Investigation into video of men urinating on Taliban corpses
A video published on the internet, showing what appear to be US forces in Afghanistan urinating on the bodies of dead Taliban fighters, is to be investigated by the Marine Corps.
The video, which was posted on YouTube and other websites, shows four men in camouflage Marine combat uniforms urinating on three corpses. One of them jokes: “Have a nice day, buddy.”
Channel 4 News is unable to independently verify the video.
The video surfaced at a time when Washington is attempting to promote Afghan reconciliation as US troops gradually withdraw from the country.
“While we have not yet verified the origin or authenticity of this video, the actions portrayed are not consistent with our core values and are not indicative of the character of the Marines in our corps,” the Marines said in a statement.
“This matter will be fully investigated.”
Abu Ghraib prisoner abuse scandal
A Muslim civil rights group in the US condemned the alleged desecration of corpses in a letter to Defence Secretary Leon Panetta.
“Any guilty parties must be punished to the full extent allowed by the Uniform Code of Military Justice and by relevant American laws,” the Council on American-Islamic Relations said.
The US military has been prosecuting soldiers from the army’s 5th Stryker Brigade on charges of murdering unarmed Afghan civilians while deployed in Kandahar province in 2010.
Last year, photographs showed soldiers posing with the bloodied corpse of an Afghan boy they had just killed.
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