08-08-2011, 10:37 PM
More allegations of fingers being sliced off as "trophies", this time by a British soldier.
Quote:Soldier 'sliced off fingers of dead Taliban fighters as souvenirs'
A British soldier sliced off the fingers of dead Taliban fighters as "souvenirs", it was has been alleged
By [URL="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/onthefrontline/8689120/Soldier-sliced-off-fingers-of-dead-Taliban-fighters-as-souvenirs.html"]
Simon Johnson, Stephen Adams[/URL]6:40PM BST 08 Aug 2011
As the Ministry of Defence launched an investigation into the claims, General Lord Richard Dannatt, the former head of the Army, said he was "absolutely shocked" by the accusations.
He warned they were "incredibly damaging" to the Army's operations in Afghanistan and that they threatened to harm relations between the military and local Afghans whether true or not.
It was alleged that a solider in the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders, 5th Battalion, the Royal Regiment of Scotland, hacked off the fingers of enemy corpses.
The Royal Military Police's Special Investigation Branch (SIB) has started an inquiry into allegations that he kept them as "macabre souvenirs" during the regiment's last tour of Helmand Province between September 2010 and April.
They allegations are particularly potent in the "hearts and minds" battle against the Taliban as Muslim tradition dictates that the dead must be buried with all their body parts.
Sir Richard told The Daily Telegraph: "If true, it's quite outrageous and I've never heard of anything like that before. I'm absolutely shocked.
"It's an extremely damaging allegation to have made. The potential damage (to the Afghanistan operation) is huge. The allegation in itself is damaging even if not true because it has been published.
"The Army does not tolerate in any shape or form that kind of activity and will investigate swiftly and thoroughly."
He said one of the "core values" of the Army is that enemy soldiers, dead or alive, are treated with respect.
The MoD refused to comment in detail or to confirm whether any soldier has been suspended.
A spokesman said: "This is a very serious allegation and it would be wrong for us to comment. An investigation is ongoing."
The Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders, known as 5 Scots and based in Canterbury, Kent, were on their second tour of duty in Afghanistan as part of 16 Air Assault Brigade.
They took over the running of the Helmand Police training centre, where 4,000 recruits are put through intensive eight-week courses.
One company from the battalion was also attached to the 2nd Battalion, the Parachute Regiment, on combat duties. There is no information on which company the soldier came from.
Clive Fairweather, a former SAS commander and honorary colonel of the Argylls' Cadet Force, said he was "baffled and shocked" by the accusations.
"I've never come across anything like this in my 34 years of service. Taking trophies from dead combatants is a sure fire way to provoke anger in the local population," he said.
"This is one of the taboos of the military. There's not that many, but this is one of them."
"It means this War was never political at all, the politics was all theatre, all just to keep the people distracted...."
"Proverbs for Paranoids 4: You hide, They seek."
"They are in Love. Fuck the War."
Gravity's Rainbow, Thomas Pynchon
"Ccollanan Pachacamac ricuy auccacunac yahuarniy hichascancuta."
The last words of the last Inka, Tupac Amaru, led to the gallows by men of god & dogs of war
"Proverbs for Paranoids 4: You hide, They seek."
"They are in Love. Fuck the War."
Gravity's Rainbow, Thomas Pynchon
"Ccollanan Pachacamac ricuy auccacunac yahuarniy hichascancuta."
The last words of the last Inka, Tupac Amaru, led to the gallows by men of god & dogs of war