraqi detainee. Advertisement The testimony came Wednesday
at the trial of 1st Lt. Michael Behenna, of Edmond, Okla., who is charged
with premeditated murder, assault and making a false statement. Behenna is accused of
killing Ali Mansour Mohammed in May 2008 near Beiji, Iraq. If convicted, he
could receive a life prison sentence without parole. A second Fort Campbell
soldier charged in the case - Staff Sgt. Hal Warner, of Braggs, Okla. -
agreed to testify against Behenna as a part of a plea agreement. The translator, identified
in court as "Harry", also said he saw Warner set fire to the
detainee's body with a grenade. "Harry", who spoke
in court through a translator, said Behenna had been given information from a
local Iraqi leader that Mohammed was "a bad guy." Prosecutors have said that
Behenna believed th e detainee had information regarding a roadside bomb that
killed two soldiers in Behanna's platoon. When the soldiers went to
pick up Mohammed from his home, "Harry" said he watched Behenna
repeatedly strike Mohammed on the back with his helmet during an
interrogation. The day that Behenna was
supposed to release Mohammed, Behanne verbally threatened the detainee,
according to the translator. "He told him 'Today,
I'm going to kill you.'" he told the jury. Harry testified that be
believed the threat was a tactic to scare the detainee and did not believe
that Behenna intended to kill him. But later that same day,
near an isolated railroad culvert, Behenna began interrogating the detainee
again, this time with his pistol drawn, "Harry" said. "Harry" said he
translated Behenna's questions, then pleaded for the detainee to cooperate. "I told him 'You'd
better talk. Why do you put yourself in this situation?'" the translator
testified. The translator also said the
man then agreed to talk, but before Harry could translate, Behenna fired. "Harry" said
Behenna shot the detainee twice and then Warner placed a grenade on the body. External link: http://www.theleafchronicle.com/article/20090225/NEWS01/90225007 Testimony continues in
murder trial of soldier From the Associated Press February 25, 2009 Fort Campbell, Ky. - Several
Iraqis were called to testify Tuesday in the military trial of an Army
officer charged with killing an Iraqi detainee. During testimony at Fort
Campbell, two Iraqi police officers described the investigation into the death
of Ali Mansour Mohammed, who was found naked, shot and burned last May near
Beiji, Iraq. First Lt. Michael Behenna,
of Edmond, is charged with premeditated murder, assault and making a false
statement in the case. The Iraqi witnesses
testified through a translator, and their names were mentioned during
questioning. However, Army officials refused to offer the spellings of their
names, citing security concerns. An Iraqi medical examiner
who performed the autopsy on Mohammed testified that the cause of death was
gunshot wounds, one in the head and one in the chest. The body had also been
burned on the head and torso, but the examiner said the burns occurred after
death. Prosecutors showed pictures
from a video taken of the crime scene in a culvert under a railroad in a
remote part of the desert near Beiji, about 155 miles north of Baghdad. An Iraqi police lieutenant
who worked in Beiji testified that the body was found naked except for
slippers and a bullet casing was found nearby as well pieces of an explosive
device. "It was a horrible
scene," he testified through the translator. Prosecutors claim that
Behenna believed that Mohammed had information or was involved in a roadside
bomb in April that killed two soldiers in his platoon and wounded others. Behenna picked up Mohammed
and turned him over to Army interrogators, but he was ordered to be released
after he was questioned several times. Sgt. Robin Lee, an Army
interrogator at a base in Iraq, said Behenna gave him a list of names of
suspected insurgents and wanted Mohammed to be questioned once more before
his release. "I believe he (Behenna)
was pretty upset that Ali was getting released," Lee said. Prosecutors have said that
instead of releasing the detainee as ordered, Behenna took him out to a
secluded railroad culvert in the desert and shot him in the head and chest. A defense attorney for
Behenna said the platoon leader was trying to further interrogate Mohammed
and that there was no intent to murder the detainee. If convicted on
premeditated murder, Behenna could face life in prison without parole. Prosecutors said that the
DNA evidence from the scene was consistent with blood found on Behenna's
clothing and firearms experts confirmed that the shells and a round found at
the scene were linked to Behenna's handgun. Staff Sgt. Hal Warner, of
Braggs, Okla., pleaded guilty last week to assault, maltreatment of a
subordinate and making a false statement in the case. Warner agreed to
testify against Behenna and was sentenced 17 months in prison. External link: http://www.edmondsun.com/local/local_story_056012908.html |