Incident at Haditha

As mentioned in the morning brief, the New York Times reports that an investigation into the deaths of two dozen Iraqis by U.S. Marines last November is expected to find that soldiers deliberately shot and killed unarmed civilians. Time first reported in March that local accounts of the incident differed from what was initially reported by the military, prompting the initial inquiry. In the first report, Iraqi casualties were attributed to an IED; upon further questioning, from a firefight with marines; and now, it’s likely that many of those killed were unarmed and not provoking soldiers.

If the men are guilty of the crime, then they should be punished for their actions. Marines, like all soldiers, are chosen and trained for their ability to function under the uncertainty of war and still choose correctly when it comes to the life and death decisions of the use of force. This, notwithstanding the fact that they are at constant risk of attack, unable to speak the language, dealing with a heavily armed population that makes distinguishing combatants and non-combatants difficult, and often, like Lance Corporal Miguel (T.J.) Terrazas, whose death from an IED that afternoon may have prompted the incident, only 20 years old. There is a reason why the United States boasts of having the best trained military in the world; professional soldiers are expected to navigate these situations without incident.

As with Abu Ghraib, questions are sure to follow. If the marines did kill unarmed civilians, should we chalk it up to an inevitable consequence of war, attribute it to the desperate conditions that troops face in Iraq, or blame it on a failure of discipline? Whatever the conclusion, an incident like this one has as much power to be a defining moment in the conflict as did the detainee abuse, especially if the video obtained by Time begins to circulate widely.  In the New York Times, Human Rights Watch has already announced:

If the accounts as they have been alleged are true, the Haditha incident is likely the most serious war crime that has been reported in Iraq since the beginning of the war.”

One of the challenges of fighting a counterinsurgency is that what one side adopts as a regular tactic – the deliberate targeting of noncombatants – is not just out of bounds for the other side on account of moral concerns, but also because it tends to provoke a reaction that strengthens the insurgents' hand. Fortunately, it looks like congress and senior military officials recognize the gravity of the situation and are doing their best to find the facts, impose justice, and move forward. Let’s hope that what investigators find does not confirm the worst suspicions. And let’s also hope that the incident does not provide any more fuel for enemy combatants. The situation is tough enough as it is.