Saturday, August 05, 2006

At least 3 soldiers raped 14 yr old Iraqi girl & then they took the forensic pix of the crime

Speaking of profound failure... and no, I'm not referring to the inexplicable bombing of Maronite Christian neighborhoods in Lebanon by the Israelis OR the Shiite rally in Baghdad in support of Hezbollah... but I'm talking about this from the NYT's: G.I. Crime Photos of Rape/Murder May Be Evidence.: "On Mar 13, a group of US soldiers sitting at a checkpt south of Baghdad were asked to look into a horrible crime: a 14yr old Iraqi girl had been raped, then killed along w/ her family in their house. Those soldiers, along w/ others from their checkpt, walked over and took detailed forensic pix of the charred and bullet-riddled bodies, as if it were a routine investigation of an insurgent attack, except this wasn't routine b/c the soldiers knew the house. They had been there only the day before, committing the crime. Now, those pix are likely to serve as evidence in the military’s prosecution of the case. The case, which was 1st widely reported in June, raised alarm about the military’s conduct, infuriating Iraqis and setting off a public bout of shame and soul-searching for the US command. And as details trickle out, a troubling picture is emerging of an Army unit numbed by mos of extreme combat stress and alcohol use, and left at one of the deadliest security checkpts in Iraq w/o experienced leaders." It is terrible that our soldiers have been put in this situation at all, and regrets are plenty, but when adult men dress in all black to remain unseen, gang rape a 14 yr old girl, kill her entire family so they can gang rape her, and then set her body on fire to cover up their crimes, what kind of leadership was NOT present there that would have prevented these animals in uniform from committing these acts?: "It now appears that at least 3 soldiers, including the reputed ringleader Steven Green, raped her, according to a legal memo filed by a military magistrate. Prosecutors now believe the other 2 soldiers raped her 1st and later set fire to her dead body, 2 lawyers involved in the case said." Sorry, but these are not soldiers. These are criminals who behaved like a pack of feral dogs who happened to wear uniforms, and no amount of excuses can explain away what they did.
Posted by Tina :: 12:48 AM :: 20 Comments:

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