.US soldiers charged with murder appear in Iraq court
TIKRIT, Iraq (Reuters) - A military court opened a preliminary hearing on Tuesday to determine whether four U.S. soldiers charged over the deaths of three male prisoners in Iraq will face court martials.
They have been charged with premeditated murder, attempted murder, conspiracy, communicating a threat, and obstructing justice in the killings in or around May 9 north of Baghdad.
Premeditated murder charges can bring the death penalty under U.S. military law.
The Article 32 hearing is being held at Contingency Operating Base Speicher in Saddam Hussein's hometown of Tikrit, 175 km (110 miles) north of the capital.
It comes at a sensitive time when the military is investigating other cases of alleged abuses -- including the killings of up to 24 unarmed civilians in the town of Haditha last year by U.S. Marines -- which have infuriated Iraqis.
The soldiers -- Private First Class Corey Clagett, Specialist William Hunsaker, Staff Sergeant Raymond Girouard and Specialist Juston Graber -- are from the 101st Airborne Division and are based in Samarra, north of Baghdad.
They have said the three men who were killed were trying to escape during the shootings.
The defendants are also charged with threatening to kill another soldier if he informed on them.
The hearing recessed until Wednesday morning.
The deaths took place during a raid on a suspected insurgent training camp near Thar Thar Lake, southwest of Tikrit, when, the military said at the time, more than 200 people were detained.
The military had issued a statement hailing the success of Operation Iron Triangle, a three-day raid launched on May 9 against the Muthana Chemical Complex, a sprawling plant closed after the fall of Saddam in 2003.
Five U.S. soldiers have been charged in a rape and multiple murder case that has outraged Iraqis. Four of them will face a hearing in a base in Baghdad on Sunday.
The other soldier, former Private First Class Steven Green, is facing a U.S. civilian trial in Kentucky on four counts of murder and one of rape.
Documents obtained by Reuters showed the rape victim was aged 14.
Reuters
I don't know why, but I get the feeling that we are about to sacrifice a few virgins to the angry volcano to ease the restless gods.
They have been charged with premeditated murder, attempted murder, conspiracy, communicating a threat, and obstructing justice in the killings in or around May 9 north of Baghdad.
Premeditated murder charges can bring the death penalty under U.S. military law.
The Article 32 hearing is being held at Contingency Operating Base Speicher in Saddam Hussein's hometown of Tikrit, 175 km (110 miles) north of the capital.
It comes at a sensitive time when the military is investigating other cases of alleged abuses -- including the killings of up to 24 unarmed civilians in the town of Haditha last year by U.S. Marines -- which have infuriated Iraqis.
The soldiers -- Private First Class Corey Clagett, Specialist William Hunsaker, Staff Sergeant Raymond Girouard and Specialist Juston Graber -- are from the 101st Airborne Division and are based in Samarra, north of Baghdad.
They have said the three men who were killed were trying to escape during the shootings.
The defendants are also charged with threatening to kill another soldier if he informed on them.
The hearing recessed until Wednesday morning.
The deaths took place during a raid on a suspected insurgent training camp near Thar Thar Lake, southwest of Tikrit, when, the military said at the time, more than 200 people were detained.
The military had issued a statement hailing the success of Operation Iron Triangle, a three-day raid launched on May 9 against the Muthana Chemical Complex, a sprawling plant closed after the fall of Saddam in 2003.
Five U.S. soldiers have been charged in a rape and multiple murder case that has outraged Iraqis. Four of them will face a hearing in a base in Baghdad on Sunday.
The other soldier, former Private First Class Steven Green, is facing a U.S. civilian trial in Kentucky on four counts of murder and one of rape.
Documents obtained by Reuters showed the rape victim was aged 14.
Reuters
I don't know why, but I get the feeling that we are about to sacrifice a few virgins to the angry volcano to ease the restless gods.
posted by madtom at 4:35 PM
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