No Court-Martial in Iraq Mosque Shooting

[thedrifter]

No Court-Martial in Iraq Mosque Shooting

By SETH HETTENA, Associated Press Writer




SAN DIEGO - A Marine corporal who was videotaped shooting an apparently injured and unarmed Iraqi in a Fallujah mosque last year will not face court-martial, the Marine Corps announced Wednesday.

Maj. Gen. Richard F. Natonski, commanding general of the I Marine Expeditionary Force, said that a review of the evidence showed the Marine's actions in the shooting were "consistent with the established rules of engagement and the law of armed conflict."

The corporal was not identified in a two-page statement issued by Camp Pendleton, the headquarters of the expeditionary force north of San Diego.

The Nov. 13 incident was videotaped by Kevin Sites, a freelance journalist on assignment for NBC.

The shooting occurred when a Marine unit entered the mosque and found five men wounded in fighting at the site the day before, when another Marine unit clashed with gunmen apparently using the mosque to fire from, according to Sites' broadcast.

In the video, as the cameraman moved into the mosque, a Marine in the background can be heard shouting obscenities and yelling that one of the men was only pretending to be dead. The Marine then raises his rifle toward an Iraqi lying on the floor of the mosque and shoots the man.

Before the opening of the Nov. 8 assault on rebel-held Fallujah, Marine commanders told infantrymen that the rules of engagement allowed for use of deadly force against men of military age deemed holding hostile intent, even if the enemy didn't fire on the Marines first.

Ellie

[yellowwing]

Thank goodness for this Corporal!

Who ever you are , CPL, Semper Fidelis! :marine:

[Arlene Horton]

Well, well, well, it looks as though there are some with brains in the military legal system! Semper Fi, Corporal.

[thedrifter]

MARINE CLEARED IN SHOOTING <br />
By Neal Boortz <br />
May 5, 2005 <br />
<br />
Boy, military investigations sure seem to be doing their jobs lately. Navy investigators have cleared the Marine that shot an insurgent dead...

[thedrifter]

Review exonerates Marine in mosque shooting
Associated Press

SAN DIEGO — A Marine corporal who was videotaped shooting an apparently injured and unarmed Iraqi in a Fallujah mosque last year will not face a court-martial, the Marine Corps announced Wednesday.

A review of the evidence showed the Marine's actions were "consistent with the established rules of engagement and the law of armed conflict," Maj. Gen. Richard F. Natonski, commanding general of the 1st Marine Division, said in a statement.

The corporal was not identified in the two-page statement issued by Camp Pendleton, the headquarters of the expeditionary force north of San Diego.

In sworn statements, the corporal said he shot three insurgents in self-defense in the mosque Nov. 13, believing they posed a threat to him and his fellow Marines, the statement said. Autopsy results showed that all three died of multiple wounds from gunshots fired from the corporal's M-16.

One of the shootings was recorded by Kevin Sites, an NBC cameraman embedded with the Marines, and the dramatic footage prompted outrage among Iraqis and an immediate investigation by the Marine Corps.

In the video, as the cameraman moved into the mosque, a Marine in the background could be heard shouting obscenities and yelling that one of the men was only pretending to be dead. The Marine then raised his rifle toward an Iraqi lying on the floor of the mosque and shot him.

The incident played out as the division's 3rd Battalion, 1st Regiment, returned to the unidentified Fallujah mosque. While Marines had secured the mosque complex on the previous day, intelligence reports indicated that the mosque had since been reoccupied by insurgents.

The Camp Pendleton statement said the corporal "could have reasonably believed that the AIF (anti- Iraq forces) shown in the videotape posed a hostile threat justifying his use of deadly force."

Before the opening of the Nov. 8 assault on rebel-held Fallujah, Marine commanders told infantrymen that the rules of engagement allowed the use of deadly force against men of military age deemed holding hostile intent, even if the enemy didn't fire on the Marines first.

According to the Marine Corps, an enhanced videotape of the shooting supports the corporal's claim that the wounded Iraqi was concealing his left arm behind his head. Although the Marines said it was unclear from the video whether the Iraqi made any overtly threatening gestures, enemy forces commonly feigned death.

The investigation consisted of 22 interviews with Marines, autopsy reports, ballistic tests and the videotape of the shooting. The Marine was brought back from Iraq following the shooting. He remains at Camp Pendleton, said Lt. Col. T.V. Johnson, a Marine spokesman.

A fourth Iraqi also was shot and killed in the mosque complex, but the bullets could not be traced to the corporal's weapon, according to the statement. The investigation is ongoing into the death of the fourth insurgent, Johnson said.


Ellie

[rick taylor]

This a great day.About time someone did what is right. Semper Fi Corporal. God Bless all our Men and Women in harms way. R.T.

[USMC-FO]

This was the only reasonable and possible answer. My only frustration on the matter was that it took so freaking long to come to an obvious conclusion.

The clip of that incident should be played over and over now so the American public will, perhaps, understand this is what a war is and this is what is absolutely going to be required as circumstances dictate.

[Namvet67]

That news just made my day! This never should have made it to a court room. It's over now....I hope the Cpl can get over this and get on with the rest of his life. Maybe the media will learn something over this (fat chance!). Semper Fi

[booksbenji]

:marine:


THE MARINE WAS DOING HIS YOB(JOB). PROTECTING HIS MARINES.

4 THOSE WHO FOUGHT IN THE "RICE PADDIES" SOME PEOPLE 'SAW THE LITE". WAR IS WAR AND THAT'S THAT, OK.

Semper Fi

books :marine:

[Namvet67]

Amen Brother!

[Osotogary]

Great news!
Whatever happened to the camera man? I wonder if he is still in the Iraqi/Afghan theatre of operations with the troops.

[jinelson]

Outstanding!

[CHOPPER7199]

LOOKS LIKE WE GOT A SMART GENERAL THERE. GOOD LUCK CPL.

[Old Marine]

Glad to see that someone is finally figureing out that this is not a game we have going on over there. Life and death decisions have to be made on the spur of the moment.

[sgt.r.n.davis]

ya! i watched that tape about 8 times and it clearly shows that he had every reason to take out the enemy combatain before he could blow up the cpl. or any other of his marines in harms way inside the building. if you remember the jap's did the same thing by booby trapping dead bodies and the wounded would wait for the marines to show up after taking the battle and blow them up or roll over and shoot them. the rules of engagement states while on the battle field and the enemy is with in your sights to protect and defend yourself and all your buddies.
we need not forget the mission as did the cpl. kill or be killed. these folks are blood thirsty murders they have a mind set to kill men ,women, children all in the name of there satanic beliefs. they are not civilized folk ,they are lost back in the 5th. century,rape,piliage, and butcher, babies are no reason for these folks to stop. all in the name of false and misguided god called ali.

always remember that ,a successful battle is waged first in the mind.
lets keep our troops in our prayers every day. and all you marines that made it home, never will you forget.

[BUDMAN]

Semper Fi

Thank God

[jpungello]

To All this Marine was correct in what he has doing in combat to must do what you have to do to stay alive.

Cpl. Joe Pungello
1969-1973