The top commander in Iraq is urging U.S. troops to report illegal acts by their comrades.
The Thursday memo from Army Gen. David Petraeus comes the same week he asked his transition trainers to intercede if they witness Iraqi troops abusing detainees.
Petraeus is trying to find a balance between fighting a treacherous enemy, sticking by various laws that require humane treatment of prisoners and an obligation to report wrongdoing, even if committed by a battlemate.
“We are, indeed, warriors,” Petraeus wrote in the memo. “We train to kill our enemies. We areengaged in combat, we must pursue the enemy relentlessly, and we must be violent at times. What sets us apart from our enemies in this fight, however, is how we behave … We must observe the standards and values that dictate that we treat noncombatants and detainees with dignity and respect.”
If troops witness abuse, he said, “We must not let our bonds prevent us from speaking up.”
Petraeus was specifically responding to a Pentagon survey released last week that showed about two-thirds of Marines and 50 percent of Army soldiers would not report the mistreatment of civilians.
On a broader point, he wants to prevent a repeat of atrocities, such as what the Marine Corps has termed the murders of Iraqi civilians by Marines in the town of Haditha, west of Baghdad, in November 2005.
“This is possibly the most important and challenging of Petraeus’ communications thus far,” said retired Army officer Robert Maginnis, who taught ethics to infantrymen. “He addressed the soul of the Army. Success will require that our warriors rise above past incidents and demonstrate that they respect the Iraqi population. An army that fails to self-purge ceases to be effective and becomes a rogue force.”
