Now that the inquest has found the American soldiers guilty of the unlawful killing journalist Terry Lloyd and his interpreter, should the guilty soldiers not be identified and punished?
The argument against this, and the argument the US government also uses for refusing to join the International Courts and Tribunals, is that it undermines the US troops. It is asserted that the army needs to have 100% conviction and that they couldn’t operate effectively in the knowledge that their actions are being scrutinised and that they could be held accountable for any mistake.
Others would argue that it undermines the entire operation in Iraq if the ‘liberating’ forces act beyond the reach of war crimes tribunals, are allowed to fire on retreating injured civilians and shoot journalists dead, found guilty of unlawful killing and yet remain completely free of legal retribution.
What should be done?
2006-10-19
02:48:36
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18 answers
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asked by
James C
2
in
Law & Ethics