Afghans accuse U.S. Marines of civilian killings

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http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-0704140385apr15,1,7688363.story?coll=chi-news-hed

By Carlotta Gall
New York Times News Service
Published April 15, 2007


KABUL, Afghanistan -- U.S. Marines reacted to a bomb ambush in eastern Afghanistan last month with excessive force, hitting groups of bystanders and vehicles with machine-gun fire in a rampage that covered 10 miles of highway and left 12 civilians dead, including an infant and three elderly men, according to a report published by an Afghan human-rights commission Saturday.

Families of the victims said last week that they had demanded justice from the U.S. military and the Afghan government. They also described the aftermath of the Marines' shooting at Spinpul in Nangarhar province.

A 16-year-old newlywed was cut down while she was carrying a bundle of grass to her family's farmhouse, according to her family and the report. A 70-year-old man was hit by so many bullets that his son did not recognize the body at the scene.

In the weeks immediately after the episode, the U.S. military began an investigation, and it is now exploring possible criminal charges, senior military officials said. The Marines involved in the episode are being kept in Afghanistan but the rest of their 120-man company has been pulled out of the country.

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