June 2006 abduction of U.S. soldiers in Iraq

The June 2006 abduction of two U.S. soldiers in Iraq occurred in 2006 when military forces of the U.S. and a dozen more countries conducted military operations in Iraq to "bring order to parts of that country that remain dangerous" for occupying military forces.[1]

On 16 June 2006, a U.S. checkpoint near Baghdad was attacked. One of the three American soldiers manning the checkpoint was killed, and the two others, Menchaca and Tucker, were abducted. Those two were recovered three days later, according to an Iraqi spokesman "killed in a very brutal way and tortured". The Mujahedeen Shura Council—an organization of six groups, including Tanzim Qaidat al-Jihad fi Bilad al-Rafidayn ('al-Qaida in Iraq'), and forerunner of Islamic State of Iraq and Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL)—claimed to have "slaughtered" the two abducted soldiers in revenge for the raping of an Iraqi girl and the killing of her family by soldiers of the same U.S. brigade.

Background

The United States with United Kingdom, Australia and Poland had in March 2003 invaded Iraq to rid Iraq from its Ba'ath Party government led by Saddam Hussein, and, when that was accomplished, in May 2003 decided to stay on in Iraq to "bring order to parts of that country that remain dangerous".[1]

A platoon within the 1st Battalion, 502nd Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) that had recently lost 10 soldiers killed in action, and was enduring leadership changes due to an ongoing investigation into the rape and killing of an Iraqi girl and the killing of her family by several other members of the unit, was charged with guarding a mobile bridge over a canal[2] at a traffic checkpoint south of Baghdad[3][4] near Yusufiyah,[3] in a notoriously dangerous region called the 'Triangle of Death'.[2]

Attack on a U.S. checkpoint

On 16 June 2006 Specialist David J. Babineau (aged 25), Private First Class Kristian Menchaca (23) and Private First Class Thomas L. Tucker (25) were ordered to operate an observation post (OP) guarding the mobile bridge, for 24 to 36 hours, with just one Humvee, while other members of their platoon were about ¾ mile away.[2] The three soldiers were ambushed resulting in[3] Babineau being killed in action, and Menchaca and Tucker being captured.[3][2]

The other platoon members nearby heard small arms fire at 7:49 p.m. and arrived at the checkpoint 25 minutes later, finding Babineau dead and Menchaca and Tucker missing.[2]

Somewhere between the 16th and 19th of June—the bodies of Menchaca and Tucker were tied to the back of a pickup truck and dragged through the village of Yusufiyah.[5]

Mujahedeen Shura Council gives notice

8,000 Iraqi and U.S. soldiers launched a search for the two missing soldiers, during which search one more American soldier died and 12 others were wounded, while coalition troops killed two insurgents and detained 78.[6]

The Mujahedeen Shura Council—an organization of six groups, including Tanzim Qaidat al-Jihad fi Bilad al-Rafidayn ('al-Qaida in Iraq') fighting the Multinational Force in Iraq since 2004—claimed it was holding Menchaca and Tucker captive on Monday 19 June ,[7][8] and said: "we shall give you more details about the incident in the next few days, God willing."[6]

Recovering two killed soldiers

During the night on Monday, 19 June, American soldiers spotted the dead bodies of Menchaca and Tucker, three miles from where they had been captured,[3] near the village of Mufaraji.[4] Aware of roadside bombs, they waited until daylight the morning of 20 June to go and retrieve Menchaca and Tucker.[3] Their bodies then appeared to be tied together and booby-trapped with IEDs,[2] and IEDs were planted around the bodies and on the road leading up to them, causing the recovery of the bodies to take 12 hours .[3]

An Iraqi General said Tuesday 20 June, Menchaca and Tucker had been "killed in a very brutal way and tortured"[3] or tortured and "killed in a barbaric way".[7] U.S. General Caldwell said Menchaca and Tucker appeared not to have died from wounds received during the initial battle with the guerrillas; that they clearly had been killed violently; and that their remains would be sent to the U.S. for DNA testing to definitely identify them and for trying to determine their exact cause of death.[3]

MSC video of dead soldiers

After Iraqi officials had on 20 June disclosed that the bodies of Menchaca and Tucker were found, Mujahedeen Shura Council (apparently[3]) stated on Internet that Zarqawi's successors,[7] or successor,[3] had "slaughtered" the two American soldiers, in accordance with "God's will";[9] the Arabic word "Nahr" used in the posting denotes the cutting of the throat.[3]

On 10 July 2006, the Mujahedeen Shura Council issued a 4:39 minute video showing the mutilated corpses of Menchaca and Tucker. The video begins with a message stating that this video is presented as "revenge for our sister who was dishonored by a soldier of the same brigade". Then the video continues with an audio clip of Osama bin Laden, and then an audio track from Abu Musab al-Zarqawi is heard over the scenes displaying and prodding the two corpses, both dead:[10] one of them is beheaded,[10][11] the other one lies face down on the ground while someone steps on his head.[11]

U.S. conclusions

U.S. officials said on 11 July 2006, the released MSC video "demonstrates the barbaric and brutal nature of the terrorists and their complete disregard for human life".[11]

Lt. Gen. James D. Thurman, Commander of Multi-National Division-Baghdad in Iraq in 2006, ordered a military investigation into the whole affair.[2] The investigating officer, Lt. Col. T. Daugherty, concluded in his report in May 2007 that the army unit concerned was at the time hurt by the recent loss of 10 troops, including several leaders, killed in action, and by the subsequent shuffle of the platoon's leadership for three times and had been dogged by the ongoing investigation concerning the unit (see section Background); that it was unrealistic to expect the three soldiers to operate that observation post that day (see above) for 24 to 36 hours; and that the platoon leader and the company commander had failed to provide proper supervision to the unit or enforce military standards. Daugherty recommended letters of reprimand as penalty for those two officers, a lieutenant and a captain. General Thurman however decided to a harsher penalty: removal of those two officers from their commands. In addition, administrative actions were taken against several other officers, which have not been disclosed due to reasons of privacy protection.[2]

Trial of an Iraqi suspect

In October 2008, an Iraqi court convicted and sentenced to death Ibrahim Karim Muhammed Salih al-Qaraghuli for the abduction, torture, and killing of Menchaca and Tucker. Expert testimony linked al-Qaraghuli's fingerprints to bloody prints found on the truck used to drag the bodies of Tucker and Menchaca through the streets of Yusufiyah. Two additional suspects were acquitted by the court for lack of evidence. The court partially relied on statements of six witnesses who all had refused to show up in court. American officials stated that DNA evidence was recovered that tied a second defendant to the killings. That evidence however was not addressed by the court due to their refusal to use an American DNA expert and the lack of an available Iraqi expert.[5]

References

  1. 1 2 "Text of Bush Speech". CBS News. Associated Press. 1 May 2003. Archived from the original on 18 April 2008. Retrieved 21 July 2006.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Baldor, Lolita C. (17 May 2007). "Report Says Soldiers Were Not Protected". Washington Post. Retrieved 30 November 2014. (page 1);
    idem, Washington Post, 17 May 2007 (page 2).
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Filkins, Dexter; Tavernise, Sabrina; Hauser, Christine (20 June 2006). "Bodies of G.I.'s Show Signs of Torture, Iraqi General Says". The New York Times. The New York Times Company. Retrieved 29 November 2014.
  4. 1 2 Perez-Trevino, Emma (28 October 2008). "Family rejoices in death sentence". The Brownsville Herald. AIM Media TX, LLC. Retrieved 29 November 2014.
  5. 1 2 Londoño, Ernesto (29 October 2008). "Iraq Court Convicts Killer of 2 Soldiers". Washington Post. Retrieved 2 December 2014.
  6. 1 2 Associated Press (21 June 2006). "Al-Qaida says new leader killed kidnapped GIs: Military awaits DNA tests after finding mutilated, booby-trapped bodies". NBC News Digital. NBC News. Archived from the original on 11 February 2014. Retrieved 1 December 2014.
  7. 1 2 3 Gamel, Kim (20 June 2006). "Booby-trapped bodies of 2 GIs recovered". web.archive/news yahoo/Associated Press. Archived from the original on 21 June 2006. Retrieved 29 November 2014.
  8. ↑ "Mujahedeen Shura Council of Iraq-Press Releases 19-06-2006". press-release.blogspot.com. 19 June 2006. Retrieved 28 November 2014.
  9. ↑ Barbara Starr, Cal Perry, and Ed Lavandera (21 June 2006). "U.S. soldiers' bodies mutilated, booby-trapped". Cable News Network. Time Warner Company. Archived from the original on 6 October 2008. Retrieved 28 November 2014. External link in |work= (help)
  10. 1 2 "Beheading Desecration Video of Dead U.S. Soldiers Released on Internet by al Qaeda". The Jawa Report. 10 July 2006. Retrieved 1 December 2014.
  11. 1 2 3 Partlow, Joshua, al-Izzi, Saad (12 July 2006). "From Baghdad Mosque, a Call to Arms". Washington Post. Retrieved 2 December 2014.

Further reading

  • Striker, Clarissa (27 June 2006). "Mom, Hometown Mourn Mutilated Soldier". CBS News. CBS Interactive, Inc. Archived from the original on 8 February 2014. Retrieved 8 February 2014.
  • Brezosky, Lynn (27 June 2006). "Texas Community Mourns Death of Soldier". The Washington Post. Washington, D.C.: The Washington Post Company. Retrieved 8 February 2014.
  • KWTX (28 June 2006). "Services Are Tuesday For Slain Texas Soldier". KWTX. Gray Television Group, Inc. Archived from the original on 14 December 2007. Retrieved 14 December 2007.
  • Perez-Trevino, Emma (29 June 2006). "Army general promises to track down soldiers' killers: Investigators examining deaths of Menchaca, Babineau and Tucker". The Brownsville Herald. AIM Media Texas, LLC. Retrieved 8 February 2014.
  • Pinkerton, James; Tolson, Mike (29 June 2006). "Hundreds attend services for soldier: Soldier buried with full honors. Hundreds from the Valley attend services for Menchaca". Chron. P.O. Box 4260, Houston, Texas, 77210–4260.: Houston Chronicle. Archived from the original on 8 February 2014. Retrieved 8 February 2014.
  • Roberts, Joel (17 May 2007). "Mistakes Led To Grisly GI Deaths Last June". CBS News. CBS Interactive, Inc. Archived from the original on 8 February 2014. Retrieved 8 February 2014.
  • Baldor, Lolita C. (17 May 2007). "Report Says Soldiers Were Not Protected". The Washington Post. Washington, D.C.: The Washington Post Company. Retrieved 11 February 2014.
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