Second U.S. soldier found guilty of Afghan assault

Reuters, 31 January 2006

A U.S. military court found a second soldier guilty of mistreating detainees in Afghanistan in July and sentenced him to six months in detention, the U.S. military said.

Sergeant Kevin D. Myricks was found guilty of conspiracy to maltreat a detainee and maltreatment of two detainees at a hearing at a U.S. base in Afghanistan on Monday.

The court martial and subsequent punishment of the soldier reflected the seriousness with which the military viewed the incident, said Major General Jason Kamiya, commander of U.S.-led forces fighting insurgents in Afghanistan.

Myricks, demoted to the rank of private, was being held at the main U.S. base at Bagram, north of Kabul, pending transfer to Kuwait for detention, the U.S. military said in a statement.

Another U.S. soldier, Army Specialist James Hayes, involved in the same incident in the restive central province of Uruzgan, was accused of punching detainees in the chest, arms and shoulders.

Hayes was found guilty on Friday of one count of conspiracy to maltreat and two counts of maltreatment. He was sentenced to four months in detention and also demoted to the rank of private.

Human rights groups and former detainees have criticized the U.S. military for abusing prisoners in Afghanistan and at the U.S. detention center at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba.

The U.S. military denies any widespread abuse and says soldiers who mistreat detainees will be punished.

"We are fully committed to investigating all allegations of detainee mistreatment and will hold accountable those who are found to have acted inappropriately," Kamiya said.

There are about 18,000 U.S. troops in Afghanistan fighting Taliban and al Qaeda militants and hunting for their leaders.

U.S. and Afghan opposition forces overthrew the Taliban in late 2001 after they refused to hand over al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden.

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Citation: "Second U.S. soldier found guilty of Afghan assault," Reuters, 31 January 2006.
Original URL: http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20060131/us_nm/afghan_usa_dc
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