NRC
05-27-16, 09:30 AM
Major Fred Galvin (USMC retired) has been trying for over eight years, along with help from courageous men like Congressman Walter B. Jones (N.C.) and Lt. Col. Steve Morgan (USMC retired), to expose the truth of his men’s involvement in a 2007 ambush that occurred while on a patrol in Afghanistan. Fred was the commanding officer for the first Marine special operations (MARSOC) company to deploy to a combat zone since World War II. His Fox Company Marines (MSOC F) were accused of killing Afghan civilians, and that narrative was spread throughout the media as a result of a rush to judgment by several military leaders who were directly responsible for the expulsion of Fox Company from Afghanistan. This rush to judgment occurred without sufficient evidence, as later proven during a court of inquiry (COI).
One of thousands of recently declassified pages is General Nicholson’s (then a colonel) sworn testimony from the 2008 court of inquiry. It shows how, despite the facts known at the time of the 2008 COI, he still accused Fox Company of homicide even though his command, which was the first on the scene of the ambush in Bati Kot, never observed any bodies, blood, or evidence to support his accusation of a capital offense. He never actually read any of the investigation reports, even though he had the opportunity to do so prior to making his judgments.
The men of Fox Company were cleared of any wrongdoing during the COI. They were, in fact, proven to have made sound decisions in spite of the harrowing experiences they were subjected to. However, as the last eight years have passed, those men are still tormented by the stigma that has never been put to rest by the very leadership who falsely accused them. In fact, as recently as this past year, many of those leaders, along with various media outlets, as well as the International Bar Association and Amnesty International, continue to falsely accuse Fred Galvin and his men of murdering Afghan civilians. No substantial effort has been made by the military or Department of Defense to exonerate these men.
This is not an issue that should only concern Fred Galvin and his Marines, because it affects all men and women who currently serve in the Armed Forces. The officers who falsely accused Fox Company are the same leaders who now hold high-ranking positions in the military, and are largely responsible for grooming the current generation of young officers. Unless there is a change in the culture of the current crop of senior leaders, this type of situation will only continue.
You can go to the SOFREP website to find out more about this case and take action. This story will blow your mind if you read it!
One of thousands of recently declassified pages is General Nicholson’s (then a colonel) sworn testimony from the 2008 court of inquiry. It shows how, despite the facts known at the time of the 2008 COI, he still accused Fox Company of homicide even though his command, which was the first on the scene of the ambush in Bati Kot, never observed any bodies, blood, or evidence to support his accusation of a capital offense. He never actually read any of the investigation reports, even though he had the opportunity to do so prior to making his judgments.
The men of Fox Company were cleared of any wrongdoing during the COI. They were, in fact, proven to have made sound decisions in spite of the harrowing experiences they were subjected to. However, as the last eight years have passed, those men are still tormented by the stigma that has never been put to rest by the very leadership who falsely accused them. In fact, as recently as this past year, many of those leaders, along with various media outlets, as well as the International Bar Association and Amnesty International, continue to falsely accuse Fred Galvin and his men of murdering Afghan civilians. No substantial effort has been made by the military or Department of Defense to exonerate these men.
This is not an issue that should only concern Fred Galvin and his Marines, because it affects all men and women who currently serve in the Armed Forces. The officers who falsely accused Fox Company are the same leaders who now hold high-ranking positions in the military, and are largely responsible for grooming the current generation of young officers. Unless there is a change in the culture of the current crop of senior leaders, this type of situation will only continue.
You can go to the SOFREP website to find out more about this case and take action. This story will blow your mind if you read it!