Posted on 04/21/2007 2:27:37 AM PDT by Cardhu
Report On Haditha Condemns Marines
Signs of Misconduct Were Ignored, U.S. General Says
By Josh White
Washington Post Staff Writer
Saturday, April 21, 2007; A01
The Marine Corps chain of command in Iraq ignored "obvious" signs of "serious misconduct" in the 2005 slayings of two dozen civilians in Haditha, and commanders fostered a climate that devalued the life of innocent Iraqis to the point that their deaths were considered an insignificant part of the war, according to an Army general's investigation.
Maj. Gen. Eldon A. Bargewell's 104-page report on Haditha is scathing in its criticism of the Marines' actions, from the enlisted men who were involved in the shootings on Nov. 19, 2005, to the two-star general who commanded the 2nd Marine Division in Iraq at the time. Bargewell's previously undisclosed report, obtained by The Washington Post, found that officers may have willfully ignored reports of the civilian deaths to protect themselves and their units from blame. Though Bargewell found no specific coverup, he concluded that there also was no interest at any level in investigating allegations of a massacre.
(Excerpt) Read more at washingtonpost.com ...
Amazing. They have their spin, regardless of news from the trial. We are going to have to tighten the lible law so the press can’t smear people with such reckless disregard. Now, they get away with anything.
There you have it! Publicly releasing the report with a dubious title, giving the impression the Marines are guilty, at exactly the same time cracks in the prosecution are being reported.
The prosecution in the court of public opinion continues.
Well, the trials haven’t officially begun, except for those in the press. The WaPo article, “Report on Haditha Condems Marines” is offset by another article by North County Times, “Immunity Grants May Signal Problems with Haditha Prosecution”. (current thread here http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1821166/posts
I guess it just depends which news outlet you believe w/re to how it’s going for the Haditha Marines.
“The prosecution in the court of public opinion continues”
Agree. That’s why I think it’s important the defense (the civilian attys) keeps up the pressure for their side of the Marines’ cases.
Totally agree and am thrilled they are putting out these press releases!
Agreed. This piece is total bullsh!t.
In order to read it accurately, one must separate
1.the “objective” remarks made by the ARMY General
2.toward the MARINE CORPS from the
3.context in which it was written by this particular reporter
“What’s the deal with this army general and why is he involved with the Marines?”
Good question. Because of the joint nature of combatant commands, will Army personnel soon begin running MCRDs at Parris Island and San Diego?
“Is this a hit piece and is he authorized to conduct an investigation?”
Yes, google this reporter’s body of work, and yes.
LOL!
This a$$hat Josh White takes this report and correctly states that Gen Bargewell concluded there was no specific coverup then picks it apart with a series of comments in the report to imply that there was, which of course he personally is convinced of.
Perhaps the Marine officers lack of interest in further investigation that this may have been a massacre was because they believed the rules of engagement were followed and there was no criminal intent on the part of the enlisted personnel involved. Of course that wouldn't fit into White's contention that these Marines are murderers.
The results of General Bargewell's report were leaked months ago and it was known that he found no coverup. The NCIS's investigation evidently is responsible for the charges being brought against the four Marine officers so White should give it a rest as far as Bargewell's report goes.
Investigating the possible wrongful killing of civilians is "contemplating our navels"? I don't think so. How are we going to win a war in another country if it is perceived that we don't care if we are killing their civilians . It is getting harder not to look like an occupying force. Ignoring something like this and ASSUMING it is not important just helps us lose the war.
How are we going to win this war? By killing all the insurgents? That won't happen. Right now we are creating more insurgents than we are killing.
Here’s the latest article from North County Times on Gen. Bargewell’s report, “Haditha report faults officers” http://www.nctimes.com/articles/2007/04/21/news/breaking/87_65_433_21_07.txt
..”The report’s conclusions were reported by the New York Times and Washington Post which said they had obtained copies of the 103-page document. The Marine Corps has not made the document public.”....
Okay’s who’s the leaker this time? Let me guess, same one(s) who leaked the 10,000 page NCIS report? But back to the article, who does the Bargewell report actually criticize?
...”Brian Rooney, an attorney for the highest-ranking officer charged in the case, Lt. Col. Jeffrey Chessani, said Saturday that he believes the report actually helps exonerate his client.
“Lt. Col. Chessani went to the battlefield that night and the next day and reported up the chain what he knew,” Rooney said.
The Bargewell document faults the Marine division commander, Maj. Gen. Richard A. Huck, and the regimental commander, Col. Stephen W. Davis, for failing to investigate the civilian deaths, according to the Post and Times reports. Neither of those men was accused of any criminal wrongdoing.”....
Hmmm. Interesting if you can take the word of the Post and Times reports. Am I right that Maj. Gen. Huck retired ahortly after this stuff hit the fan last summer?
Very interesting. I hadn’t realized it was in the NY Times as well. What a busy little leaker! Wasn’t Huck commander of the 2d Marines at Lejeune? Ma will know about him. I’d look it up myself but it’s a beautiful day and the missus just announced she wants to be taken to Carvel’s.
So I guess this wasn't technically a leak. I wrote Josh White to tell him he's a complete bastard anyway.
The report may have been declassified but ...”The Marine Corps has not made the document public.”....
So either the NYT and WaPo got it through a FOIA (if that’s possible and this soon) or it was still leaked. They didn’t say. My feeling is if it was obtained by a FOIA, they would have stated it. That takes a bit more work and time.
damn. just damn. what if this is all payback for huck dropping pantano’s charges. jesus, mary and joseph.
Whether it’s declassified or not, somebody made sure the WaPo got it first—and exclusively. The NC Times said there’ll be a full story tomorrow.
Looking forward to a full story on the “leak” or whatever it was. Just the fact that someone made sure WaPo got it first tells one something about the intent of the “leaker”/provider of info.
Is Huck retired now, ma?
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