Global condemnation of US Marines urinating on Afghan corpses

[Tuffty]

Afghan President Hamid Karzai has condemned a video that appears to show US Marines urinating on the bloodied corpses of several Taliban fighters.

The Taliban has also criticised the video as "shameful" but said it would not derail attempts at peace talks.

The US military is investigating the authenticity of the video and the Marine Corps said the actions were not consistent with its core values.

The origin of the video is not known, nor is it clear who posted it online.

The footage shows four men in military fatigues appearing to urinate on three apparently lifeless men. They have brown skin, bare feet and are dressed in loose-fitting outfits. One appears to be covered in blood.

A man's voice is heard saying: "Have a great day, buddy."

The men in military fatigues seem to be aware they are being filmed.

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I've read a few opinions that these Taliban soldiers deserve it. After all, they behead US soldiers, and do far worse things than urination to any soldiers they capture. There's also the suggestion that you should emphatise with the soldiers, put yourself in their shoes against these men who were gladly looking to kill you first and you then shoot them dead, so you're not going to be respectful in that scenarion. So somehow this should be seen as acceptable.

But it's not really. Coalition troops are trained as professionals and act to carry out a job as such. Taliban forces are an often disorganised group out to win by whatever means necessary. Regardless of your views on the war, you can at least agree that the coalition troops are there to be professional, to set an example. To do this kind of thing plays right into the hands of their enemies who will undoubtedly use this as effective recruitment tools and make more people's lives a misery. Where does it all end? If we don't hold ourselves to higher standards then this war is massively hypocritical. I'm blessed to not be in the same situation as those soldiers are, but I can at least picture why they might do such a thing. Doesn't mean they shouldn't be held accountable for it.