Mahmudiyah incident
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This article documents a current event. Information may change rapidly as the event progresses. |
The Al-Mahmudiyah incident occurred on March 12, 2006 in the town of Al-Mahmudiyah, south of Baghdad, Iraq in which five United States soldiers with the 502nd Infantry Regiment, Spc. James Barker, Pfc. Jesse Spielman, Sgt. Paul Cortez, Pfc. Bryan Howard and, a former soldier, Steven D. Green, allegedly gang-raped and murdered a 14-year-old [1] Iraqi girl named Abeer Qasim Hamza, after murdering her mother Fakhriyah Taha Muhsin, 34; her father Qasim Hamza Raheem, 45; and her sister Hadeel Qasim Hamza, aged 5 [2].
The matter came to light when a sergeant in the same platoon, Justin Watt, reportedly revealed the crime during a counseling session on June 22, 2006 following the deaths of two other soldiers in the same regiment.
One of the soldiers, Steven Green, was honorably discharged from the Army on May 16, 2006[3], and has been charged with these crimes by the FBI, not the military, as his discharge released him from military jurisdiction.[4] Steven Green has been arrested as a civilian within the United States and as such has received the majority of press coverage related to the incident. The other four soldiers SGT Paul E. Cortez, SPC James P. Barker, PFC Jesse V. Spielman and PFC Bryan L. Howard were on active duty when charged by the United States Military.[5] Currently they remain confined to the Forward Operating Base in Mahmudiyah, Iraq. According to military spokesman Maj. Gen. William B. Caldwell they could face the death penalty. [6]
The Qasim family lived in an isolated farm house situated approximately 200 meters [7] away from a traffic checkpoint manned by US soldiers. The soldiers, who noticed Abeer as she worked in the field next to the house, [8] formed a 6-man unit responsible for the traffic checkpoint. According to the neighbors, the accused soldiers had previously entered the farmhouse several times, ostensibly to search it, and had made advances towards Abeer in the days before the actual killing took place.[9] Abeer's brother Mohammed, aged 13, who survived the attack along with his younger brother because they were in school at the time, said he witnessed one of the soldiers stroke Abeer's face during one of their visits to the house, a gesture that had terrified the girl. [10]
Abeer's mother was concerned enough about the soldier's advances to request that Abeer be allowed spend her nights at the neighbor’s house [11]. Abeer’s father didn’t think a significant danger was eminent, saying “it was no problem and that she was just a small girl.” [12]. Nevertheless, Abeer started to sleep at her neighbor’s house at nights, which proved to be an ineffective deterrent as the attack took place in broad daylight the day after Abeer spent her first night with neighbors.
According to the affidavit written by the FBI in support of an arrest warrant for Steven Green, the accused had discussed raping the girl in the days preceding the event. On the day in question, five soldiers of the six-man unit responsible for the checkpoint left their posts for the Qasim farmhouse. Four of the soldiers are alleged to have directly participated in the attack, while a fifth (PFC Howard) acted as lookout [13]. A sixth soldier SGT Anthony W. Yribe, is charged with failing to report the attack but is not alleged to have been a direct participant.
The affidavit goes on to state that the soldiers entered the house and ordered Abeer’s father, mother and sister into another room where Steven Green summarily shot all in the head, emerging to say, "I just killed them, all are dead." As the rest of the family was shot in the other room, Abeer was held down to the floor by another soldier. After killing the other family members, Green and at least one other soldier raped Abeer, and then Green shot and killed her.
Based on reports, after the rape the lower part of Abeer’s body, from her stomach down to her feet, was subsequently set on fire. The fire eventually spread to rest of the room and the smoke alerted neighbors who ran to tell Abu Firas Janabi, Abeer’s uncle that the farmhouse was on fire and that dead bodies could be seen inside the burning building. Janabi and his wife rushed to the farmhouse and doused some of the flames to get inside. Upon witnessing the scene inside, Janabi went to a checkpoint guarded by Iraqi soldiers to report the crime.
The Iraqi soldiers immediately went to examine the scene and thereafter went to a checkpoint manned by U.S. soldiers to report the incident. This was a different checkpoint than the one manned by the accused. After approximately an hour, some soldiers from the checkpoint went to the farmhouse.
These soldiers were accompanied by at least one of the accused.
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[edit] Retaliation
On July 11, the Mujahideen Shura Council released a graphic video showing the bodies of PFC Thomas Lowell Tucker and PFC Kristian Menchaca, soldiers from the same unit as the accused, who were allegedly kidnapped, tortured and beheaded. This was accompanied by a statement saying that the group carried out the killings as "revenge for our sister who was dishonored by a soldier of the same brigade."
It also said that upon learning of the rape/murder, the group "kept their anger to themselves and didn't spread the news, but were determined to avenge their sister's honor." A statement issued along with the video stated that "God Almighty enabled them to capture two soldiers of the same brigade as this dirty crusader." [14]
Steven Green was arrested in North Carolina while travelling home from the funeral of one of the soldiers in Arlington, Virginia.
[edit] Legal proceedings
The trial of Spc. James Barker ended, with Barker pleading guilty to raping a 14-year old girl and helping to kill her family. His sentence will be life in prison with eligibility for parole. Three others, Sgt. Paul Cortez, Pvt. Jesse Spielman, and Pvt. Bryan Howard are facing court martial proceedings. Sgt. Anthony Yribe is charged with making false statements about the incident and dereliction of duty. Former soldier Steven Green faces federal charges in Kentucky for his role in the rape and killings.
[edit] External links
- Washington Post article about Berker's court martial trial.
- Washington Post article about former Pvt. Green.
