MSNBC: Source: Haditha evidence implicates Marines

[leftchick]

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/14150687/

WASHINGTON - Evidence collected on the deaths of 24 Iraqis in Haditha supports accusations that U.S. Marines deliberately shot the civilians, including unarmed women and children, a Pentagon official said Wednesday.

Agents of the Naval Criminal Investigative Service have completed their initial work on the incident last November, but may be asked to probe further as Marine Corps and Navy prosecutors review the evidence and determine whether to recommend criminal charges, according to two Pentagon officials who discussed the matter on condition of anonymity.

The decision on whether to press criminal charges against four Marines ultimately will be made by the commander of the accused Marines’ parent unit, the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force at Camp Pendleton, Calif. That currently is Lt. Gen. John Sattler, but he is scheduled to move to a Pentagon assignment soon; his successor will be Lt. Gen. James Mattis.

The Marines initially reported after the Nov. 19, 2005 killings that 15 Iraqi civilians at Haditha had been killed by a makeshift roadside bomb and in crossfire between Marines and insurgent attackers. Based on accounts from survivors and human rights groups, Time magazine first reported in March that the killings were deliberate acts by the Marines.

[sabra]

1. it just gets worse and worse

[saigon68]

5. THUGGISH MURDERERING TROOPS

Here is their work


THEY SURE "WON" THESE HEARTS AND MINDS

[leesa]

2. The commander of that unit decides whether or not to press charges?

Seems like a bit of a conflict of interest.

[lebkuchen]

6. W/a new commander, who will be none other than Lt. Gen. James Mattis

Remember Mattis? The general who told a San Diego group in Feb. 2005 that "it's fun to shoot some people..." ?

http://edition.cnn.com/2005/US/02/03/general.shoot/

"Actually it's quite fun to fight them, you know. It's a hell of a hoot," Mattis said, prompting laughter from some military members in the audience. "It's fun to shoot some people. I'll be right up there with you. I like brawling.

"You go into Afghanistan, you got guys who slap women around for five years because they didn't wear a veil," Mattis said. "You know, guys like that ain't got no manhood left anyway. So it's a hell of a lot of fun to shoot them."

[gratuitous]

3. Why is this even a military investigation?

Uniformed soldiers come into your neighborhood, round up a bunch of people, and systematically pop them. Several months later, uniformed investigators come around to ask you what happened. How forthcoming do you suppose the witnesses are going to be? How cooperative would you be, suspecting that maybe the military is just coming around now to mark victims for the next massacre?

The fact that any of this has come to light at all speaks of a bravery on the part of the people of Haditha that some of our folks in uniform will never attain. The investigation should be turned over to an international tribunal as a crime against humanity, subject to the jurisdiction of the ICC.

[libhill]

4. That would probably be the best thing -

but don't just turn over the GIs, turn over the ncos, officers, and the commanders who allowed this shit to happen. And the neo con politicos too. When all these people from the top down understand that they'll be held responsible for their atrocities, maybe we'll see some return to sanity in this country.

[NashVegas]

7. This Is the Guy Who's Filing Suit on Murtha, Yes?

This atrocity?

[TechBear_Seattle]

8. Yuppers

But don't think that will stop the soldier in his GOP funded political assassination of a war hero doing his job as a voice of the people.

[libhill]

9. Now now -

we can't have an honest, straight shooting politician in D.C. - that will never do...

[Judi Lynn]

10. AP: Probe Backs Allegations Against Marines

Probe Backs Allegations Against Marines
By ROBERT BURNS, AP Military Writer

Wednesday, August 2, 2006

(08-02) 14:59 PDT WASHINGTON, (AP) --

An initial U.S. military probe supports allegations that American Marines deliberately shot 24 Iraqi civilians in Haditha last November, a Pentagon official said Wednesday.

The Marine Corps and Navy prosecutors are now reviewing the evidence to determine whether to recommend criminal charges. That decision may be weeks away, and the lawyers may ask investigators to probe further, two officials said.

They discussed the matter on condition they not be identified because the case — among the most sensational of several involving Iraqi civilian deaths — has not yet produced charges.

"It's fair to say that the majority of the work has been done," said a third official, Ed Buice, spokesman for the Naval Criminal Investigation Service that is leading the probe. "But it's impossible to predict how much longer the investigation will take. It is very much open and ongoing."
(snip/...)

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2006/08/02/national/w143609D27.DTL&type=politics