Thursday, August 03, 2006

Two American soldiers Thursday described in gruesome detail how their comrades allegedly killed three blindfolded Iraqi detainees, one of whom was covered in brain matter and another who spit blood during his dying moments.

The soldiers testified during a military hearing to decide if the four soldiers should face a military court-martial on murder charges for allegedly killing the Iraqis after detaining them in a house on May 9 near Samarra, 60 miles north of Baghdad.

[...]

Bivens said as he approached, he knew immediately that two were no longer living based on their wounds. Referring to one victim, he said: “There is no way that he could have been alive considering there was brain on the ground.”

Bivens said he never heard a discussion among the accused of a plan to kill the detainees. He also said he doesn’t recall brigade commander Col. Michael Steele ordering the soldiers to “kill all military-aged males,” as others in the unit have alleged.

At least one of the accused has said orders from Steele were to “kill all military-aged males” on the day of the mission. Several witnesses offered variations to the order in testimony, including restricting fatal shots to only those who failed to surrender.

What if the tactical mistake we made in Iraq was that we didn't kill enough Sunnis in the early going to intimidate them and make them so afraid of us they would go along with anything? Wasn't the survival of Sunni men between the ages of 15 and 35 the reason there was an insurgency and the basic cause of the sectarian violence now?

If you can't imagine George W. Bush issuing such an order, is there any American leader you could imagine doing so?