An amateur video taken with a cell phone showed four Marines urinating on dead Afghan bodies. Wearing their combat uniforms and carrying weapons, the Marines laughed and urinated on the three corpses, who were either Taliban fighters or civilians. One Marine in the video said, “Have a great day, buddy.”
Pentagon officials and Defense Secretary Leon Panetta vowed to investigate the incident. They said that the video was authentic and identified that the Marines were from the 3rd battalion, 2nd Marines, which is based at Camp Lejeune North Carolina. The men were scouts or snipers, members of an elite unit and served in Afghanistan last year.
Secretary Panetta called Afghan President Hamid Karzai to promise him of a scrupulous and comprehensive investigation. Karzai called the video “simply inhuman and condemnable in the strongest possible terms."
The NATO- led coalition in Afghanistan also expressed their rage over the behavior of the U.S. Marines. They said the behavior “dishonors the sacrifices and core values of every service member representing the 50 nations of the coalition.”
Meanwhile, the scandalous video could jeopardize the prospective peace talks between the U.S. government and the Talibans. The video undermines the efforts of U.S. to quell the rebellion and win the support of the civilians. Although the Taliban spokesman condemned the video, there was no sign that they would disrupt the talks.
Panetta already ordered Marine Corps Gen. John Allen to start a thorough investigation. Marine Corps commandant, Gen. James Amos said that he had already ordered for a preliminary investigation.
Those who would be proven accountable could be prosecuted under Article 134 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice for discrediting the Armed forces. They could also be charged of violating Article 92, which includes failure to obey an order and negligence of duty. Moreover, under military justice code, the four Marines’ commander could also be charged and punished if it is proven that the actions were tolerated.
This is not the first time that actions like this were done. In 2004, images of troops abusing prisoners in Abu Ghraib in Iraq came to public attention. Furthermore, last 2010, American troops were charged of killing Afghan civilians and keeping their bodies as trophies.
3 comments:
Though war is hard and there are many things that you need to do to survive, we don't need to act like animals. This is acting like animals. Showing this much disrespect for your fellow man is completely immoral and inhumane. Sure your firing guns and killing people, but do you also have to desecrate them? The answer should be know. Let the dead lie because though someone might be dead, that doesn't mean he is no longer human. This is exactly the reason why so many Afghan citizens don't like us very much. Not only do we bomb their houses and kill their husbands, wives, and children, but we take it a step further and pee on them. I wouldn't like us either if I were them. I support he troops because they are there fighting and risking their lives for us so I will always give them my respect. However, that will not prevent me from saying that they need to realize that in a war, you represent your country even as you complete missions and follow orders. I for one don not our troops to represent us as a nation that finds it okay to relieve ourselves on the dead bodies of fallen soldiers (who fought for their country in the same way that our troops fight for ours).
This is nothing short of disgusting. Not only did these Marines completely violate the sanctity of the dead, but in a simple cell phone video managed to undermine the efforts of an entire country, further tarnishing the American image in a country that has already experienced so much strife. Furthermore, their actions are enormously contradictory--violating human rights while occupying a country where respect for human rights is a message trying to be delivered. And while these Marines' actions may not exemplify the American perspective, such actions on the part of America's armed forces serve only to demonstrate American contempt to an already less-than-welcoming Afghanistan. Serving as Marines, these men ought to have considered the enormous repercussions of such an act of blatant disrespect and overall immaturity.
When I heard about this event, I was thoroughly disgusted with the fact that some of our marines could have committed such atrocious crimes. In the U.S. we have laws against desecrating a dead body. Everyone in the U.S. must abide by this law. I hope that the government will punish the marines that committed these crimes. Not only was this a mad choice morally, but because of these actions we could jeopardize our relationships with foreign nations who look down upon our country as vile, disrespectful, and crude citizens.
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