Charges will no longer be pursued against a company of US
Marines who were removed from Afghanistan on suspicion of killing
the country's civilians, a lawyer involved in the case said on
Friday.
Defense Attorney Mark Waple said that the case was being
referred to a court of inquiry, which would limit itself to
examining the actions of three Marine officers, according to the
Washington Times.
The court of inquiry, the Navy's highest-level administrative
investigatory body, is rarely convened and "is not a criminal
proceeding," said a spokesman for the U.S. Marine Corps Forces
Central Command.
The Afghan government and Afghan human rights groups accused the
Marines of firing indiscriminately at civilians on March 4 2007,
killing about 10 Afghans and wounding more than 30 others.
(Xinhua News Agency October 13, 2007)
