U.S. troops posed with body parts of Afghan bombers

U.S. troops posed with body parts of Afghan bombers

An American soldier says he released the photos to the Los Angeles Times to draw attention to the safety risk of a breakdown in leadership and discipline. The Army has started a criminal investigation.

The paratroopers had their assignment: Check out reports that Afghan police had recovered the mangled remains of an insurgent suicide bomber. Try to get iris scans and fingerprints for identification.

The 82nd Airborne Division soldiers arrived at the police station in Afghanistan's Zabol province in February 2010. They inspected the body parts. Then the mission turned macabre: The paratroopers posed for photos next to Afghan police, grinning while some held — and others squatted beside — the corpse's severed legs.

A few months later, the same platoon was dispatched to investigate the remains of three insurgents who Afghan police said had accidentally blown themselves up. After obtaining a few fingerprints, they posed next to the remains, again grinning and mugging for photographs.

Two soldiers posed holding a dead man's hand with the middle finger raised. A soldier leaned over the bearded corpse while clutching the man's hand. Someone placed an unofficial platoon patch reading "Zombie Hunter" next to other remains and took a picture.

The Army launched a criminal investigation after the Los Angeles Times showed officials copies of the photos, which recently were given to the paper by a soldier from the division.

"It is a violation of Army standards to pose with corpses for photographs outside of officially sanctioned purposes," said George Wright, an Army spokesman. "Such actions fall short of what we expect of our uniformed service members in deployed areas."

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-afghan-photos-20120418,0,5032601.story

It seems to be never ending. Butchering children,urinating on the bodies of dead people and now posing and making fun of the deceased. Is this what the American military has come to? Not really it has been like this for a very long time. This is just another story much the same as the others,murder,disrespecting the dead,abusing inmates etc etc. Disgraceful.

 

You forgot to mention that we eat babies too.

 

Well I know the American military has certainly murdered babies in the past. I cannot remember them eating them but one guy in Tiger Force in Vietnam used one on the end of his knife like a rag doll.

 

Necessity is the mother of invention.

 

Ah no argument against it just silly comments. How quaint.

 

I have no argument against disrespecting suicide bombers. They're less than human.

The only reasons our upper military command care are because of the rising tensions that might occur due to the release of the pictures and the lack of discipline shown. Should the soldiers be disciplined? Yes.

Is it a big deal? No, not really.

 

Would it be a big deal to you if it was the Taliban posing and poking fun at young dead American soldiers?

 

I've seen a lot of pictures of that actually. It's funny how no threads get made about it though.

 

The other NATO units are going to pay the price for another US atrocity.
They should all pull out and leave the redneck US troops to their latest disaster.

I'm sure the other world leaders must be thinking what the hell are we doing with these redneck ignorant US barbarians

 

Really? I have yet to see one. You must have a secret stash. You failed to answer the question.

 

Well, getting out of Afghanistan would certainly allow us to keep a closer eye on Egypt.

 

To answer your previous question, no, it wouldn't be a big deal to me.

Of course I'm not going to like it, but I'm not going to attack anyone over it.

 

They should be disiplined because what they did violated the rules they are supposed to obey. That said, what's the big deal? Is this all you have? With all the (*)(*)(*)(*) going on all around the world today, you choose to get your panties is a bunch over some paratroopers taking a picture with the remains of a moron suicide bomber? That's comical.

Atrocity? Oh for Heaven's sake, with all the (*)(*)(*)(*) that went down in Egypt, your calling this an atrocity?

 

Just reporting the latest news. This is what this section is for. That you do not like it really means nothing to me. The American military is just filled with vile human beings. Urinating on dead people,posing for photos with dead people,abusing prisoners,torturing people etc etc.murdering children,bombing wedding parties.etc etc.

 

LOL - your selective outrage is so 2005.

 

Still happening in 2012,maybe you are just stuck in 2005.

 

Serfin USA:

You have just demonstrated Two things:

1. You have never served. I have.

2. You are pig ignorant. For the record, interfering with bodies and respect for the remains of the dead is part of a series of conventions aimed at winning battles.

To put that another way. Interfering with the dead is a great way to help lose battles!


It's very simple Serfin, messing with dead bodies is dehumanising for American troops. It also gets the enemy very, very angry. The objective of war is to break the enemy's will to fight.

One major technique to do this is to demonstrate that the enemy will be well treated if they give up and don't fight, or don't fight very well and get captured. In other words, we try to sap their resolve. A lot of that has been going on in Afghanistan.

The last thing you want to do is to demonstrate that you are going to shove their bodies in a corpse grinder or other wise mutilate them, let alone that you are going to kill their women and children. If you do that, you are inviting them to fight to the death and they will accomodate you, to your loss.

To put that another way Serfin, how would you like to see the Afghans really riled up? The last time they did that, they let one man from a British Army escape so that he could tell the world what had happened to the rest of them.

 

I doubt it would be a big deal to you. How many threads have you started on the Taliban's misconduct, i.e., the killing civilian non-combatants, using children for suicide bombers, etc., etc., ad nauseum ?

 

What do you call it if it isn't yet another example of the (*)(*)(*)(*)-poor command structure in what passes for the US military these days. Is is recruitment policy to actively seek-out the most retarded cretins you can find and put them in a uniform? And yes, it is most certainly an atrocity-and a war crime.

 

What specifically is still happening in 2012?

It takes a petty person to get all bent out of shape over some paratroopers and Afghan police taking pictures next to some dead bodies.

 

Irrelevant. Shouldn't 'trained' soldiers be held to a higher standard than those you'd call terrorists and insurgents?

 

Wah Wah Wah... go cry a river. I already said they should be disciplined as I am sure they are aware that they are not supposed to be doing that. At the end of the day though, it isn't such a big deal. Your just looking for something to (*)(*)(*)(*)(*) and complain about. No surprise there.

 

His comment wasn't on the training of the solders, it was on your fake ass selective outrage and hypocrisy.

 

Irrelevant to my question which wasn't posed to you.

 

On the contrary; I'm commenting on a latest news thread and voicing my opinion. If you don't like it then that's your privilege.