Sniper ordered Iraqi's death

CAMP LIBERTY, Iraq — A top U.S. Army sniper testified in a military court on Friday that he had ordered a subordinate to execute an unarmed Iraqi man who wandered into their hiding position near Iskandariya, then planted an AK-47 rifle near the body to support his false report about the killing.

Under a grant of immunity, the sniper, Staff Sgt. Michael Hensley, an expert marksman and sniper trainer, testified in the court-martial of Sgt. Evan Vela. Vela is accused of murder, impeding a military investigation and planting evidence to cover up an unjust shooting. An earlier charge of premeditated murder was dropped.

Vela is the third soldier to be charged in the death of the Iraqi, Genei Nasir al-Janabi, last May. Hensley and another soldier, Spc. Jorge Sandoval Jr., were acquitted of murder charges last year, but were convicted of planting evidence.

All three were elite snipers with the 501st Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade (Airborne), 25th Infantry Division, based at Fort Richardson, Alaska.

The military trials have highlighted a secret baiting program, in which snipers placed lures like fake explosives or other weaponry to draw insurgents into the open, where U.S. soldiers could kill them.

But Hensley's testimony at the base here suggested that by last spring, in addition to baiting and killing, soldiers had added a new tactic: carrying weapons to plant on bodies to deter prosecution.

Vela's attorney, James Culp, of Austin, Texas, did not dispute that his client had shot and killed al-Janabi, but argued that Vela had only had a few hours of sleep over three days of constant operations. Soldiers also testified that they endured temperatures of 130 degrees, carrying heavy gear with little water and two military ration packs a day.

Hensley said that on May 11, he led his squad to a hiding area overlooking a village they suspected was controlled by Sunni insurgents. But after several days of continuous missions and little rest, soldiers keeping guard were drifting into sleep.

Hensley testified that when he awoke, al-Janabi, who lived nearby, stood in front of him with his hands raised. Hensley said he tackled al-Janabi and held him face down.

Al-Janabi's son arrived, and Hensley and his team held the pair captive until he saw several Iraqi men in the distance. When al-Janabi became agitated, Hensley said he feared al-Janabi's thrashing and shouting would alert the approaching Iraqis.

Hensley said he released the boy and ordered everyone in his squad except Vela to leave because he "didn't want them to bear witness."

"I pretty much knew at this point that something was going to happen to the father," Hensley testified. "... I thought he was trying to lure armed insurgents to my direction, and I thought that the only way to protect my guys was to take this guy's life."

Hensley said he ordered Vela to load his 9-mm pistol, and then made four radio calls to his command post to support his future cover story. The first call reported that an Iraqi man was approaching. The second said the man was armed. In the third call, Hensley said he was preparing to shoot. The fourth call confirmed that he had killed his target.

Hensley said he pulled out an AK-47 that he had ordered one of his men to carry and placed it near the body.

"It wasn't uncommon for us to have stuff like that out there," Hensley said.

5 U.S. soldiers

killed in bombings

BAGHDAD — Five American soldiers were killed in two roadside bombings, the U.S. military reported today.

Four of the deaths occurred in Baghdad and one in Tamim province, of which Kirkuk is the capital, the military said in separate statements. The five were killed during operations Friday. The bombing in Tamim wounded three soldiers.

As of Friday, at least 3,958 members of the U.S. military have died in the Iraq war, according to an Associated Press count.

Anger over Iraq

stalls Afghan buildup

MUNICH, Germany — Lingering anger in Europe over the U.S. invasion of Iraq explains why some allies are reluctant to heed U.S. calls for more combat troops in Afghanistan, Defense Secretary Robert Gates said Friday.

"Many of them, I think, have a problem with our involvement in Iraq and project that to Afghanistan, and do not understand the very different — for them — the very different kind of threat," he told reporters traveling with him to Munich from Vilnius, Lithuania, where he had attended two days of NATO talks.

Gates said he would attempt in a speech here Sunday at an international security conference to address perceptions of the Iraq war, in which NATO has no fighting role, in relation to Afghanistan, where NATO is in charge of the fighting but has fallen short on commanders' requests for more troops.

Additional information from The Associated Press is included