From: William Gladys <william.gladys@tiscali.co.uk>
Date: Mon, Mar 21, 2011 at 5:03 PM
Subject: Fw: Backlash feared over Afghan body pictures
To: Al-Hilal <Al-Hilal@sky.com>
Cc: world_Politics@googlegroups.com
http://news.scotsman.com/world/Backlash-feared-over-Afghan-body.6737473.jp
Backlash feared over Afghan body pictures
Published Date: 21 March 2011
By JEROME STARKEY
in KABUL
Gruesome photographs of American soldiers desecrating dead bodies in southern Afghanistan hit news stands in Germany yesterday, raising fears of a violent backlash around the world.
Thousands of photographs, obtained by the German news magazine Der Spiegel, show soldiers posing for "trophy photographs" with freshly dead corpses in Kandahar province.
In one image two corpses sit upright, handcuffed together, in a second a dead body lies face down in the dirt, with his trousers pulled down, while an American soldier stands nearby - grinning at the camera.
In a statement, the US army said the images depict actions, "repugnant to us as human beings" and contrary to the values of the army.
"We apologize for the distress these photos cause," the statement said. "The actions portrayed in these photographs remain under investigation and are now the subject of ongoing US court-martial proceedings,"
The images were all taken in 2010 and a number of soldiers involved are currently on trial for murder.
"These court-martial proceedings speak for themselves," the statement continued. "The photos appear in stark contrast to the discipline, professionalism and respect that have characterized our soldiers' performance during nearly ten years of sustained operations. It would be improper to comment further on these photographs at this time. The United States Army is committed to adherence to the Law of War and the humane and respectful treatment of combatants, noncombatants, and the dead."
The men, part of the Stryker Brigade, described themselves as a "Kill Team," and they are accused of deliberately faking enemy ambushes so they could open fire on unarmed men.
"The Kill Team photographed their victims as if the soldiers were really on a trophy hunt in Afghanistan," Der Spiegel claimed. "As if their gruesome souvenirs should later prove what kind of hotshots they were."
Der Spiegel, which only published three of more than 4,000 photographs collected as part of the court martial investigation, said the images are perhaps even "more disgusting" than images of US troops torturing inmates at Abu Ghraib Prison, in Iraq.
Those images, published in 2004, showed naked prisoners being dragged around on leads and piled on top of each other, and sparked a wave of global outrage
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