Photos prompt condemnation
From the White House to the American Embassy in Kabul, American
officials rushed to distance themselves from the actions of US soldiers
who posed for photographs next to corpses and body parts of Afghan
insurgents.
Two photos of incidents from a 2010 deployment were published
Wednesday by the Los Angeles Times. In one, the hand of a corpse is
propped on the shoulder of a paratrooper. In another, the disembodied
legs of a suicide bomber are displayed by grinning soldiers and Afghan
police.
US Secretary of Defense Leon E. Panetta apologised for the
photographs, saying the behaviour depicted in the photos “absolutely
violates both our regulations and, more importantly, our core values.
This is not who we are.... If rules and regulations were found to have
been violated, then those individuals will be held accountable.”
White House Press Secretary Jay Carney called the soldiers’ behaviour
“reprehensible,” and said President Obama wanted a full investigation.
The NATO commander in Afghanistan, US Gen. John Allen, and American
Ambassador Ryan Crocker, who were alerted that the photos were coming,
condemned the actions even before the photos were published online.
Allen said US officials were working with Afghan and international
forces “to resolve any issues related to improper treatment of remains.”
Crocker called the actions of soldiers in the photos “morally
repugnant.”
At the same time, Pentagon and White House officials expressed
disappointment that the photos had been made public. The Pentagon had
asked The Times not to publish the photos, citing fears that they would
trigger a backlash against US forces.
Speaking to reporters during a meeting of NATO allies in Brussels,
Panetta said: “This is war. And I know that war is ugly and violent. And
I know that young people sometimes caught up in the moment make some
very foolish decisions. I am not excusing that behaviour. But neither do
I want these images to bring further injury to our people or to our
relationship with the Afghan people.”
Davan Maharaj, editor of The Times, said the newspaper considered a
Pentagon appeal to delay publication, and decided to hold off for more
than 72 hours until military officials said they had taken security
precautions against any retaliation. There were no immediate reports of
violence in Afghanistan in response to the photos. Many Afghans,
especially those in rural areas, do not have Internet access or
electricity. The country’s main evening news broadcasts did not show the
photos.
Suicide bombers and insurgents who plant roadside bombs are widely
despised by Afghans. Civilians are routinely killed or maimed by
insurgents who detonate suicide vests or set out home-made bombs that
kill indiscriminately.
A recent United Natiosn report said the Taliban and other insurgent
groups were responsible for 77 percent of fatal attacks against
civilians last summer, most of them from suicide bombs or roadside
explosives. Still, the taboo against desecration of the dead is strong
in this religiously conservative country. “We condemn Americans posing
with dead bodies or body parts,” said Najla Dehqan Nezhad, a member of
parliament from the western province of Herat. Farhad Mohammed, a
merchant in the southern city of Kandahar, said of the two-year-old
photos: “Nothing has changed since then, and nothing will. Always it is
a matter of disrespect.”
The Taliban made no initial statement, although the group generally
exploits such incidents for propaganda purposes.
Two experts said the photos may have more effect on public opinion in
the United States than in Afghanistan.
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