European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - July 16, 2007, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page 6 stars and stripes july 2007 witness marines told to get Tough on iraqis by Tony Perry los Angeles times Camp a Marine testifying sat urday at the murder trial of a said that marines in his unit routinely began beating iraqis after being ordered by officers to Crank up the violence Saul Lopez Romo said that marines in his including the Trent Tho were angry when officers criticized them As not As Tough As other Marine were All were not there to mess so we took it As an Lopez Romo within Days of allegedly being Corporal testifies in Hamdani murder trial scolded As seven marines and a corpsman went out late at night to find and kill a suspected insurgent in the Village of Hamda Nia near Abu Gharib the marines and corpsman were from 2nd company 3rd 5th Lopez Romo said their target was known to his neighbors As the Prince of and had been arrested several times Only to be released by the iraqi Legal unable to find their the marines and corpsman dragged another Man from his fatally shot and then planted an ak47 near to body to make it a amusing setting for a patrol Bronco of the army Josh from provides Security while his team of soldiers investigates a possible insurgent mortar launch site at an amusement Park in Baghdad Rosafa District on july Ross is with troop 3rd 61st cavalry 2nd infantry brigade combat 2nd infantry based out of Colorado Pear As if he had been killed in a according to four marines and the corps initially charged with Mur Der in the april 2006 have pleaded guilty to reduced charges and been Given jail sentences from 10 months to eight the from pleaded guilty but withdrew his plea and is the first defendant to go to a we were told to Crank up the violence said who testified for the he indicated that during daily patrols the marines became much rougher with asked by a juror to he said we beat Lopez Romo said he believed that officers knew of the and he suggested that the order to get Tough soured him on the Marine who was not part of the squad on its lat night said he sees nothing wrong in what Thomas and the others he added that in of consider All iraqi men As part of the because of the Way they the there All in it he Thomas attorneys have portrayed him As suffering from Post traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injury from his combat duty in fal Lujah in they to convince the jury that Thomas believed he was following a lawful order to get prosecution witnesses testified that Thomas shot the 52yearold Iraq at Pointblank Range after he had been shot by other marines and was lying on the but Lopez Romo said a proce Dure called dead checking was if marines entered a House where a Man was wound instead of checking to see if he needed medical they shot him to make sure he he the jury is composed of three officers and six enlisted person All of whom have served in the trial resumes bombing kills 10 in Baghdad by Hamid Ahmed the associated press Baghdad a car bomb packed with explosives detonated sunday in a Central Baghdad killing 10 people and wounding the deadliest attack on a violent Day that claimed the lives of at least 18 a military spokesman on sunday that the Mont hold american offensives in and around the capital were starting to have an reducing Vio Lence and civilian he did not cite the Bush administration is under increased pressure from critics in Congress who say the strategy in Iraq is not work raising Calls for a troop with proponents of a pullout have pointed to the failure of iraqi prime minister Nouri Alma Lim to enact political reforms considered vital to a Lon term fall in the car bomb attack came in Central Hussein which has several Kebab stalls and other takeout said a police offi the afternoon blast ripped through stalls and killing 10 and wounding according to officials at the two hospitals where the victims were the dead included two and three women and five Chil Dren were among those said the Hospital All the officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk to the the deaths in Iraq the associated press As of at least members of the military have died since the beginning of the Iraq War in March according to an associated press the figure includes seven military at least died As a result of hostile according to the Mili Tarys the a count is two More than the defense departments last updated Friday at 10 latest deaths reported by the military two soldiers were killed saturday in bombings in the Baghdad the latest identifications re ported by the military army sgt Courtney died wednesday in of wounds sustained from indirect fire assigned to the 3rd brigade special troops 3rd brigade combat 3rd in Fantry fort a area is near the offices of the country largest shiite the supreme islamic Council of it was a big explosion and a fire said one the owner of a nearby Mobile phone shop who would identify himself Only by his first i rushed with others at site to see two burned corpses in Side a car and wounded in Northern gunmen am bushed a Convoy of Border killing six of them along with a a Border guard commander when reinforce ments pulled another guard died in the which took place in the Kani Khal 160 Miles Northeast of the commander said the sunni extremist group Ansar a islam was believed to be behind the shootings in the Northern cities of Mosul and Kirkuk and several areas South of Baghdad killed eight according to police officers in the among them were the wife and son of a City Council slain outside their rear Mark Fox told re porters that the sweeps in Bagh to the South and in the City of bad Cuba to the Northeast had brought a reduction in bloodshed in the capital particular in Sec tarian the offensives Are making a difference on the we have seen a significant drop in the number of civilians murdered in the Overall Levels of sectarian violence has de he Karzai frees teen forced by militants to attempt suicide bombing the associated press Afghanistan four teeny Earold Rafiq Ullah said the men at the pakistani Madrassa showed him and two classmates videos of suicide they taught the boys to drive a car and let them ride then the militants gave Rafiq Ullah his Mission kill an afghan the teenager walked eight hours Over the porous Border from Pakistan to the Eastern afghan City of where a Man named Abdul Aziz tried to pump up his Rafiq Ullah Aziz gave him an expo Siv Sladen and the teenager confessed his i said i was afraid to carry out the suicide and Abdul Aziz pointed a gun at me and said til kill you if you Rafiq Ullah said while he was in the custody Over the declaring the teen an innocent Pawn manipulated by president Hamid Karzai on Sun Day freed who appears to be at least the third child cooped by Taliban fighters to carry out attacks since today we Are faced with a fearful and terrifying and that truth is the sending of a mus Lim child to Cany out a suicide at Karzai said at the presiden tial Palace with Rafiq Ullah and the teens father at his last month a 6yearold boy in Ghazi province said Taliban Mili Tants forced him to put on a Sui cide Vest and walk up to Ameri can soldiers a potential attack foiled when the boy asked afghan soldiers for a gory Taliban video that surfaced in april showed militants instructing a boy of about 12 in Pakistan As he beheaded an alleged traitor with a Rafiq Ullah said at least two other teenage boys his age had been indoctrinated to Cany out Sui cide attacks at his or religious in a Village named Krotki in Pakistan Border Region of South he said he Doest know where the boys Are or if they will launch the use of such Young combat ants constitutes a War the United nations an agent with Afghanistan intelligence service said Rafiqul who goes by one comes from the me Sud who live on both sides of the Bor and that a number of Chil Dren Are missing from that