Rogue US soldier went on rampage in Afghanistan, 10 civilians dead, five wounded!

The witnesses reports conflicting with the official reports isn't surprising, as the US is hardly known for telling the truth.

Afghans not being entirely truthful are not entirely unusual either. You'd be amazed how many sheep we killed with observed indirect fire...

For now, there's no reason to believe the lone actor story is not correct and frankly, it's far more reasonable than thinking that a group of troops in a more remote location had a low enough priority on staying alive that they'd get drunk. Besides, aren't some of the witnesses Afghan forces claiming to have seen the guy leave the base on his own?

As soon as he did leave the base he became a tourist.

Doesn't work that way. He would either be covered under SOFA or a form of diplomatic immunity. When Irish soldiers in Eritrea were up on charges of sex with an underage Eritrean, similar circumstances of unauthorised actions off-base applied, they were charged under the Irish military judicial system, not the Eritrean one.

the soldier's killing spree could have a devastating affect on the conflict, leading to countless retaliatory and counter-retaliatory deaths

Perhaps surprisingly to Western thinking, the reaction in Afghanistan to this is rather less than that of the accidental burning of the Korans a couple of weeks ago.

NTM

RichieC wrote: »

Dead sheep they are trying to extort money. do these people get more compo if it was a group of soldiers over a single gunman?

If they're getting paid money to say things? Sure. The opposition are not stupid, they know that the single largest vulnerability of ISAF is popular opinion in the West, and $10 will get you a long way over there. Throw around a few dollars here or there, and they get great value for money. If the going rate for emptying a magazine of AK at Americans, which is a fairly hazardous thing to do, is $20, I can't imagine that saying things, not particularly hazardous, is particularly pricey. Isn't it a great story? Not only do they get to sow seeds of conspiracy, better yet they get an extra un-Islamic offence in there as well, that of drinking.

Fairly detailed description of an eyewitness here http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2113973/US-soldier-fallen-blind-rage-rampage-killed-16-Afghan-civilians.html, as opposed to an ear-witness.

He said: 'I heard a gunshot. When I came out of my room, somebody entered our house. He was in a NATO forces uniform. I didn't see his face because it was dark.'
He said he quickly went into another room in the house, where animals were penned. He added: 'After that, I saw him moving to different areas of the house - like he was searching.'
His father, unarmed, then took a few steps out of his bedroom door. 'He was not holding anything - not even a cup of tea,' Zahir said. The soldier then shot his father. My mother was pulling my father into the room. I put a cloth on his wound

No indication of multiples here.

So what would it take for you to believe the eye witness reports from the Afghanis out of curiosity, or are their testimonies irrelevant?

The more fantastical they are, the less likely I'm inclined to give them much credence. Even Calley wasn't drunk. For those calling 'coverup', there are several significant issues to address. Firstly, the counter-accounts of only one person being involved. Secondly, how and why this one person ended up being selected as the fall guy. Thirdly, why any group of soldiers out in an outpost would get drunk in the first place: It tends to reduce your ability to shoot at people if they choose to attack you. Fourthly, what chances there are of 'the truth' coming out later, especially if this chap comes to trial and may be willing to say anything to share the blame and reduce his own sentence.

My son is 4 weeks away from completing his 6 month tour of Afghan, i spoke to him last night and he said you can cut the atmosphere wit a knife over there.

Normally on his FOB (Forward Operating Base) it's pretty secure and they can walk around normally, since this happened they're under instructions to take there loaded gun with them EVERYWHERE, to the bog, to bed, to eat etc.

No disrespect to my colleagues in (presumably) the British Army, but wandering around a war zone voluntarily leaving your rifle behind is a very odd concept to me, no matter how safe the base is supposed to be. Only showers and PT would be excused.

NTM