14-year-old repeatedly raped as relatives die

[uppityperson]

http://www.courier-journal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=200990413001

Stripping off their uniforms, the soldiers put on civilian clothes, trying to remove any sign they were U.S. soldiers. Cortez and Barker covered their faces with Army-issued cold-weather masks so that only their eyes and noses were visible. Pfc. Bryan Howard had been told to stay behind; Cortez gave him a walkie-talkie and instructed him to sound a warning if any officer approached.

Then Green, Barker, Cortez and Spielman — who later claimed he didn't know the mission's goal — set off through a field, according to the soldiers' trial testimony. Heavily armed, they stopped only so Barker could cut a security fence with his Army-issued Gerber knife. They found 35-year-old Kassem Hamza Al-Janabi, and his 6-year-old daughter, Hadeel, standing in the yard, according to a detailed account Cortez and Barker gave when they pleaded guilty at their courts-martial.

(details clipped)

COVER-UP BEGINS
Evidence destroyed; Green admonished
The first Army reports suggested the murders might be the work of insurgents, or possibly the result of a tribal or family dispute. Assigned to investigate, Sgt. Anthony Yribe took Cortez and Spielman to the al-Janabis' home, unaware of their roles in the crime. Inside the house, Yribe recalled later, Spielman was calm, but Cortez was "dry heaving." In the bedroom, Yribe spotted a shell from a shotgun, a weapon that only Army soldiers used in Iraq. Yribe told Cortez about it and then let him secretly remove and destroy the shell, Yribe later admitted. On the way back to the checkpoint, Yribe said, he ran into Green, who appeared to be waiting for him. Yribe said Green confessed to the crime and claimed to have pulled it off alone. "'I did that shit,'" Yribe said Green told him.

Yribe later said he didn't believe a soldier could have pulled off the offenses alone, but instead of reporting Green — or his suspicions that others were involved — Yribe told Green he must leave the Army. "Get out of the Army," Yribe later recalled telling Green, "or I'll get you out."... (more@link)

Steven Green's trial begins 4/27. They just finished with jury selection.
http://www.courier-journal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2009904180391

...Opening statements are set to begin April 27 in federal court in Paducah, following a break. Attorneys yesterday selected the jury -- 15 women and three men -- from a pool of 80 prospective candidates.
(clip)
Prosecutors say that they will ask for a death sentence if Green is convicted.
(clip)
Testimony is expected to include four soldiers who were with Green's unit in the 1st Battalion, 502nd Infantry Regiment. Three of those soldiers have pleaded guilty at courts-martial to having roles in the attack, and a fourth was convicted. Those soldiers received sentences ranging from five years to 110 years for what authorities described as their roles in targeting the girl from a checkpoint near a village 20 miles south of Baghdad.

Prosecutors listed nearly a half-dozen members of the al-Janabi family as potential witnesses. They will have a court-certified interpreter who will also be available to the defense for witness interviews, Assistant U.S. Attorney Marisa Ford said.

[Mari333]

1. meanwhile, George Bush and his friends

are enjoying a cool glass of lemonade in their multi million dollar mansions, not the least bit worried that anyone will ever hold them accountable for anything.

[stillcool]

3. why would they be worried?

They had complete legal authority to invade and occupy Iraq, and the Iraqi's are still suffering and dying. Maybe some day when the United States, or the Bush Crime family lose their influence on the world stage, they will find some justice, after all they are the victims.

[uppityperson]

5. Reading more on this, I'd like to see several higher ups held

responsible also, for enlisting him, for covering it up, for keeping him in, for simply sending him back to the USA civilian population.

[proud2BlibKansan]

2. Lord have mercy on our country

Yesterday we heard that children were tortured with insects.

Today we are reminded of this.

We are descending into a hell on earth. I am honestly ashamed to be an American.

[Enthusiast]

29. You are just one of those

blame America first types.






















:hide: :sarcasm:

[cali]

4. chilling. and not atypical for a war time crime.

tragically. war truly sucks.

[LeFleur1]

6. Just More Torture

When you let loose the devils of torture, you allow devils to feel it is their right to commit torture.

[uppityperson]

7. Then they just sent him home. Simply kicked him out, sent him home.

Knowing what they did, they sent him home.

[Odin2005]

8. The rapists deserve a bullet thoguh their heads.

:grr:

[uppityperson]

10. some other military from that group were killed by family/friends, it is thought

There were several military guys killed later, they think it was by family/friends.

[Journeyman]

14. Kristian Menchaca, Thomas Tucker, David Babineau . . .

carve their names deep in the flesh of Green and Barker, Cortez and Spielman, Howard too, make them forever remember the pain and death they caused an ever=widening circle of affected souls.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kristian_Menchaca

http://rudepundit.blogspot.com/2006/06/two-captured-american-soldiers-and.html

[uppityperson]

15. Thank you. The whole thing makes me sick

[rhett o rick]

24. Rather they go to prison and have to worry every day when another inmate will kill them. nm

[MissDeeds]

28. No, a little lower n/t

[uppityperson]

9. sexy subject lines get more view that boring ones. Asking for 1 more rec to get on greatest for more

exposure, since the ones with boring subject lines got few views and minimal recs. Thanks

[FightingIrish]

11. We'll get the war behind us but shit like this will still haunt us. n/t

[flyarm]

12. self delete..

[uppityperson]

13. If I were in that area of the country, I would be tempted to go to the trial, to apologize

to the family and let them know that there are many of us who are appalled by the whole thing, bottom to top.

[flyarm]

17. I wholeheartedly agree..i feel nothing but shame for what is being done in my name! eom

[uppityperson]

16. why delete your comment?

[quakerboy]

18. fuck

[FirstLight]

19. Ugh - wish I hadn't read that...

SOOO many people harmed for no reason...so many soldiers who will return to be hazards to their own families & society because of the mentality of Bush's war crime army...so many who should never have been given a gun and told to "go for it"... those poor families and women & children, is all I can think about.


WAR is UGLY and there is no excuse to cover up the atrocities. America is NOT immune from the horrific behaviors of human nature. ...and this war should be an example to us ALL - as HUMANS to do what we can to abolish these atrocities once & for all...can we choose to become more advanced as a race? can we get back to diplomacy and working together to create prosperity and build bridges instead of rewarding hatred and greed?

the bush/cheney way of thinking and manipulating and working is SOOOO over!
thank GOD

[Fire1]

20. For now. Until the next repug administration.

[noamnety]

21. "until the next repub administration"

sorry, waging war is not unique to republicans.

Look to the votes of our democrats. Look to Obama's plans for Afghanistan, and for keeping troops in Iraq.

[Fire1]

22. I was responding specifically to the poster's statement that

"the bush/cheney way of thinking and manipulating and working is sooooo over."

[Mark Twain Girl]

26. God, thank you. Thank you. nt

[QueenOfCalifornia]

23. K&R

I hate having to recommend an OP which is so disturbing. But this can not be ignored. I am disgusted by this shit. Totally DISGUSTED.

[rhett o rick]

25. You got my rec Uppity. will save my kick for later. nm

[Moosepoop]

27. Good on Pfc. Watt

for turning them in.

[Solly Mack]

30. K&R

[Hubert Flottz]

31. "Compassionate Conservatism" winning hearts and minds

in our names with our dollars.

They wouldn't have been there if Bush the "CiC" and the neocons hadn't lied to start a war of aggression against a sovereign nation that never really constituted an imminent danger to the continental United States of America, as advertised by the neocons, as they beat the war drums nonstop, in order to sell Congress and the nation, an elective, illegal, war. Which BTW, is, or was, in itself a "War Crime"...

Charter of the International Military Tribunal

snip...

(a) Crimes against Peace: namely, planning, preparation, initiation or waging of a war of aggression, or a war in violation of international treaties, agreements or assurances, or participation in a Common Plan or Conspiracy for the accomplishment of any of the foregoing;

(b) War Crimes: namely, violations of the laws or customs of war. Such violations shall include, but not be limited to, murder, ill-treatment or deportation to slave labor or for any other purpose of civilian population of or in occupied territory, murder or ill-treatment of prisoners of war or persons on the seas, killing of hostages, plunder of public or private property, wanton destruction of cities, towns, or villages, or devastation not justified by military necessity;

(c) Crimes against Humanity: namely, murder, extermination, enslavement, deportation, and other inhumane acts committed against any civilian population, before or during the war,14 or persecutions on political, racial, or religious grounds in execution of or in connection with any crime within the jurisdiction of the Tribunal, whether or not in violation of domestic law of the country where perpetrated.

Leaders, organizers, instigators, and accomplices participating in the formulation or execution
of a Common Plan or Conspiracy to commit any of the foregoing crimes are responsible for all acts performed by any persons in execution of such plan... More Here

http://www.law.umkc.edu/faculty/projects/ftrials/nuremberg/NurembergIndictments.html

[Enthusiast]

32. Before Bush

we were the good guys. Or, at least the perception was that we were the good guys. These Neo-Con assholes have dragged this country down so far I wonder if we will ever recover.

[Historic NY]

33. Aren't these the same kind of people Homeland Security warned us about.

http://www.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/04/16/napolitano.apology/

[uppityperson]

42. Perhaps, but McVeigh and Green are extremes of Veterans with mental health issues

""Timothy McVeigh was only one of more than 42 million veterans who have worn this nation's uniform during wartime," wrote Rehbein, the American Legion commander. "To continue to use McVeigh as an example of the stereotypical 'disgruntled military veteran' is as unfair as using Osama bin Laden as the sole example of Islam.""

There are nuts in every group, but most vets, at least the ones I know, aren't extremist. But I do agree that there are a fair number of psych issues which need to be addressed for them. Taking kids, young adults, and putting them in such awful situations, training them to kill, exposing them to constant real fear, sure as shit isn't good for them. Rather than putting out warnings, I'd like to see more focus on follow-up psych care, accessible, non-stigmatic, helpful care.

[NashVegas]

34. "I came over here because I wanted to kill people,"

Sometimes I'm okay with the death penalty, as means of putting people out of their misery before they inflict it on any more others.

[rhett o rick]

35. Here's my kick. nm

[L0oniX]

36. Tell me the same shit didn't happen in Vietnam.

[Locrian]

37. Tell me the same shit didn't happen in ALL wars

[SoCalDem]

39. Rape has ALWAYS been part of war.. n/t

[sce56]

41. Even more so when you have the bottom of the barrel pulled into the ranks do to an unpopular war

My former congress critter the one that has a big chunk of the MilIndComplex in her district found out that it was not that rosy for our female soldiers over there.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=103x349610

babylonsister Mon Mar-31-08 02:14 PM

Rep. Jane Harman: Rapists in the ranks

Rapists in the ranks
Sexual assaults are frequent, and frequently ignored, in the armed services.
By Jane Harman
March 31, 2008


The stories are shocking in their simplicity and brutality: A female military recruit is pinned down at knifepoint and raped repeatedly in her own barracks. Her attackers hid their faces but she identified them by their uniforms; they were her fellow soldiers. During a routine gynecological exam, a female soldier is attacked and raped by her military physician. Yet another young soldier, still adapting to life in a war zone, is raped by her commanding officer. Afraid for her standing in her unit, she feels she has nowhere to turn.

These are true stories, and, sadly, not isolated incidents. Women serving in the U.S. military are more likely to be raped by a fellow soldier than killed by enemy fire in Iraq.

The scope of the problem was brought into acute focus for me during a visit to the West Los Angeles VA Healthcare Center, where I met with female veterans and their doctors. My jaw dropped when the doctors told me that 41% of female veterans seen at the clinic say they were victims of sexual assault while in the military, and 29% report being raped during their military service. They spoke of their continued terror, feelings of helplessness and the downward spirals many of their lives have since taken.

Numbers reported by the Department of Defense show a sickening pattern. In 2006, 2,947 sexual assaults were reported -- 73% more than in 2004. The DOD's newest report, released this month, indicates that 2,688 reports were made in 2007, but a recent shift from calendar-year reporting to fiscal-year reporting makes comparisons with data from previous years much more difficult.

The Defense Department has made some efforts to manage this epidemic -- most notably in 2005, after the media received anonymous e-mail messages about sexual assaults at the Air Force Academy. The media scrutiny and congressional attention that followed led the DOD to create the Sexual Assault and Response Office. Since its inception, the office has initiated education and training programs, which have improved the reporting of cases of rapes and other sexual assaults. But more must be done to prevent attacks and to increase accountability.

At the heart of this crisis is an apparent inability or unwillingness to prosecute rapists in the ranks. According to DOD statistics, only 181 out of 2,212 subjects investigated for sexual assault in 2007, including 1,259 reports of rape, were referred to courts-martial, the equivalent of a criminal prosecution in the military. Another 218 were handled via nonpunitive administrative action or discharge, and 201 subjects were disciplined through "nonjudicial punishment," which means they may have been confined to quarters, assigned extra duty or received a similar slap on the wrist. In nearly half of the cases investigated, the chain of command took no action; more than a third of the time, that was because of "insufficient evidence."

more...

http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/commentary/la-oe-harman31mar31,0,5399612.story

Well I feel it has a lot to do with the moral waivers handed out like candy now days!

When the Army has to scrape the bottom of the barrel looking for recruits this is what happens.

Not to mention the fact that there have been several Non Combat Fatalities where the female was possibly killed to cover up a rape yet the chain of command does nothing to find the guilty! The other thing that shows they have no care to fix it is they now take DNA samples from all troops to aid in the ID of the casualties so everyone of them has a DNA print on file it does not take a rocket scientist to find the rapists!

The state of the Army is no where near what is was when I retired 14 years ago it is now a broken army thanks to Commander AWOL!
http://web.archive.org/web/20030602211200/

[Odin2005]

44. OMG, I that article left me sobbing.

Sick bastards, both the rapists are their enablers :cry:

[uppityperson]

40. you mean raping, murdering, descrating people then covering it up? Yes, it did and does

It is one of the awful things about wars, one of the reasons those who declare others need to go fight need to seriously consider what they are doing.

Doesn't excuse it and I am glad these people have been prosecuted for this atrocity. I would like to see it go higher also, to the one who recruited him, to the psych person who sent him back to duty, to the one who discharged him back to the civilian knowing what he'd done. Eventually all the way to the commander in thief, but for now, those ones would make me happy.

I think that this could be one of the reasons they sought to keep this out of civilian court, to keep the cover-up hush hush. Seems less chance of publicity in a military court martial, but I could be wrong.

[AspenRose]

38. Oh, my God.

:cry:

[yoyossarian]

43. War is not healthy for children and other living things

War is hell. War sucks.
But for 8 years, Americans allowed themselves to be led by madmen.



I liked what Bill Hicks said about the military, particularly the question of gays in the military:
"Here's my take on it: ANYONE STUPID enough to want to be in the military should be allowed in."

Makes it kinda tough to "support our troops" when you read this sort of stuff...
But this is the nature of war. It has always been so, it has ever been so.

War is not the answer.

President Evil Online has risen from the grave!