UPDATE: 2:00 pm EST
An official says the Marine Corps has identified at least two of the four Marines in an internet video that purports to depict them urinating on Taliban corpses in Afghanistan.
A Marine official said Thursday that the four were members of the 3rd Battalion, 2nd Marines, which returned to its home base in North Carolina last fall after a tour in Afghanistan.
The official spoke on condition of anonymity because a criminal investigation is under way.The official said that at least some of the four Marines are no longer in that battalion. He provided no other details.
SOURCE: CBSNEWS
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U.S. Soldiers in Afghanistan did the most inhumane thing in a YouTube video uploaded late Tuesday. In the 39 second clip, U.S. Marines are seen urinating on three dead Taliban fighters.
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The Marines can be heard laughing and joking. “Have a great day, buddy.” The desecration of corpses during wartime violates military law and can lead to a court-martial.
Capt. Gregory Wolf, a Marine Corps spokesman said in an email that neither the origin nor authenticity of the video had been confirmed.
He added that the:
“actions portrayed are not consistent with our core values and are not indicative of the character of the Marines in our corps. This matter will be fully investigated.”
Afghan President Hamid Karzai has condemned the video depicting the four U.S. Marines urinating on the corpses of Taliban fighters, describing the act as “completely inhumane” and called on the U.S. military to punish the Marines.
The NATO-led security force in Afghanistan released a statement Thursday saying:
“This disrespectful act is inexplicable and not in keeping with the high moral standards we expect of coalition forces.”
Officials confirmed to NBC News that the servicemen in the video were part of a Marine sniper team from Camp Lejeune, N.C. The clip was filmed last year in Afghanistan, apparently by a fellow serviceman.
The Taliban called the video “shameful” and “not a human action,” according to BBC News.
This looks like Abu Ghraib all over again when photos emerged of soldiers posing with naked inmates at a Iraqi prison.
