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November 22, 2008 2:05:36 CST

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Apology for Shooting Koran Doesn't Close Case

Posted May 19, 08 5:15 PM CDT in US,  World 

(Newser) – The US military's swift disciplining of an Army sniper who used a Koran for target practice reflects growing awareness of the need to forge bonds with the Sunni Arabs, whose cooperation is crucial to peace in Iraq, the LA Times reports. But apologies and discipline aren't enough for an influential political party that today called for "the severest of punishments," CNN reports.

"This incident is not representative of the professionalism of our soldiers or the respect they have for all faiths," said a US military spokesman. Speaking for the Iraqi Islamic Party, VP Tariq al-Hashimi demanded "a guarantee from the US military to inflict the maximum possible punishment on this soldier so it would be a deterrent for the rest of the soldiers in the future."

Sources Los Angeles Times, CNN

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U.S. Army soldier from the 3rd Special Troops Battalion, secures the area during a patrol in the Shiite enclave of Sadr City in Baghdad. Senior officers apologized after a US sniper was shown to have...   (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)
A US soldier is silhouetted against the sun on a wall in Sadr City. The military moved quickly after a sniper was found to have used a copy of the Koran as target practice.   (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)
Soldier from the 3rd Special Troops Battalion on patrol in the Shiite enclave of Sadr City in Baghdad. Senior officers apologized after a US sniper was shown to have used the Koran for target practice....   (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)
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Iraq • Baghdad • Islam • al-Qaeda in Iraq • Koran


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