Why Haditha Matters

There's a great article over at The Nation which expands on my argument that events there cannot be left solely at the door of the individual marines who carried out the attacks but are indicative of a responsiblity that carries much higher up the chain of command. A taster:

Enough details have emerged from survivors and military personnel to conclude that in the town of Haditha last November, members of the 3rd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment perpetrated a massacre.

The killings may have been in retaliation for the death of a Marine lance corporal, but this was not the work of soldiers gone berserk. The targets (children from 3 to 14, an old man in a wheelchair, taxi passengers), the hours-long duration of killings, the number of Marines involved, the careful mop-up--all amount to willful, targeted brutality designed to send a message to Iraqis.

As Representative John Murtha has pointed out, the patently false story floated afterward, blaming the killings on roadside bombs, and Marine payoffs to survivors imply a cover-up that may extend far up the chain of command.

What matters about Haditha?

Click title for full article.

Tags: Haditha, massacre, marines, war, crimes,