Cpl. Wassef Ali Hassoun arrives at a Marine base in Virginia.
Posted on 07/15/2004 9:43:26 PM PDT by Bobby777
QUANTICO, Va., July 15 - An American marine who turned up in Beirut last week after vanishing in Iraq was returned to the United States on Thursday for questioning and a "repatriation process" to assess his physical and mental condition, Marine Corps officials said.
The marine, Cpl. Wassef Ali Hassoun, arrived at Quantico Marine Corps base in Virginia from Germany, where he had undergone six days of evaluation in a military hospital, "in good condition and in good spirits," said Lt. Col. David Lapan, a spokesman for the Second Marine Expeditionary Force.
Colonel Lapan said that Quantico, 35 miles south Washington, was chosen "as the best facility due to its central location and access to a variety of support services." It is unclear how long Corporal Hassoun will remain at the base, Colonel Lapan said. Marine Corps officials said on Thursday that he would probably be transferred to his home base at Camp Lejeune, N.C., once they have determined he is fit for duty.
As part of what Marine officials called repatriation, Corporal Hassoun will be debriefed by psychologists and military intelligence officials. He will also have access to military lawyers and will be able to see his family, officials said, but "his movements will be controlled."
The repatriation process is separate from inquiries being conducted into his disappearance. Corporal Hassoun, 24, a Lebanese-American, vanished from his base in Iraq on June 20. The process is standard for military personnel who have been captured or detained during service abroad, Marine Corps officials said.
Colonel Lapan declined to comment on most details of Corporal Hassoun's case pending the outcome of two military investigations.
The Naval Criminal Investigative Service and the Joint Personnel Recovery Agency are conducting inquiries into the events surrounding Corporal Hassoun's disappearance. Officials have said that Naval investigators were looking at a range of possibilities, including reports that he was kidnapped, deserted his unit or staged an elaborate hoax with the aid of Iraqis.
Contradictory reports about Corporal Hassoun, including reports of his beheading by his captors, have created a confusing picture. His sudden resurfacing July 8, when he walked into the American Embassy in a suburb of Beirut - and a shootout earlier in the day near his relatives' home in the northern Lebanese city of Tripoli - only added to the unusual nature of the matter.
When Corporal Hassoun left the hospital in Germany on Wednesday, he said he was eager to get home, but he did not discuss his disappearance.
It might depend on how much information he gave the CIA.
And how much information he gave the terrorists....
Okay, I'm I the only guy on the planet that thinks this whole thing is a bizzare fraud? Jeez let's add this mystery to Johnson's body then no body in SA. The Middle East is the new Bermuda Triangle of truth. Freeps I'm sensing a pattern that is not good news for the truth.
From my perspective he doesn't have many redeeming qualities.
I think we will know by what action the military takes. That should settle the matter and they are definitely taking a close look at this thing. It is very strange.
What is the standard process for deserters, &/or staging a hoax? Seems to me it would be different from being captured or detained.
One thing for certain; he wasn't released because he was a fellow muslim like the media are suggesting. The terrorists in Iraq kill their fellow muslims every day with impunity; anyone whom they deem the "enemy" is a target, whether Iraqi police, politician or American sypmathizer. A captured U.S. Marine is a big trophy for these hooded cockroaches, and I doubt they'd ever release him as some sort of goodwill gesture. There is MUCH more to this story than meets the eye.
Okay I'm I= Okay Am I..
Nope. Doesn't seem like he does.
Yep, it is very strange. I would love to know the scoop on this one.
on the surface, it looks like he was AWOL and the family cooked up the story. Given the bizarre shootout over there anything is possible. I don't buy the "ferret mission" because any U.S. soldier in the hands of terrorists is not likely to return alive. Not impossible, just not likely. And to wind up 500 miles away is another story.
I know he is Muslim and Lebanese, but I can't imagine the likelihood that he "volunteered" to ferret out the terrorists. But it all is going to play out and we'll see.
then we'll know, eh?
Plus he has very hairy forearms. (Eeewww)
the UCMJ is pretty strict. I can't speak to the details though I used to screen U.S. Marine SRB's (as a civilian employee) in the Ready Reserve and the Page 12's are pretty explicit on how things are done.
Being AWOL would be one thing. Faking a kidnapping would be another matter and only make it worse.
Of course, we will have to wait and see what the result is before we can know for (reasonably) sure.
IOW, Hassoun will be interrogated, be given his legal rights being being tossed into a Leavenworth brig, then told to say goodbye to his family for a looog time.
Common sense in this country say's it stinks. But hey it's a Muslim...
yep, I think he went AWOL and then couldn't figure out how to get out of it. Seems that way, IMHO.
The reason I say that is the military is shown very early on reporting that he was AWOL at time of capture, and this was long before he was found, or they knew of his fate.
He looks pretty strong and fit for a man held hostage.
"SRBs"? "Page 12s"? Are you going to translate from the Arabic?
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