March 31, 2004: Iraqis chant anti-American slogans
as the charred and mutilated bodies of U.S. contractors
hang from a bridge over the Euphrates River in Fallujah, Iraq.

Navy SEALs Face Assault Charges for Capturing Most-Wanted Terrorist

Tuesday , November 24, 2009
By Rowan Scarborough

Navy SEALs have secretly captured one of the most wanted terrorists in Iraq — the alleged mastermind of the murder and mutilation of four Blackwater USA security guards in Fallujah in 2004. And three of the SEALs who captured him are now facing criminal charges, sources told FoxNews.com.

The three, all members of the Navy's elite commando unit, have refused non-judicial punishment — called an admiral's mast — and have requested a trial by court-martial.

Ahmed Hashim Abed, whom the military code-named "Objective Amber," told investigators he was punched by his captors — and he had the bloody lip to prove it.

Now, instead of being lauded for bringing to justice a high-value target, three of the SEAL commandos, all enlisted, face assault charges and have retained lawyers.

Matthew McCabe, a Special Operations Petty Officer Second Class (SO-2), is facing three charges: dereliction of performance of duty for willfully failing to safeguard a detainee, making a false official statement, and assault.

Petty Officer Jonathan Keefe, SO-2, is facing charges of dereliction of performance of duty and making a false official statement.

Petty Officer Julio Huertas, SO-1, faces those same charges and an additional charge of impediment of an investigation.

The three SEALs will be arraigned separately on Dec. 7. Another three SEALs — two officers and an enlisted sailor — have been identified by investigators as witnesses but have not been charged.

FoxNews.com obtained the official handwritten statement from one of the three witnesses given on Sept. 3, hours after Abed was captured and still being held at the SEAL base at Camp Baharia. He was later taken to a cell in the U.S.-operated Green Zone in Baghdad.

The SEAL told investigators he had showered after the mission, gone to the kitchen and then decided to look in on the detainee.

"I gave the detainee a glance over and then left," the SEAL wrote. "I did not notice anything wrong with the detainee and he appeared in good health."

Lt. Col. Holly Silkman, spokeswoman for the special operations component of U.S. Central Command, confirmed Tuesday to FoxNews.com that three SEALs have been charged in connection with the capture of a detainee. She said their court martial is scheduled for January.

United States Central Command declined to discuss the detainee, but a legal source told FoxNews.com that the detainee was turned over to Iraqi authorities, to whom he made the abuse complaints. He was then returned to American custody. The SEAL leader reported the charge up the chain of command, and an investigation ensued.

The source said intelligence briefings provided to the SEALs stated that "Objective Amber" planned the 2004 Fallujah ambush, and "they had been tracking this guy for some time."

The Fallujah atrocity came to symbolize the brutality of the enemy in Iraq and the degree to which a homegrown insurgency was extending its grip over Iraq.

The four Blackwater agents were transporting supplies for a catering company when they were ambushed and killed by gunfire and grenades. Insurgents burned the bodies and dragged them through the city. They hanged two of the bodies on a bridge over the Euphrates River for the world press to photograph.

Intelligence sources identified Abed as the ringleader, but he had evaded capture until September.

The military is sensitive to charges of detainee abuse highlighted in the Abu Ghraib prison scandal. The Navy charged four SEALs with abuse in 2004 in connection with detainee treatment.

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"This is a horrible, blatant abuse of the international laws of armed conflict, the Geneva conventions, western civilization and all that is good and holy. These 3 vicious animals should be turned over to the international criminal court for prosecution by the Iraqi insurgents. They have committed a crime against humanity that can only be repaid by burning their infidel hides and hanging them from a bridge as a lesson to the rest of the crusaders. alahu akbar !" - Baraq obuma.

Or we could give each of them a medal and a promotion and say "Thank You!"
(right after they give a fat lip to the guy who squealed on them.)

United States Navy SEAL insignia. Extremely hard to earn. Worn by our best.

"People sleep comfortably in their beds at night only because rough men stand ready to do violence on their behalf."

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Update 11/25/09

Having thought about this situation for 24 hours, and being a retired intelligence officer who realizes the value of information that can be extracted from a live prisoner, I have come to the conclusion that there are some enemy combatants that do not deserve to be taken prisoner. The "informal" Rules of Engagement should be changed immediately so that US forces who capture and positively ID an enemy combatant such as Mr Abed, who has committed an atrocity against friendly forces, have the option of executing him. The method and means of execution to be limited only by their imagination and available resources.