Analysis: Marine scandal could roil Iraq
By ROBERT H. REID, Associated Press Writer 1 hour, 32 minutes ago
BAGHDAD, Iraq - The U.S. military is bracing for a major scandal
over the
alleged slaying of Iraqi civilians by Marines in Haditha — charges
so serious
they could threaten President Bush's effort to rally support at
home for an
increasingly unpopular war.
And while the case has attracted little attention so far in Iraq,
it still
could enflame hostility to the U.S. presence just as Iraq's new
government is
getting established, and complicate efforts by moderate Sunni Arab
leaders to
reach out to their community — the bedrock of the insurgency.
U.S. lawmakers have been told the criminal investigation will be
finished in
about 30 days. But a Pentagon official said investigators believe
Marines
committed unprovoked murder in the deaths of about two dozen people
at Haditha in
November.
With a political storm brewing, the top U.S. Marine, Gen. Michael
W. Hagee,
is headed to Iraq to personally deliver the message that troops
should use
deadly force "only when justified, proportional and, most
importantly, lawful."
Haditha is not the only case pending: On Wednesday, the military
announced an
investigation into allegations that Marines killed a civilian April
26 near
Fallujah. The statement gave no further details except that
"several service
members" had been sent back to the United States "pending the
results of the
criminal investigation."
Last July, Iraq's ambassador to the United Nations, Samir al-
Sumaidaie,
accused the Marines of killing his 21-year-old cousin in cold blood
during a search
of his family's home in Haditha, a city of about 90,000 people
along the
Euphrates River 140 miles northwest of Baghdad.
The military ordered a criminal investigation but the results have
not been
announced.
Together, the cases present the most serious challenge to U.S.
handling of
the Iraq war since the Abu Ghraib prison scandal, which Bush cited
Thursday as
"the biggest mistake that's happened so far, at least from our
country's
involvement in Iraq."
"What happened at Haditha appears to be outright murder," said Marc
Garlasco
of Human Rights Watch. "It has the potential to blow up in the U.S.
military's
face."
He said that "the Haditha massacre will go down as Iraq's My Lai," a
reference to the Vietnam War incident in which American soldiers
slaughtered up to 500
civilians in 1968.
The Haditha case involves both the alleged killing of civilians and a
purported cover-up of the events that unfolded Nov. 19.
That day, Lance Cpl. Miguel Terrazas, 20, of El Paso, Texas, was
killed by a
roadside bomb in Haditha, a Sunni Arab city considered among the
most hostile
areas of Iraq.
After the blast, insurgents attacked a joint U.S.-Iraqi patrol with
small-arms fire, triggering a gunbattle that left eight insurgents
and 15 Iraqi
civilians dead, the Marines said in a statement issued the
following day.
That version stood for four months until a videotape shot by an Iraqi
journalism student surfaced, obtained by Time magazine and then by
Arab television
stations. The tape showed the bodies of women and children, some in
their
nightclothes.
Although the tape did not prove Marines were responsible, the
military began
an investigation. Residents came forward with claims that Marines
entered two
homes and killed 15 people, including a 3-year-old girl and a 76-
year-old man —
more than four hours after the roadside bombing.
It isn't clear if questions have been raised about the eight slain
people
that the Marines described as insurgents.
In March, Lt. Gen. Peter Chiarelli, the No. 2 U.S. commander in
Iraq, said
about a dozen Marines were under investigation for possible war
crimes in the
incident. Three officers from the unit involved have been relieved
of their
posts.
Such incidents have reinforced the perception among many Iraqis who
believe
American troops are trigger-happy — a characterization U.S.
officers strongly
dispute.
"America in the view of many Iraqis has no credibility. We do not
believe
what they say is correct," said Sheik Sattar al-Aasaf, a tribal
leader in Anbar
province, which includes Haditha. "U.S. troops are a very well-
trained and when
they shoot, it isn't random but due to an order to kill Iraqis.
People say
they are the killers."
Ayda Aasran, a deputy human rights minister, said Iraqis should be
allowed to
investigate such cases — something the U.S. command has refused to
permit.
Sunni political leaders will find it difficult to defend U.S.
actions, even
those aimed at establishing the truth, if they want to maintain
their position
as leaders of the Iraqi minority that provides most of the insurgents.
Even if criminal charges are brought in the Haditha incident, Sunni
insurgents are likely to claim the case is simply a charade and
argue that the Marines
will escape serious punishment.
Haditha, site of a major hydroelectric dam, has long been
considered a tough
case. It is among a string of Euphrates Valley towns used by
insurgents and
foreign fighters to infiltrate from Syria to reach Baghdad and the
Sunni
heartland.
Many Marines have complained to journalists that they conduct
repeated sweeps
through villages to drive out the insurgents, who then reappear
when the
Americans leave. That has bred a sense of frustration among troops
fighting a
difficult war with no end in sight.
Reporters who embedded in Haditha several months before the alleged
massacre
said Marines considered the town as enemy territory, with frequent
roadside
bombings. During patrols inside the city, Marines treated
inhabitants like
terrorists, raiding their homes.
An Associated Press journalist who traveled in Haditha last June
with a
Marine unit not involved in the November killings saw a Marine
urinate on the
kitchen floor of a home and on another occasion saw insults chalked
in English on
the gate of an Arab home. The reporter asked a Marine commander
about the
incident and was told it would be investigated.
Last August, the British newspaper The Guardian reported that
Haditha was
under the control of religious extremists who enforced their own
strict
interpretation of Islamic law — including decapitations of people
suspected of
collaborating with the Americans.
"This is a war in which the distinction between killing the enemy and
massacring civilians is not always completely obvious," said John
Pike of
GlobalSecurity.org. "Counterinsurgency operations are particularly
prone to the killing
of people who, in retrospect, are judged to have been innocent
civilians, but
who in the heat of battle seemed to be the enemy."
Some analysts, however, say the killings of civilians also reflect
frustration among young troops fighting a difficult war with no end
in sight. They say
these young fighters have been thrust into an alien culture for
repeated tours
in a war whose strategy many of them do not understand.
"What we're seeing more of now, and these incidents will increase
monthly, is
the end result of fuzzy, imprecise national direction combined with
situational ethics at the highest levels of this government," said
retired Air Force
Col. Mike Turner, a former planner at the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
___
Robert H. Reid is correspondent at large for The Associated Press
and has
reported frequently from Iraq since 2003.
___
Associated Press writer Jacob Silberberg contributed to this report.
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#ffffff"><STRONG><FONT size=4>Analysis: Marine scandal could roil
Iraq</FONT></STRONG> <!-- END HEADLINE -->
<DIV id=ynmain><!-- BEGIN STORY BODY -->
<DIV id=storybody>
<DIV class=storyhdr>
<P><SPAN>By ROBERT H. REID, Associated Press Writer </SPAN><EM
class=recenttimedate>1 hour, 32 minutes ago</EM> </P>
<DIV class=spacer></DIV></DIV>
<P>BAGHDAD, Iraq - The U.S. military is bracing for a major scandal
over the alleged slaying of Iraqi civilians by Marines in Haditha —
charges so serious they could threaten <SPAN class=yqlink><A
class=yqimgins title="Related information on President Bush"
onclick="activateYQinl(this);return false;" href="http://
search.news.yahoo.com/search/news/?p=President+Bush"><STRONG><FONT
color=#000000>President Bush</FONT></STRONG></A></SPAN>'s effort to
rally support at home for an increasingly unpopular war. </P>
<DIV class=lrec>And while the case has attracted little attention
so far in <SPAN class=yqlink><A class=yqimgins title="Related
information on Iraq" onclick="activateYQinl(this);return false;"
href="http://search.news.yahoo.com/search/news/?
p=Iraq"><STRONG><FONT color=#000000>Iraq</FONT></STRONG></A></
SPAN>, it still could enflame hostility to the U.S. presence just
as Iraq's new government is getting established, and complicate
efforts by moderate Sunni Arab leaders to reach out to their
community — the bedrock of the insurgency.</DIV>
<P>U.S. lawmakers have been told the criminal investigation will be
finished in about 30 days. But a <SPAN class=yqlink><A
class=yqimgins title="Related information on Pentagon"
onclick="activateYQinl(this);return false;" href="http://
search.news.yahoo.com/search/news/?p=Pentagon"><STRONG><FONT
color=#000000>Pentagon</FONT></STRONG></A></SPAN> official said
investigators believe Marines committed unprovoked murder in the
deaths of about two dozen people at Haditha in November.</P>
<P>With a political storm brewing, the top U.S. Marine, Gen.
Michael W. Hagee, is headed to Iraq to personally deliver the
message that troops should use deadly force "only when justified,
proportional and, most importantly, lawful."</P>
<P>Haditha is not the only case pending: On Wednesday, the military
announced an investigation into allegations that Marines killed a
civilian April 26 near Fallujah. The statement gave no further
details except that "several service members" had been sent back to
the United States "pending the results of the criminal
investigation."</P>
<P>Last July, Iraq's ambassador to the <SPAN class=yqlink><A
class=yqimgins title="Related information on United Nations"
onclick="activateYQinl(this);return false;" href="http://
search.news.yahoo.com/search/news/?p=United+Nations"><STRONG><FONT
color=#000000>United Nations</FONT></STRONG></A></SPAN>, Samir al-
Sumaidaie, accused the Marines of killing his 21-year-old cousin in
cold blood during a search of his family's home in Haditha, a city
of about 90,000 people along the Euphrates River 140 miles
northwest of Baghdad.</P>
<P>The military ordered a criminal investigation but the results
have not been announced.</P>
<P>Together, the cases present the most serious challenge to U.S.
handling of the Iraq war since the <SPAN class=yqlink><A
class=yqimgins title="Related information on Abu Ghraib"
onclick="activateYQinl(this);return false;" href="http://
search.news.yahoo.com/search/news/?p=Abu+Ghraib"><STRONG><FONT
color=#000000>Abu Ghraib</FONT></STRONG></A></SPAN> prison scandal,
which Bush cited Thursday as "the biggest mistake that's happened
so far, at least from our country's involvement in Iraq."</P>
<P>"What happened at Haditha appears to be outright murder," said
Marc Garlasco of Human Rights Watch. "It has the potential to blow
up in the U.S. military's face."</P>
<P>He said that "the Haditha massacre will go down as Iraq's My
Lai," a reference to the Vietnam War incident in which American
soldiers slaughtered up to 500 civilians in 1968.</P>
<P>The Haditha case involves both the alleged killing of civilians
and a purported cover-up of the events that unfolded Nov. 19.</P>
<P>That day, Lance Cpl. Miguel Terrazas, 20, of El Paso, Texas, was
killed by a roadside bomb in Haditha, a Sunni Arab city considered
among the most hostile areas of Iraq.</P>
<P>After the blast, insurgents attacked a joint U.S.-Iraqi patrol
with small-arms fire, triggering a gunbattle that left eight
insurgents and 15 Iraqi civilians dead, the Marines said in a
statement issued the following day.</P>
<P>That version stood for four months until a videotape shot by an
Iraqi journalism student surfaced, obtained by Time magazine and
then by Arab television stations. The tape showed the bodies of
women and children, some in their nightclothes.</P>
<P>Although the tape did not prove Marines were responsible, the
military began an investigation. Residents came forward with claims
that Marines entered two homes and killed 15 people, including a 3-
year-old girl and a 76-year-old man — more than four hours after
the roadside bombing.</P>
<P>It isn't clear if questions have been raised about the eight
slain people that the Marines described as insurgents.</P>
<P>In March, Lt. Gen. Peter Chiarelli, the No. 2 U.S. commander in
Iraq, said about a dozen Marines were under investigation for
possible war crimes in the incident. Three officers from the unit
involved have been relieved of their posts.</P>
<P>Such incidents have reinforced the perception among many Iraqis
who believe American troops are trigger-happy — a characterization
U.S. officers strongly dispute.
<P>"America in the view of many Iraqis has no credibility. We do
not believe what they say is correct," said Sheik Sattar al-Aasaf,
a tribal leader in Anbar province, which includes Haditha. "U.S.
troops are a very well-trained and when they shoot, it isn't random
but due to an order to kill Iraqis. People say they are the killers."
<P>Ayda Aasran, a deputy human rights minister, said Iraqis should
be allowed to investigate such cases — something the U.S. command
has refused to permit.
<P>Sunni political leaders will find it difficult to defend U.S.
actions, even those aimed at establishing the truth, if they want
to maintain their position as leaders of the Iraqi minority that
provides most of the insurgents.
<P>Even if criminal charges are brought in the Haditha incident,
Sunni insurgents are likely to claim the case is simply a charade
and argue that the Marines will escape serious punishment.
<P>Haditha, site of a major hydroelectric dam, has long been
considered a tough case. It is among a string of Euphrates Valley
towns used by insurgents and foreign fighters to infiltrate from
<SPAN class=yqlink><A class=yqimgins title="Related information on
Syria" onclick="activateYQinl(this);return false;" href="http://
search.news.yahoo.com/search/news/?p=Syria"><STRONG><FONT
color=#000000>Syria</FONT></STRONG></A></SPAN> to reach Baghdad and
the Sunni heartland.
<P>Many Marines have complained to journalists that they conduct
repeated sweeps through villages to drive out the insurgents, who
then reappear when the Americans leave. That has bred a sense of
frustration among troops fighting a difficult war with no end in
sight.
<P>Reporters who embedded in Haditha several months before the
alleged massacre said Marines considered the town as enemy
territory, with frequent roadside bombings. During patrols inside
the city, Marines treated inhabitants like terrorists, raiding
their homes.
<P>An Associated Press journalist who traveled in Haditha last June
with a Marine unit not involved in the November killings saw a
Marine urinate on the kitchen floor of a home and on another
occasion saw insults chalked in English on the gate of an Arab
home. The reporter asked a Marine commander about the incident and
was told it would be investigated.
<P>Last August, the British newspaper The Guardian reported that
Haditha was under the control of religious extremists who enforced
their own strict interpretation of Islamic law — including
decapitations of people suspected of collaborating with the Americans.
<P>"This is a war in which the distinction between killing the
enemy and massacring civilians is not always completely obvious,"
said John Pike of GlobalSecurity.org. "Counterinsurgency operations
are particularly prone to the killing of people who, in retrospect,
are judged to have been innocent civilians, but who in the heat of
battle seemed to be the enemy."
<P>Some analysts, however, say the killings of civilians also
reflect frustration among young troops fighting a difficult war
with no end in sight. They say these young fighters have been
thrust into an alien culture for repeated tours in a war whose
strategy many of them do not understand.
<P>"What we're seeing more of now, and these incidents will
increase monthly, is the end result of fuzzy, imprecise national
direction combined with situational ethics at the highest levels of
this government," said retired Air Force Col. Mike Turner, a former
planner at the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
<P>___
<P>Robert H. Reid is correspondent at large for The Associated
Press and has reported frequently from Iraq since 2003.
<P>___
<P>Associated Press writer Jacob Silberberg contributed to this
report.</P></DIV></DIV></BODY></HTML>
-------------------------------1148777644--
