This is bad, folks. Very bad.
The AP is reporting that at least one US soldier has admitted that he and several of his comrades raped and murdered a young Iraqi woman and then killed the other three members of her family as well. They burned the rape victim's body, presumably to hide the evidence.
The investigation is just beginning. According to an Army spokesman,
"There is no indication what led soldiers to this home. The investigation just cracked open. We're just beginning to dig into the details."
However, a U.S. official close to the investigation said at least one of the soldiers, all assigned to the 502nd Infantry Regiment, has admitted his role and has been arrested. Two soldiers from the same regiment were slain this month when they were kidnapped at a checkpoint near Youssifiyah.
At least four other soldiers have had their weapons taken away and are confined to Forward Operating Base Mahmoudiyah south of Baghdad. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the case.
This can't be covered up because one of the soldiers has confessed. And if what he says is true, there is no way for the wingnuts to spin this to make it anything other that a war crime. They can't claim the woman was an insurgent. The army didn't try:
The killings appeared to have been a "crime of opportunity," the official said. The soldiers had not been attacked by insurgents but had noticed the woman on previous patrols.
This was the same unit that recently lost three soldiers in an ambush, two of whom were captured, tortured and killed. The alleged rape and murders apparently had nothing to do with the ambush, except that one of the soldiers felt he had to report the crime.
Thus we see further evidence of a breakdown in discipline, pure and simple. One of my great fears is that the good, long-service officers and NCOs are abandoning the service and new leaders are being promoted too fast. Furthermore, the Army is lowering its standards for new recruits (any warm body will do now, it seems). We have therefore gone a long way towards creating the conditions that are just ripe for war crimes. The anarchy of Iraq is the perfect breeding ground for atrocities such as this one.
And you have to wonder: Would this ever have been discovered if it hadn't been reported by the troops themselves? How many other of these crimes have not been reported?
The descent into Hell continues.
Update: It has been pointed out that we really don't know if there is a connection between the ambush and this massacre, which apparently took place back in March. For all we know, the perpetrators of the ambush could have been seeking revenge for the crime by capturing, torturing, and executing American soldiers. In any event, we can't assume that there is no connection at this time.
I do wonder how many "insurgent" attacks are revenge for the loss of loved ones killed by Americans. If I were an Iraqi, I doubt it would make much of a difference to me if the killing was accidental or not. An apology would not be enough.