Charges will no longer be pursued against a company of US Marines who were
removed from Afghanistan on suspicion of killing the country's civilians, a
lawyer involved in the case said yesterday.
Defense Attorney Mark Waple said that the case was being referred to a court
of inquiry, which would limit itself to examining the actions of three Marine
officers, according to the Washington Times.
The court of inquiry, the Navy's highest-level administrative investigatory
body, is rarely convened and "is not a criminal proceeding," said a spokesman
for the U.S. Marine Corps Forces Central Command.
The Afghan government and Afghan human rights groups accused the Marines of
firing indiscriminately at civilians on March 4 2007, killing about 10 Afghans
and wounding more than 30 others.
