Top general in Iraq orders ‘values’ training

BAGHDAD, Iraq - The U.S. military ordered American commanders to hold ethical training on battlefield conduct, and the Iraqi government Thursday announced its own investigation into reports that U.S. Marines killed unarmed civilians last year.

Lt. Gen. Peter Chiarelli, the commander of U.S.-led forces in Iraq, said the ethical training would emphasize “professional military values and the importance of disciplined, professional conduct in combat,” as well as Iraqi cultural expectations.

“As military professionals, it is important that we take time to reflect on the values that separate us from our enemies,” he said in a statement. “The challenge for us is to make sure the actions of a few do not tarnish the good work of the many.”

The training will be conducted in units in the next 30 days and was aimed at reinforcing training service members received before coming to Iraq.

“Of the nearly 150,000 Coalition Forces presently in Iraq, 99.9 percent of them perform their jobs magnificently every day,” Chiarelli said. Of those troops, about 130,000 are from the United States.

“They do their duty with honor under difficult circumstances. They exhibit sound judgment, honesty and integrity. They display patience, professionalism and restraint in the face of a treacherous enemy. And they do the right thing even when no one is watching,” Chiarelli said.

He added, however, that “unfortunately, there are a few individuals who sometimes choose the wrong path.”

The U.S. Marine Commandant, Gen. Michael W. Hagee, traveled to Iraq last week and cautioned troops on the danger of becoming “indifferent to the loss of a human life.”

Their comments came amid rising anger over allegations that U.S. Marines shot and killed 24 civilians, including women in children, in the western city of Haditha on Nov. 19, after a bomb attack on a military convoy killed a Marine.

“It appears to be a horrible crime,” Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki told a news conference. “A large number of women, men and children have been eliminated because of an explosion that targeted a vehicle of the multinational forces.”

News of probe slow to reach Bush
The White House said Thursday President Bush was briefed about the Haditha probe nearly a month after the military began investigating reports Marines murdered unarmed civilians in Iraq.

On Tuesday, the White House said Bush was briefed “soon after” the opening of the probe, which was prompted by inquiries about the Nov. 19 incident from Time magazine.

A reporter from the magazine asked U.S. military officials on Feb. 10 about the circumstances surrounding the alleged massacre, in which 24 people in Haditha, an insurgent stronghold in western Iraq, were killed following a bomb attack on a military convoy in which a Marine died. Four days later, on Feb. 14, Lt. Gen. Peter Chiarelli, commander of Multinational Corps Iraq, ordered an investigation into the incident, White House press secretary Tony Snow said Thursday.

But, Snow said, Bush was not informed about the existence of the investigation until March 11, when he was briefed by national security adviser Stephen Hadley.

A preliminary report on March 3 recommended additional inquiry. Chiarelli received initial findings from that on March 9 and asked for the further review, which still is ongoing, Snow said. Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld and Gen. Peter Pace, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, were informed the next day and Bush the day after, on a Saturday.

Time reported the investigation on March 19.

Bush pledged Thursday that the results of the inquiry will be made public.

Bush said Wednesday he was troubled by the allegations and that, “if in fact laws were broken, there will be punishment.”

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