Marines Urination Video Draws International Condemnation

Posted by has in , , on Thursday, January 12, 2012

Marines urination video screencap | Youtube
A video allegedly showing U.S. Marines urinating on dead bodies of Taliban fighters has been condemned by Afghan President Hamid Karzai, U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta, Taliban leaders and the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF).

Posted on YouTube and other websites, the video shows four men in camouflage Marine combat uniforms urinating on three corpses at an unidentified location apparently in Afghanistan. One of them jokes: "Have a nice day, buddy." Another jokes, "Golden, like a shower."

"We expressly ask the US government to urgently investigate the video and apply the most severe punishment to anyone found guilty in this crime," President Karzai said in a statement on Thursday evening. "This act by American soldiers is simply inhuman and condemnable in the strongest possible terms."

In Washington, U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta denounced the actions shown on the video and vowed that "those found to have engaged in such conduct will be held accountable to the fullest extent."

"I have seen the footage, and I find the behavior depicted in it utterly deplorable," Panetta said in a statement. "I condemn it in the strongest possible terms."

The Taliban has also criticized the clip as "shameful" but said it would not derail attempts at peace talks.

Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said the footage "is not a political process, so the video will not harm our talks and prisoner exchange because they are at the preliminary stage."

The ISAF has also released a statement regarding the video, condemning the act depicted in it.

"This disrespectful act is inexplicable and not in keeping with the high moral standards we expect of coalition forces," it said. "ISAF strongly condemns the actions depicted in the video, which appear to have been conducted by a small group of US individuals, who apparently are no longer serving in Afghanistan."

It is not yet clear who shot or posted the 39-second video that surfaced online on Wednesday. There are no information yet on who the people pictured in it were or where it was shot.

The US military said it was "deeply troubled by the video" and now investigating it.

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