Tag: Iraq

U.S. soldier charged in Afghan massacre had PTSD: lawyer

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Army Staff Sergeant Robert Bales, his attorney John Henry Browne, Judge Col. Jeffery R. Nance and prosecutor Major Rob Stelle are seen in a courtroom sketch as he is arraignedTACOMA, Washington (Reuters) – A U.S. soldier charged with capital murder in the slayings of 16 civilians near his military post in Afghanistan was diagnosed as suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injury prior to the killings, his lawyer said on Thursday. Prosecutors are seeking the death penalty against Robert Bales, a decorated veteran of four combat tours in Iraq and Afghanistan who is accused of gunning down the villagers, mostly women and children, in cold blood during two rampages through their family compounds in Kandahar province last March. …

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U.S. soldier accused of Afghan killings diagnosed with PTSD: lawyer

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TACOMA, Washington (Reuters) – A decorated U.S. soldier accused of killing civilians in two forays from his military base in Afghanistan last year has been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder, his civilian lawyer said on Thursday. Prosecutors are seeking the death penalty for U.S. Staff Sergeant Robert Bales, a veteran of four combat tours in Iraq and Afghanistan who is accused of gunning down the villagers – mostly women and children – in their homes in two villages in Afghanistan’s Kandahar province. …

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Oregon guardsmen say were knowingly exposed to toxic chemicals in Iraq

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PORTLAND, Oregon (Reuters) – Lawyers for 12 Oregon National Guardsmen suing contractor KBR Inc for negligence and fraud told a jury in Portland, Oregon on Wednesday that the soldiers were knowingly exposed to toxic chemicals in Iraq that made them ill. The Oregon Guardsmen said the exposure took place while they were in Iraq in 2003 following the U.S.-led invasion to provide security for civilian workers restoring an oil industry water treatment plant that was contaminated with sodium dichromate. KBR was contracted to run the project at the plant at that time. …

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Obama vows to support veterans, steers back to foreign policy

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U.S. President Obama speaks to military personnel at Fort Bliss in El Paso, TexasEL PASO, Texas (Reuters) – President Barack Obama returned on Friday to the site where he announced the end of the U.S. combat mission in Iraq two years ago, highlighting his foreign policy record and pledging to take better care of veterans of America's wars. Obama visited Fort Bliss, Texas, where on August 31, 2010, he said he would make good on one of the signature promises from his 2008 run for the presidency: withdrawing American forces from Iraq. …

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