Top Marine Commander Condoned, Promoted Atrocities

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Is It Any Wonder US Troops are Out of Control?
Top Marine in Iraq Condoned and Promoted Atrocities

By Cheryl Seal

As they say in the military, shit flows downhill. And the shit that has hit the fan in the form of revelations of civilian massacres by US troops has flowed downhill from the White House via Lt. Gen. John F. Sattler. Since Sattler was appointed to the post of commander of the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force in September 2004, the worst excesses of violence by US troops have occurred, with the worst of the worst perpetrated by marines.

Seasoned combat veterans will tell you that the worst possible commander to have in a war zone is one with no combat experience. And yet that is just what the troops in Iraq got with Sattler. Although Sattler directed anti-terrorism operations in the Horn of Africa and claimed to have captured several members of Al Qaeda, the closest Sattler ever got to combat was his cabin aboard the USS Mount Whitney, anchored in the Gulf of Aden off the coast of Dijbouti.

The "retaking" of Fallujah in November 2004, over which Sattler presided, has been condemned as outrageously brutal. Those present say it appeared less like a "battle" and more like an all-out wave of cold-blooded revenge killings by US troops. During the 10-day "retaking of Fallujah," hospitals and clinics were systematically targeted and doctors, journalists and other civilians killed, beaten and/or arrested. Vengeful triumph drips from Sattler's post-slaughter declaration that troops had "broken the backs and the spirits" of rebellious Iraqis in the city.

Like many armchair warriors, Sattler clearly has illusions of grandeur - he considered the trashing of Fallujah a glorious victory. Sattler told troops afterward that "the Marines' fight for Najaf and then Fallujah will be remembered alongside famous Marine battles at Belleau Wood, Tarawa, Iwo Jima and Hue City. ...You made news during the fight,,,more importantly, you have made history."

Vengefulness as the marine's "theme" under Sattler is also clear in this statement made by Capt. P. J. Batty as he oversaw the mass burial of slaughtered Iraqis after the Sattler’s “historic” battle: ""Everyone needs to understand there are consequences for not following the Iraqi government."

But the attack on Fallujah was no Iwo Jima and it did nothing but fuel the insurgency into a fever pitch, causing it spread far beyond Fallujah. The reign of terror in the city would not soon be forgotten by Iraqi civilians: A survivor named Ahmed recalls, "Every night we said good-bye to one another because we expected to die. You could see areas where all the houses were flattened, there was just nothing left. Even those of us who do not fight, we are suffering so much because of the U.S. bombs and tanks. Can’t they see this is turning so many people against them? "

If you want to read a gut-wrenching description of the aftermath of Sattler's reign of terror in Falliujah, read "The Razing of Fallujah".

By committing such a revenge operation and labeling it an historic "triumph," Sattler set a deadly tone for marines in Iraq. There is little difference between what happened in Fallujah and what happened in Haditha except in scale.

Sattler has shown a clear disregard for Iraqi civilian life. For example, when three unarmed civilians were executed, bullets to the head, by marines in a mosque in Fallujah, Sattler ruled it "self defense." Is it any wonder that marines were given the idea that they could perpetrate revenge killings with impunity? If you want to see some graphic images of just what type of combat Sattler considers heroic, see THIS.

Sattler also released death count figures for Fallujah that many observers, including journalists and Iraq officials, claim are grossly deflated.

Sattler's contempt for journalists is quite clear. Within a few months of his assuming command of the 1st Expeditionary, the number of journalists covering operations in Iraq had plummeted to the lowest of the war. And, the number of vicious attacks on independent journalists by US troops was at the highest. Kidnapping, beatings, and torture of indy journalists by US troops became widespread. (see this report from the Guardian). Reporters without Borders had to repeatedly appeal to Sattler to release journalists being held without cause,
including Iraqi journalist Abdel Kader al-Saadi and Kurdish interpreter Bakhtiar Haddad.

Yet the mainstream US press, like the most pathetic of codependents in an abusive relationship, couldn't do enough to condone and promote the war-as-revenge theme espoused by Sattler. The World Socialist Web Site reported: "The US media is playing an utterly criminal role in facilitating this agenda. Leading newspapers such as the Wall Street Journal, the Washington Post and New York Times have editorially called for and endorsed the assault on Fallujah. The cable stations, from CNN to Fox, are literally baying for blood and demanding the marines go into the city."

It remains to be seen what role Sattler played in covering up the Haditha massacre and other atrocities now being to emerge. But there is no doubt that Sattler played an enormous role in setting a tone for soldiers in Iraq that led to the commission of atrocities. His message: Revenge killings are "glorious," killing unarmed civilians is "self defense," and journalists reporting on reality are "enemies."

But then, look at the message that Sattler himself is getting from the Bush administration. Despite having no combat experience, Sattler has been promoted repeatedly. Within a year of Fallujah, he was promoted again, to Commander, U.S. Marine Corps Forces Central. And now, as the widening scope of marine atrocities is revealed, the Sand Diego Union-Tribune reported (May 27) that Sattler is once more being promoted, and will go to Washington to become deputy commandant for plans, policy and operations - one of the top marine posts.

God only knows what can be expected of him there.
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