US Soldier Guilty of Murdering Unarmed Iraqi

The soldiers started shooting at the truck, which caught fire, and a severely wounded Hassan pulled himself out of the vehicle and fell to the ground. “When I found him, I came to the conclusion that he needed to be put out of his misery,” Horne said. “I fired a shot into his head and his attempts to breathe ceased.”

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A US soldier has been jailed for three years in a plea bargain following the murder of a severely wounded 16-year-old Iraqi, the military says.

Staff Sgt Johnny Horne Jr had pleaded guilty to the unpremeditated murder of the civilian youth in Baghdad's Sadr City suburb on 18 August.

He also pleaded guilty to soliciting another soldier to commit murder.

His defence said the death of the injured Iraqi was a "mercy killing" in collusion with another soldier.

The seven-man panel reached a decision on Friday evening after four hours of deliberation.

Horne was also reduced to the rank of private and given a dishonourable discharge.

'Out of his misery'

The charges stem from an incident in Sadr City when coalition forces were locked in fierce fighting with supporters of Shia cleric Moqtada Sadr.

The court heard that members of Horne's unit fired on a rubbish truck they suspected of laying roadside bombs.

However, inside the lorry was a crew of teenage boys hoping to make some extra money on a night shift.

The soldiers, including Horne, tried to rescue one of the injured youths, according to witness testimony.

Several witnesses described the injured Iraqi as having severe abdominal wounds and burns. Some thought the casualty was beyond medical help.

Witnesses say Horne shot and killed one of the badly injured boys.

The US soldiers decided that "the best course of action was to put [the Iraqi] out of his misery", the criminal investigator told the court.

Abu Ghraib trials

This is one of about a dozen cases in which American soldiers are facing trial over the killing or abuse of Iraqi civilians.

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Baghdad - A United States infantry sergeant pleaded guilty on Friday to murdering a severely wounded 16-year-old Iraqi youth, the military said.

Staff Sergantt Johnny Horne, 30, of Winston-Salem, North Carolina, was charged with the murder on August 18 in Baghdad's Sadr City, the scene of fierce clashes between coalition forces and Shi'a rebels allied to firebrand cleric Muqtada al-Sadr.

The military said Horne would be sentenced later.

US military officials said the incident took place after US soldiers had opened fire on a rubbish truck they suspected of being used by guerrillas.

The Los Angeles Times quoted local witnesses last month identifying the victim as 16-year-old Qassim Hassan, who was working with relatives collecting rubbish. Six other Iraqis were also killed.

Horne, from the 41st Infantry Regiment based at Fort Riley, Kansas, also pleaded guilty to a charge of soliciting another soldier to commit murder. He was one of six Fort Riley soldiers charged with murder in recent months - two for killings in Kansas and four for deaths in Iraq.

"The convictions stemmed from Staff Sgt Horne's murder of a severely wounded Iraqi civilian in Baghdad's Sadr City district," a military statement said.

Previous military court hearings have heard that several troops fired on a group of Iraqi men placing homemade bombs along a road in Sadr City. Soldiers from the same battalion arrived on the scene to find a burning truck and casualties around it.

According to witnesses, the soldiers, including Horne, tried to rescue an Iraqi casualty from inside the truck. The victim had severe abdominal wounds and burns, and was thought by several of the men to be beyond help.

The criminal investigator had said the US soldiers had decided "the best course of action was to put (the victim) out of his misery".

Earlier this week, a US Army officer used a similar defence, saying he had carried out a "mercy killing".

It is against the Geneva Convention to shoot wounded combatants. Capt Rogelio Maynulet was ordered to face a full court martial for the murder in May of a man wounded as troops pursued Sadr militiamen near Najaf.

Another military hearing of a US soldier charged with murdering an Iraqi in a separate incident in Sadr City also continued
yesterday.

Sgt Michael Williams, 25, of Tennessee, was facing charges of premeditated murder and obstruction of justice.

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