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Al-Mahmudiyah Incident
Part of Iraq War
Al-Mahmudiyah
Date March 2006 Location Al-Mahmudiyah, Iraq Result Defendants convicted and sentenced

The Al-Mahmudiyah killings occurred on March 12, 2006, in a house to the southwest of Yusufiyah, a village to the west of the town of Al-Mahmudiyah, which is south of Baghdad, Iraq. Five United States Army soldiers of the 502nd Infantry Regiment were charged with the crimes: (i) Sgt. Paul E. Cortez, (ii) Spc. James P. Barker, (iii) Pfc. Jesse V. Spielman, (iv) Pfc. Brian L. Howard, and (v) Pfc. Steven D. Green (whom the Army discharged before the crime's discovery). A 14-year-old girl, Abeer Qasim Hamza, was gang-raped and murdered, after her family was murdered: her mother, Fakhriyah Taha Muhsin, 34; father, Qasim Hamza Raheem, 45; and six-year-old sister Hadeel Qasim Hamza. As of September 2009, Barker, Spielman, Cortez, Howard, and Green have been convicted and sentenced for this crime.

Victims

Abeer Qassim Hamza al-Janabi (عبير قاسم حمزه الجنابي) (August 19, 1991 – March 12, 2006) an Iraqi girl who, at the age of 14, was gang-raped and murdered together with her 6-year-old sister, mother and father, in their home, by U.S. soldiers who then set fire to the girl's body before decamping.

Background

Abeer Hamza lived with her mother and father (Fakhriya Taha Muhasen, 34, and Qassim Hamza Raheem, 45, respectively) and their three other children, a daughter – 6-year-old Hadeel Qassim Hamza, a son – 13-year-old Mohammed and his younger brother. Their house was situated approximately 200 meters (220 yd) from a six-man U.S. traffic checkpoint, southwest of the village of Yusufiyah, which lies west of the larger township of Al-Mahmudiyah (in the coalition-termed area "Triangle of Death").

According to her neighbours, Abeer spent most of her days at home as her parents would not allow her to go to school because of security concerns. The American soldiers would often watch Abeer from their checkpoint, doing her chores and tending the garden. The neighbours had warned Abeer's father of this but he replied it was not a problem as she was just a small girl.

Abeer's brother Mohammed (who survived along with his younger brother due to being at school at the time of the killings) recalls that the soldiers often searched the house. And on one such occasion a soldier ran his index finger down Abeer's cheek, which had terrified the 14 year old girl. Although the family was not able to identify the soldier who had been harrassing Abeer, Specialist Barker testified that he had seen her and her family on a previous patrol and brought up the idea to the other soldiers of targeting the Al-Janabi house and raping Abeer.,

Abeer's mother told her relatives before the murders that, whenever she caught the soldiers staring at Abeer, they would give her the thumbs-up sign, point to her daughter and say "Very good, very good." Evidently this had concerned her and she made plans for Abeer to spend nights sleeping at her uncle's (Ahmad Qassim's) house.

On March 12, 2006 the soldiers (from the 502nd Infantry Regiment) at the checkpoint had been drinking alcohol and discussing plans to rape Abeer. The soldiers were in at that time the most dangerous part of Iraq, had lost many of their closest friends in the war, and had sought medical attention for psychological problems associated with the war., Specialist Barker, the second highest ranking of the group, suggested they kill a family and rape a girl, and had a house in mind., Specialist Barker testified in Steven Green's trial that Steven Green, who had sought psychiatric help for wanting to kill Iraqis after his friends were killed in front of him, agreed to participate in order to kill Iraqis., Sergeant-Promotable Cortez, the highest ranking of the group who was in charge of the checkpoint at the time, sanctioned the murders and the rape as long as he was allowed to go first. In broad daylight they walked to the house (not wearing their uniforms) and separated Abeer and her family into two different rooms. Steven Green then murdered her parents and younger sister, while two other soldiers raped Abeer. He then emerged from the room saying "I just killed them, all are dead". He then raped Abeer and shot her in the head. The soldiers then proceeded to set fire to the house and bodies.

The neighbours were among the first to discover the scene. One recalled "The poor girl, she was so beautiful she lay there, one leg was stretched and the other bent and her dress was lifted up to her neck."

FBI affidavit

According to the affidavit written by the FBI in support of an arrest warrant for Steven Green, the accused discussed raping the girl in the days preceding the event. On the day in question, five soldiers of the six-man unit responsible for the checkpoint left their posts for the Qasim farmhouse. Four of the soldiers were alleged to have directly participated in the attack, while a fifth (PFC Howard) acted as lookout.

A sixth soldier, SGT Anthony W. Yribe, was charged with failing to report the attack but was not alleged to have been a direct participant. The charge was later dropped in exchange for an "other than honorable" discharge.

The affidavit goes on to state that the soldiers entered the house and ordered Abeer’s father, mother and sister into another room where Green summarily shot all in the head, emerging to say, "I just killed them, all are dead." As the rest of the family was shot in the other room, Abeer was held down to the floor by another soldier. After killing the other family members, Green and at least one other soldier raped Abeer, and then Green shot and killed her.

Based on reports, after the rape the lower part of Abeer’s body, from her stomach down to her feet, was set on fire. The fire eventually spread to the rest of the room and the smoke alerted neighbors who ran to tell Abu Firas Janabi, Abeer’s uncle, that the farmhouse was on fire and that dead bodies could be seen inside the burning building. Janabi and his wife rushed to the farmhouse and doused some of the flames to get inside. Upon witnessing the scene inside, Janabi went to a checkpoint guarded by Iraqi soldiers to report the crime.

The Iraqi soldiers immediately went to examine the scene and thereafter went to a checkpoint manned by U.S. soldiers to report the incident. This was a different checkpoint than the one manned by the accused. After approximately an hour, some soldiers from the checkpoint went to the farmhouse. These soldiers were accompanied by at least one of the accused.

Discovery of crime

After surviving members of the family discovered the bodies, the Iraqi Army was alerted to the crimes. The Iraqi Army alerted the US Army to the crimes, and a group consisting of both armies went down to investigate the scene. Sergeant Anthony Yribe of the US Army came to TCP2, where Sergeant-Promotable Cortez, Specialist Barker, Private First Class Green, Private Spielman, and Private Howard were stationed, and told Sergeant-Promotable Cortez that he needed to come to a house to investigate a murder. Sergeant-Promotable Cortez went back to the house with Sergeant Yribe and other soldiers from the Iraqi Army, but spent most of the time vomiting outside while others investigated.

After investigating the house, Sergeant Anthony Yribe returned to TCP2 and spoke with Private First Class Green, who immediately told Sergeant Yribe, in Specialist Barker's presence, that he (Steven Green) had committed the crimes. Sergeant Anthony Yribe was Steven Green's usual sergeant; however at the time of the crimes Steven Green had been temporarily reassigned by Specialist Cortez to Cortez's command. Sergeant Anthony Yribe did not at first believe PFC Steven Green would commit these crimes, nor that he could accomplish such a thing alone. The next day Sergeant Anthony Yribe pulled PFC Green aside and asked him questions that only someone who had been to the house would know. After PFC Green proved to Yribe he had been involved, Sergeant Yribe ordered PFC Green to get himself discharged from the military and to never speak of this again. Sergeant Yribe then reported back to his superiors that the incident had been perpetrated by Sunni insurgents.,

Iraqi soldiers conveyed this information to Abeer's uncle, who viewed the bodies, and the US Army officially reported the incident as perpetrated by Iraqis. This prevented the event from being recognized as a crime or widely reported amidst the widespread violence occurring in Iraq at that time.,,

On June 22, 2006, the rape and the murders came to light when PFC Justin Watt (of the same platoon) revealed them in a counseling session he received subsequent to three other soldiers from the same platoon being attacked and killed, one dying instantly and the other two being kidnapped before being killed and mutilated. PFC Watt was aware of the US soldiers' involvement in the al-Janabi rape and murders because Sergeant Anthony Yribe had told him about it, and PFC Justin Watt had subsequently gathered more information about it from Private Howard., This began an internal US Army investigation by the US Army Criminal Investigation Command (CID).

By the time these charges came to light, PFC Green had already been honorably discharged from the Army on May 16, 2006. PFC Green went to Combat Stress immediately after the incident, as instructed by Sergeant Yribe, and again reported to combat stress personnel that he wanted to kill all Iraqis because of what had happened to his friends. This time the person he spoke with, Lieutenant Colonel Elizabeth Bowler, immediately processed him out of the army, diagnosing him with anti-social personality disorder.,

The FBI assumed jurisdiction for the crime committed by Green under the Military Extraterritorial Jurisdiction Act and charged him with the killings. At the time Steven Green was charged, this was the first time in its history that the FBI had ever assumed jurisdiction for such a situation. After Steven Green was charged in this way, another former soldier in a similar situation was processed back into the military to face charges through the military judicial system. By the time of Steven Green's trial, another former soldier in a third case had been sentenced through the US civilian judicial system.

Retaliation

On July 11, the Mujahideen Shura Council (now a part of the group, Islamic State of Iraq) released a graphic video showing the bodies of PFC Thomas Lowell Tucker and PFC Kristian Menchaca, soldiers from the same unit as the accused, who were allegedly kidnapped, tortured and beheaded. This was accompanied by a statement saying that the group carried out the killings as "revenge for our sister who was dishonored by a soldier of the same brigade." The Washington Post reports that Charles Babineau and two comrades from the same unit were captured and killed by militants a month after the rape. Local Iraqi officials, and American officials, denied the killing of the GIs was an act of retaliation – in spite of a video of the men's killing that described it as an act of retaliation.

It also said that upon learning of the rape/murder, the group "kept their anger to themselves and didn't spread the news, but were determined to avenge their sister's honor." A statement issued along with the video stated that "God Almighty enabled them to capture two soldiers of the same brigade as this dirty crusader." Other militant groups made various claims or statements announcing revenge campaigns after the killings were reported on July 4, when the US investigation into the incident began.

On July 4, Jaysh al-Mujahidin claimed downing a US Apache "in retaliation for the child, Abir, whom US soldiers raped in Al-Mahmudiyah, south of Baghdad."

On July 12, the Islamic Army in Iraq claimed responsibility for a suicide car bomb near the entrance to the Green Zone in Baghdad, in support of the "Abir operations" targeting the "evil den in the Green prison".

Legal proceedings

Green was arrested as a civilian, and convicted by a civilian court, the U.S. District Court in Paducah, Kentucky. The other four, all active-duty soldiers, were convicted through courts-martial.

James Barker

On November 15, 2006, Specialist Barker pleaded guilty to rape and murder as part of a plea agreement requiring him to give evidence against the other soldiers to avoid the death penalty. He was sentenced to 90 years in prison, and must serve 20 years before being considered for parole. He wept during closing statements, and accepted responsibility for the rape and killings, saying the violence he had encountered in Iraq left him "angry and mean" toward Iraqis.

Currently held in the United States Disciplinary Barracks at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas.

Paul E. Cortez

On January 22, 2007, Sergeant Cortez pleaded guilty in a court martial to rape, conspiracy to rape, and four counts of murder as part of a plea deal to avoid the death penalty, and was sentenced to 100 years in prison. He will be eligible for parole in 10 years. Cortez, 24, also was given a dishonorable discharge. Cortez wept as he apologized for the crimes, saying he could not explain why he took part.

Currently held in the United States Disciplinary Barracks at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas.

Steven Dale Green

Green was arrested in North Carolina while traveling home from Arlington, Virginia, where he had attended the funeral of a soldier. On June 30, 2006, the FBI arrested Green, who was held without bond and transferred to Louisville, Kentucky. On July 3, 2006, United States Federal Court prosecutors formally charged him with raping and killing Abeer Qassim Hamza al-Janabi, a 14-year-old girl, and with killing her six-year-old sister Hadeel, her father, Qassim Hamza Rasheed, and her mother, Fakhriya Taha Muhasen in Mahmoudiyah, on March 12, 2006. On July 10, the U.S. Army charged four other active duty soldiers with the same crime. A sixth soldier, Sgt. Anthony Yribe, was charged with failing to report the attack, but not with having participated in the rape and the murders. On May 7, 2009, Pfc. Green was found guilty by the federal court in Kentucky of rape and multiple counts of murder. While prosecutors sought the death penalty in this case, jurors failed to agree unanimously on that outcome. On September 4, 2009, Green was formally sentenced to life in prison with no possibility of parole.

Trial

On July 6, 2006, Green entered a plea of not guilty through his public defenders. U.S. Magistrate Judge James Moyer set an arraignment date of August 8 in Paducah, Kentucky.

On July 11, 2006, his lawyers requested a gag order. "This case has received prominent and often sensational coverage in virtually all print, electronic and internet news media in the world." "Clearly, the publicity and public passions surrounding this case present the clear and imminent danger to the fair administration of justice," said the motion. Prosecutors had until July 25 to file their response to the request.

On August 31, 2006, a federal judge rejected a gag order. U.S. District Judge Thomas Russell said there is "no reason to believe" that Green's right to a fair trial would be in jeopardy. Furthermore he added, "It is beyond question that the charges against Mr. Green are serious ones, and that some of the acts alleged in the complaint are considered unacceptable in our society."

In July 2007, federal prosecutors, led by Brian Skaret of the United States Department of Justice's Domestic Security Section, announced they will be seeking the death penalty for Green. This is based on the fact that prosecutors believe the rape and killings were premeditated, and were committed using a firearm.

The prosecution of this case is unique in that although the alleged crimes were committed by an active member of the United States military, which normally would fall under the jurisdiction of the military court system, Green was indicted and arrested after he had been discharged from the Army. Thus, the case is being tried instead by the United States Department of Justice's Domestic Security Section.

Opening arguments in Green's trial were heard on April 27, 2009. The prosecution rested its case on May 4, 2009. On May 7, 2009, a federal jury convicted Green of rape and murder, for which he could have received the death penalty. However, on May 21, 2009, Green was spared the death penalty when the jury of nine men and three women couldn't come to unanimous agreement on a penalty; as a result, he will receive life without parole. Formal sentencing took place on September 4, 2009.

Some said the jury's indecision may indicate that the public is becoming increasingly aware of combat stress and its effects on soldiers. Green's defense attorneys argued against the death penalty, presenting military witnesses who testified that Green's unit suffered unusual stress and heavy casualties, and had insufficient Army leadership.

Biography

Green grew up in Seabrook, Texas, and moved to Midland, Texas, when he was 14. According to school officials, he dropped out of high school in 2002 after completing the 10th grade and moved to Denver City, Texas, where he earned his high school equivalency in 2003. Days after a January 2005 arrest for alcohol possession, Green enlisted in the U.S. Army. In doing so, he was granted a moral character waiver for prior alcohol and other drug related offenses that might have otherwise disqualified him. Green graduated from Infantry Training Brigade and was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 502nd Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), Fort Campbell, Kentucky. According to a military spokesperson and a criminal complaint filed in connection with the charges, Green was honorably discharged from the military "due to antisocial personality disorder but before the military was aware of the incident." Green was stationed in Iraq from September 2005 to April 2006 and discharged in May 2006.

Bryan L. Howard

Private first class Howard was sentenced by a court martial under a plea agreement to dishonorable discharge and 27 months imprisonment for obstruction of justice and being an accessory after the fact. The court found that his involvement included hearing the others discussing the crime and lying to protect them, but not commission of the actual rape or murders.

Howard was given a dishonorable discharge, received a 27 month sentence, and is currently on parole.

Jesse V. Spielman

On August 3, 2007, Private first class Spielman, 23, was sentenced by a court martial to 110 years in prison, with the possibility of parole after 10 years. He was convicted of rape, conspiracy to commit rape, housebreaking with intent to rape and four counts of felony murder. Spielman had earlier pleaded guilty to lesser charges of conspiracy to obstructing justice, arson, wrongfully touching a corpse and drinking.

Currently held in the United States Disciplinary Barracks at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas.

Justin Watt

Watt was the whistleblower. He received a medical discharge. He is in hiding because he has received threats.

Anthony Yribe

Initially Yribe was charged with obstructing the investigation, specifically, dereliction of duty and making a false statement. He negotiated an "other than honorable discharge" and the dropping of the charges against him in return for his testimony against the other men.

Film

The 2007 fictional movie Redacted is loosely based upon the events at Mahmudiyah.

References

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External links

• Affidavit by F.B.I. related to Steven D. Green's arrest
• The Massacre of Mahmudiya: A full detail of the case with court documents
• "I came over here because I wanted to kill people." Andrew Tilghman The Washington Post Sunday July 30, 2006
• Iraq girl in troops rape case just 14 The Age Jun 11, 2006
• Killings shattered dreams of rural Iraqi family
• Rape: American soldiers 'took turns' The Age Aug 8, 2006

See also

• Command responsibility
• Human rights in post-Saddam Hussein Iraq
• Hamdania incident
• Haditha massacre

33°04′N 44°22′E / 33.067°N 44.367°E / 33.067; 44.367

• 2006 in Iraq
• Massacres in Iraq
• Military scandals
• Iraq war crimes