Guardian Unlimited: Doubts US morale in Iraq as troops refuse 'suicide mission.

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Z

Fri, 15 Oct 2004 18:47:53 -0700

Guardian Unlimited | Special reports | Doubts about US morale

in Iraq as troops refuse 'suicide mission'

 

 

 

<http://www.guardian.co.uk/Iraq/Story/0,2763,1328923,00.html>

 

Doubts about US morale in Iraq as troops refuse 'suicide mission'

 

[Z: A friend of mine told me this evening that he just spoke to a

Marine who just got back from Iraq. He quoted the Marine as saying,

" It's totally fucked over there. They lie to you about everything. " ]

 

 

 

17 soldiers investigated in breakdown of discipline

 

Dan Glaister

Saturday October 16, 2004

The Guardian

 

Discipline and morale among US troops in Iraq was under fresh scrutiny

last night as the military admitted that 17 soldiers were being

investigated for refusing to operate a fuel convoy because of safety

fears.

 

The soldiers, from a unit north of Baghdad, told family members that

they considered the convoy destined for Taji to be a " suicide

mission " , citing the poor condition of their vehicles and the absence

of ground and air support to protect the convoy.

 

The refusal, confirmed by military sources in Baghdad, is the first

time that concerns about equipment and safety have led to a major

breakdown of discipline. Allegations about the state of US army

equipment have been aired throughout the conflict and have become a

feature of the US presidential campaign, with senator John Kerry

airing the subject in presidential debates. But it is the first time

that doubts about morale among US troops stationed in Iraq have

surfaced so publicly.

 

Refusal to obey orders in a combat zone is a serious military offence.

Yet, the occupation has become a perilous situation, with more than

1,000 US troops killed since the invasion.

 

Security fears have been heightened by near-daily ambushes and

roadside bombs; yesterday a car bomb in Baghdad killed 10 Iraqis. On

Thursday two blasts inside the heavily fortified Green Zone left six dead.

 

All but two of the 19 reservists in the fuel platoon of the 343rd

Quartermaster Company refused to operate a delivery on Wednesday

morning. They were read their rights and moved from military barracks

into tents, the wife of one of the soldiers told the Clarion Ledger

newspaper in Jackson, Mississippi.

 

A US army spokesman in Baghdad confirmed that a 19-member unit had

failed to operate a convoy on Wednesday and that an investigation was

under way. " Preliminary findings show that there were several

contributing factors, " said Sergeant Salju Thomas of the Combined

Press Information Centre in Baghdad.

 

" The soldiers raised some valid concerns. Unfortunately, it appears a

few soldiers chose to express those concerns in an inappropriate

manner, leading to a temporary breakdown of discipline. "

 

Sergeant Thomas stressed that the soldiers had not been detained or

arrested.

 

Two investigations have been set in motion by the 13 Corps Support

Group. One, in Tallil, where the unit is based, will look at the

nature of the soldiers' complaints, including the state of their

equipment. The second will study " whether any offence of a

disciplinary nature has been committed and what other measures may be

necessary " , said Ser-geant Thomas.

 

The soldiers could be charged with wilful disobeying of orders, which

could lead to dishonourable discharge, forfeit of pay and up to five

years' confinement.

 

According to the Clarion Ledger, Amber McClenny, one of the soldiers

who refused to go out on the convoy, called her mother in the US on

Thursday and left a message saying: " They are holding us against our

will. We are now prisoners. "

 

Ms McClenny told her mother that the convoys were normally escorted by

armed Humvees and helicopters but that they did not have that support

on Wednesday.

 

" They knew there was a 99% chance they were going to get ambushed or

fired at, " Ms McClenny's mother said. " They would have had no way to

fight back. " She said her daughter had told her that the vehicles had

been poorly maintained.

 

Jackie Butler, the wife of Sergeant Michael Butler, was quoted as

saying: " When my husband refuses to follow an order, it has to be

something major. "

 

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