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#1
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03-21-2011, 01:45 PM
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 Patron Saint of Filth Poster Rank:3 Fem Join Date: Mar 2010 Posts: 116,089
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US Army Apologizes for Photos of Soldiers with Afghan Body
The US Army has apologized for graphic photographs of US soldiers grinning over the corpses of Afghan civilians they had allegedly killed.  The photos published by Germany's Der Spiegel magazine were said to be among many seized by US Army investigators. An army statement said the photographs were "repugnant" but were already being used as evidence in a court martial. Afghan civilian deaths at the hands of foreign forces is a highly sensitive issue in Afghanistan. These photographs are purported to have been taken by a "rogue" US Army unit in Afghanistan in 2010. Such images are only going to exacerbate tensions between the Afghan government and the people on the one hand and the US-led coalition on the other, says the BBC's Paul Wood in Kabul. US court martial It is unclear exactly when the photographs published were taken but Der Spiegel says they are among 4,000 pictures and pieces of video they have obtained. Some of the images show two soldiers kneeling over a body. They each hold the face of the dead man up to the camera by grabbing his hair and turning his head. One of the American soldiers is grinning. The US Army said these photographs depict "actions repugnant to us as human beings and contrary to the standards and values of the United States Army". "The actions portrayed in these photographs remain under investigation and are now the subject of ongoing US court-martial proceedings, in which the accused are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty," it added. Soldiers who are convicted will be held accountable as appropriate, the army says. Cpl Morlock has now agreed to plead guilty Der Spiegel magazine says it has identified one of the soldiers in the photographs as Cpl Jeremy Morlock. He is one of five soldiers accused of the premeditated murder of three Afghan civilians earlier this year.  Cpl Morlock agreed to plead guilty in late February and get a shorter prison term if he testified against the other accused soldiers. They deny the charges. Another seven soldiers from the same unit have been charged with conspiracy to cover up the alleged murders. Cpl Morlock's court martial is due to resume on Wednesday. The five accused of murder allegedly threw grenades and opened fire on civilians in unprovoked assaults, while the other seven are accused of dismembering the victims and collecting body parts. Afghan anger These photographs purportedly depict the alleged actions of a few "renegade" soldiers, but Afghan sensitivities about civilian deaths are running high after a series of incidents in which coalition forces have been blamed for accidentally killing civilians in bombing raids. "This could inflame the situation. This is the last thing we expected at this time. Our position is very clear, stop killing civilians and this killing is not acceptable to the president, to the country and to the people of Afghanistan," an official from Afghanistan's National Security Council which deals with the US army, who wished to remain unnamed, told the BBC's Bilal Sarwary. A record number of civilians were killed in Afghanistan last year. More than 2,700 civilians were killed in 2010 - up 15% on the year before. A UN report on civilian deaths said that the Taliban were responsible for 75% of all deaths. The proportion killed by Afghan and Nato forces fell, accounting for 16% of civilian deaths. Correspondents say that the deaths of Afghans by foreign hands provokes greater outrage than killings by the Taliban. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-south-asia-12803148 |
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#2
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03-21-2011, 04:40 PM
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 puelling pueman Poster Rank:171 m Join Date: Apr 2010 Posts: 8,912 Mentioned: 21 Post(s) Quoted: 2948 Post(s)
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Re: US Army Apologizes for Photos of Soldiers with Afghan Body
riiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiight  the military are such dipshits....haven't they figured out that we know they lie and decieve to make themselves look good yet....  |
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#3
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03-21-2011, 05:50 PM
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 *Born Retard* Poster Rank:101 Dude Join Date: Dec 2009 Posts: 16,041 Mentioned: 2 Post(s) Quoted: 56 Post(s)
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Re: US Army Apologizes for Photos of Soldiers with Afghan Body
"Rogue" U. S. Army unit? Hmmmm. Sounds to me like the U. S. Army wants to distance itself from any kind of culpability.
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#4
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03-21-2011, 07:07 PM
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| Patron Saint of Filth Poster Rank:3 Fem Join Date: Mar 2010 Posts: 116,089
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Re: US Army Apologizes for Photos of Soldiers with Afghan Body
Well of course they do. Who likes negative press? Says a lot about the leadership and loyalty huh.
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#5
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03-21-2011, 10:56 PM
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 Benevolent dictator Poster Rank:57 Arse fucker Join Date: May 2009 Posts: 25,643 Mentioned: 17 Post(s) Quoted: 1450 Post(s)
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Re: US Army Apologizes for Photos of Soldiers with Afghan Body
There's a danger when charging soldiers during wartime, we can't comment on this and claim the moral high ground because we don't have all the facts. War is hell, people die, some get rich, some lose everything, some fight in it, some watch it on TV. Victory can not be achieved when our troops have one hand tied behind their balls while the other grips a 10000 page rule book.
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#6
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03-22-2011, 12:19 AM
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 My Rank: FIRST SERGEANT Poster Rank:385 Join Date: Oct 2009 Posts: 3,082 Mentioned: 0 Post(s) Quoted: 144 Post(s)
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Re: US Army Apologizes for Photos of Soldiers with Afghan Body
Victory? Wtf is that and how can we get it in a shithole like Afganistan? Sounds like another American FAIL to me.
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#7
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03-22-2011, 12:32 AM
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 ★ Legacy Member ★ Poster Rank:607 female Join Date: Mar 2011 Posts: 1,507 Mentioned: 2 Post(s) Quoted: 112 Post(s)
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Re: US Army Apologizes for Photos of Soldiers with Afghan Body
During wartime or not, posing with the dead body of someone you have killed will always be, under ANY circumstances, just plain wrong to me. idc who the hell you are, it's sicko.
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#8
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03-22-2011, 12:46 AM
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 My Rank: MAJOR Poster Rank:95 Join Date: Jan 2010 Posts: 16,772 Mentioned: 261 Post(s) Quoted: 8276 Post(s)
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Re: US Army Apologizes for Photos of Soldiers with Afghan Body
We have victory in every battle we've had over their, the problem is the game never ends. They have a seemingly endless supply of bag fillers. And no one on there side thats in charge will surrender no matter how many of them die. Same as Vietnam, some people will surrender like France, and some will all die and never even think about it.
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#9
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03-22-2011, 01:03 AM
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| Benevolent dictator Poster Rank:57 Arse fucker Join Date: May 2009 Posts: 25,643 Mentioned: 17 Post(s) Quoted: 1450 Post(s)
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Re: US Army Apologizes for Photos of Soldiers with Afghan Body
Take away the ROE and give the soldiers a free hand. Asking for permission to shoot back is pathetic and counter productive. Let the troops chase enemy combatants where ever they go, let them call in airstrikes like the germans did. The troops on the ground know the situation far better than anyone else, let them decide what action is best to take.
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#10
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03-22-2011, 01:07 AM
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| Patron Saint of Filth Poster Rank:3 Fem Join Date: Mar 2010 Posts: 116,089
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Re: US Army Apologizes for Photos of Soldiers with Afghan Body
I think that the soldiers should have maintained a higher level of professionalism than they did. Taking pictures of yourself basically gloating over a dead body just isn't right. The soldiers say they do what they have to do according to orders and for the love of their country...not once have I heard one say they 'enjoy' killing others. Being a soldier is a profession and they dropped the ball.
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