Three US soldiers charged with murder in Iraq

UNITED STATES: Three American soldiers were charged with premeditated murder after being accused of shooting three detainees north of Baghdad on May 9 and then threatening to kill a fellow soldier if he told the truth about the incident, the U.S. military said on Monday.

The charges were brought against Army Staff Sgt. Raymond Girouard, Spc. William Hunsaker and Pfc. Corey Clagett, according to charge sheets provided by Army officials at the Pentagon. Premeditated murder charges can bring the death penalty under U.S. military law.

The three soldiers are accused of deliberately allowing three men detained during a raid on a former chemical factory to flee so they would have an excuse to shoot them, said a defense official, speaking on condition of anonymity.

The charges were brought as the U.S. military continues to investigate other cases of alleged abuses by American troops, including the killings of 24 unarmed civilians in the town of Haditha last November.

Girouard, a noncommissioned officer, was charged with 11 counts stemming from four charges: premeditated murder, attempted murder, conspiracy and wrongfully communicating a threat. Clagett was charged with six counts and Hunsaker was charged with eight counts of the same charges.

A day after the killings, according to the charge sheets, Girouard told Army Pfc. Bradley Mason, a fellow soldier who knew the truth about what happened, "You better not talk or I will kill you." The three accused soldiers were members of the 3rd Brigade Combat Team of the Army's elite 101st Airborne Division.

The three soldiers are in custody in Kuwait pending a hearing to determine whether they should face a court-martial.

Washington, Tuesday, Reuters.