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The War Profiteers - War Crimes,
Kidnappings & Torture |
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February 26th,
2009 - Soldier Testifies Iraq Shooting Was Self-Defense |
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Soldier Testifies Iraq Shooting
Was Self-Defense By Kristin M. Hall Associated Press February 26, 2009 Fort Campbell, Ky. - An Army
officer facing a murder charge testified Thursday that he shot and killed an
Iraqi after the detainee reached for his gun during an interrogation. First Lt. Michael Behenna
said he was trying to defend himself and hadn't planned to shoot the detainee
when he took him aside for questioning in the Iraqi desert. Behenna, of
Edmond, Okla., is charged with premeditated murder, assault and making a
false statement. The premeditated murder charge carries a mandatory life
sentence without parole. Prosecutors argue that
Behenna intended to kill Ali Mansour Mohammed in May 2008 during an
interrogation near a secluded railroad culvert near a U.S. military base.
They've said Behenna had no remorse for the killing and justified it to others
by saying Mohammed was a bad man. Behenna testified Thursday
at his murder trial at Fort Campbell that he defied orders to release Mansour
because he wanted another chance to question the detainee he believed was
involved in a roadside bombing in April that killed two members of his
platoon. He said he took drastic
measures - stripping the detainee naked and interrogating him without
authority - because he was trying to scare him into releasing the names of
insurgents who were operating near Beiji, Iraq. He verbally threatened the
detainee, saying he was going to kill him if he didn't talk, and finally
pulled out his pistol and pointed it at him, Behenna testified. "Ali Mansour kept
saying, 'I don't know,' and I pointed the weapon at him," Behenna said. At that point, Behenna
turned his head to look at the Iraqi translator next to him. When he looked
back, Mohammed had gotten up from his seated position and was moving toward
the gun, Behenna said. "I was scared Ali
Mansour was going to take my weapon and use it on me," Behenna said.
"This happened very fast." Behenna said he shot him
twice, once in the head and once in the chest. Defense attorneys also argue
that Behenna suffered from an acute stress disorder at the time of the
shooting because of the horrific scene he witnessed during the bombing in
April. Family members testified
that he was visibly shaken up when he returned home on leave shortly after. "He didn't seem happy
as he normally is and a little bit distant," said Vicki Behenna, his
mother. Another soldier charged in
the case, Staff Sgt. Hal Warner, pleaded guilty this month to charges of
assault, maltreatment of a subordinate and making a false statement. Warner,
from Braggs, Okla., was sentenced to 17 months in prison. Copyright © 2009 The
Associated Press. External link: http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5jzuwkhrcOZ-H5K2HgCBMz-ICJ0nwD96JLLRG2 |