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| Afghanistan |
| Death penalty possible in Afghan massacre: Panetta |
| 2012-03-13 |
| Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said on Monday that the death penalty could be sought over the massacre of 16 villagers in Afghanistan, which U.S. officials said they believe was the work of a rogue American soldier. The shooting spree in the southern province of Kandahar, which killed mostly women and children, has triggered angry calls from Afghans for an immediate American exit from the country, as Washington tries to negotiate a long-term presence to keep it from sliding into chaos again. Panetta, however, attempted to portray the shooting as an isolated event that would not alter plans for a gradual, orderly withdrawal of American combat forces by the end of 2014. "War is hell. These kinds of events and incidents are going to take place, they've taken place in any war. They're terrible events. And this is not the first of those events, and it probably won't be the last," the defense secretary told reporters on a flight to Kyrgyzstan. "But we cannot allow these events to undermine our strategy or the mission that we're involved in." Panetta, answering questions for the first time about the shooting rampage, said U.S. officials were still uncertain about the motives behind it. |
| Posted by:tipper |
| #12 He went out a mile, shot the group, walked back more than a mile, shot one person, and then surrendered on base. I Am afraid I may know too much already. |
| Posted by: newc 2012-03-13 20:16 |
| #11 From February 20, Head of Madigan Hospital at Ft. Lewis relieved less than a year after taking command. |
| Posted by: Anonymoose 2012-03-13 18:05 |
| #10 We will see what mitigating circumstances this troop has surrounding his act. I do know the area they are in was one of the nastiest AL-Q areas in that country. It's a little early yet. |
| Posted by: newc 2012-03-13 11:57 |
| #9 More on the deeply troubled Fort Lewis. |
| Posted by: Anonymoose 2012-03-13 10:22 |
| #8 Here is a story with a lot more details about the shooter. What really got my attention is that he was from Fort Lewis, that is in the midst of a huge scandal for downgrading 300 severe PTSD cases in 2007, giving them meds, and shipping them back to the front, which is a recipe for disaster. Several other bad scandals as well. Obviously a breakdown in the chain of command. All indications are that things have not improved there. The hospital is very understaffed, and the post is still under great pressure to rotate injured personnel back into combat. |
| Posted by: Anonymoose 2012-03-13 08:59 |
| #7 You bet there is Charles, but we'll be lucky if Obama and Holder don't hand the soldier over to Afghan courts. |
| Posted by: Besoeker 2012-03-13 08:23 |
| #6 I'm sorry, didn't we lose a Colonel and a Major inside Afgan Police HQ, in one of the "Most secure places in the country"? Maybe we'll consider this, CONSIDER, if we get the people responsible for that. And we still haven't head exactly what his soldier's motivation was or the connection to the Villages he had. Oh they know damn well what it is. Bet your ass they know EXACTLY why this soldier went off the deep end. That they haven't said it and are spouting "brain Injury" is nothing but deflection. There's a STORY behind this. |
| Posted by: Charles 2012-03-13 08:03 |
| #5 grom, I figure getting that int'l approval would be pretty easy. |
| Posted by: Glenmore 2012-03-13 07:35 |
| #4 Without seeking the approval of int. community, first? |
| Posted by: g(r)omgoru 2012-03-13 03:46 |
| #3 Death Penalty. Right. Where have these clowns been for the last couple decades as the Military Court of Appeals has shut that down. Oh, now they're interested. |
| Posted by: Procopius2k 2012-03-13 02:08 |
| #2 I take it there is still no comment from Secretary Panetta or the White House concerning the fate of Major Nidal Malik Hasan, the suspected perpetrator of the 5 Nov 2009, Fort Hood shooting which resulted in 13 deaths and 29 injured service memebers, and the shattered lives of hundreds of friends, colleagues, parents and family members ????? |
| Posted by: Besoeker 2012-03-13 01:57 |
| #1 I've already seen reports that the suspect sustained traumatic brain injury from the effects of an IED encountered earlier ion his service. If that is the case, and if he goes to trial, any normal legal process would take into consideration that pathology, and would be likely to eliminate the death penalty as an option. But - give the pattern over the last ten years of consistently pandering to the barbaric whims of the muslim orcs - I presume that the shooter is toast, if he is convicted. I will say - this certainly does not sound like the kind of guy that you want to put back out onto the mean streets of hometown USA. |
| Posted by: Lone Ranger 2012-03-13 01:28 |