Deja vu all over again? First there was the scandal of Abu Ghraib in Iraq, which involved photos of U.S. military abusing prisoners and posing next to a dead man — a shocking public relations fiasco for the United States all over the world. Now a controversy is breaking in Europe where the German magazine Der Spiegel has published three photos involving prosecuted “kill team” members posing with a dead Afghan, only days before accused member start their trial for murder.
How bad is it? The fact that the photos are behind a paywall may limit (a bit) their public emergence — for now. But one site has run a copy of a photo of one of the accused members posing and grinning next to a dead Afghan. And the rumblings suggesting a major story and controversy are bad enough that the U.S. Army has apologized.
The US Army has apologised for graphic photographs of US soldiers grinning over the corpses of Afghan civilians they had allegedly killed.
The photos published by Germany’s Der Spiegel magazine were said to be among many seized by US Army investigators.
An army statement said the photographs were “repugnant” but were already being used as evidence in a court martial.
Afghan civilian deaths at the hands of foreign forces is a highly sensitive issue in Afghanistan.
These photographs are purported to have been taken by a “rogue” US Army unit in Afghanistan in 2010.
Such images are only going to exacerbate tensions between the Afghan government and the people on the one hand and the US-led coalition on the other, says the BBC’s Paul Wood in Kabul.
Fox News adds this background:
According to reports, Mudin was walking toward the soldiers when Morlock threw a grenade to create the impression soldiers were under attack. Pfc. Andrew H. Holmes of Boise, Idaho, who is also in the photo squatting next to Mudin’s body, reportedly shot at Mudin after the grenade went off. Others also began shooting and two other Afghan civilians were killed.
Der Spiegel noted that Holmes’ attorney claims the private was operating under orders, unaware of the alleged set-up, which supposedly involved other soldiers as well.
The Army said it can not comment on the photos and the men are presumed innocent until proven guilty. But it reasserted its commitment to “adherence to the law of war and the humane and respectful treatment of combatants, noncombatants and the dead.”
“Soldiers who commit offenses will be held accountable as appropriate,” the statement said.
The army said actions shown in the photographs were now the subject of the court-martial.
“The photos appear in stark contrast to the discipline, professionalism and respect that have characterized our soldiers’ performance during nearly 10 years of sustained operations (in Afghanistan).”
Photos such as these — even one photo out of three — are a fiasco for the U.S. government and the military. A photo creates a kind of mental imagery tattoo that is generalized by some who assume it’s standard behavior. It’s also used by opponents whose concern is not always the photo but promoting another political agenda. The Army was wise to act swiftly.
But, as always, the immediate question becomes: if one photo has trickled out into publication doesn’t this mean more will come out as publications see it’s a great way to attract audience? It also suggests that the soldiers on trial may have not just the book but the computer thrown at them.
Joe Gandelman is a former fulltime journalist who freelanced in India, Spain, Bangladesh and Cypress writing for publications such as the Christian Science Monitor and Newsweek. He also did radio reports from Madrid for NPR’s All Things Considered. He has worked on two U.S. newspapers and quit the news biz in 1990 to go into entertainment. He also has written for The Week and several online publications, did a column for Cagle Cartoons Syndicate and has appeared on CNN.