Sgt Robert Bales Confronted by Afghan Massacre Victim
A US soldier who killed 16 civilians in Afghanistan has been confronted by a victim, as his sentencing heard graphic details of the massacre.
Staff Sgt Robert Bales, 39, gunned down men, screaming children and elderly women, a jury at Washington state’s Joint Base Lewis-McChord was told.
Mohammad Haji Naeem, whose son was killed, asked Sgt Bales why he carried out the shootings.
In June, he admitted the March 2012 massacre in a deal to avoid execution.
A military jury of six must decide whether or not he will ever be eligible for parole. The sentencing phase of the court martial will last from one to two weeks.
‘Weapon on burst’
On Tuesday, one of nine Afghan villagers flown out to attend the trial angrily challenged Sgt Bales in court, which is south of Seattle.
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At the scene
Alastair Leithead
BBC News, Joint Base Lewis-McChord
Staff Sgt Robert Bales was wearing full military uniform as the judge began the hearing. Prosecutor Lt Col Jay Morse said witnesses on the Afghan base had described how Sgt Bales was “covered in the blood of his victims” after the massacre. Asked whose blood it was, he “shrugged his shoulders”, the court heard.
After the attack, Sgt Bales told colleagues: “I thought I was doing the right thing. I’m sorry I let you guys down. My count is 20,” referring to the number of Afghans he believed he had killed.
Sgt Bales listened to testimony translated from Pashtu as Mohammad Haji Naeem confronted him in court. Mr Naeem was shot in the jaw at close range, while his son was killed. A 12-year-old boy, Sadiquullah, told the court of his fear as Sgt Bales came into the compound and shot him in the ear, fracturing his skull.
Mohammad Haji Naeem was shot in the face at close range while his son was killed in the attack, near a remote base in Kandahar province.