US soldiers face assault charges in Afghanistan
Two US soldiers have been charged with allegedly assaulting two detainees held at a US-led coalition base in southern Afghanistan, the military said today.
The two allegedly punched the detainees on the chest, shoulders and stomach while they were being held at a base in Uruzgan province, a statement said. Neither detainee required medical attention, it said.
“The command remains committed to investigate all allegations of misconduct and will hold individuals responsible for their actions consistent with US military law,” Brig Gen Jack Sterling, a deputy coalition commander, was quoted as saying.
The charges include conspiracy to maltreat, assault, and dereliction of duty. The allegations, if substantiated, could lead to disciplinary action, the statement said. It gave no other details, including when the alleged assault occurred.
The allegations come 10 days after the US military launched an investigation into some of its troops allegedly burning the bodies of two Taliban rebels slain in battle, an act that was purportedly caught on video by an embedded freelance cameraman and broadcast on television.
Cremation of corpses is banned in Islam and the alleged desecration sparked outrage in Afghanistan. Some Islamic clerics warned of a violent anti-American backlash, but so far there have no demonstrations.
