By Laurie Ure
CNN
January 11, 2010
Norfolk, Virginia (CNN)–Two of three Navy SEALs accused in the alleged assault of an Iraqi suspected of orchestrating the 2004 killing and mutilation of four U.S. contractors in Falluja will have their cases heard in Iraq, a judge ruled Monday.
Petty Officer 2nd Class Jonathan Keefe, 25, is charged with dereliction of duty and impeding an official investigation surrounding the Iraqi’s detention last September.
Petty Officer 1st Class Julio Huertas, 28, faces similar charges. The Iraqi suspect, Ahmed Hashim Abed, complained to investigators he was punched during his detention.
The case against the Navy SEALs has sparked outrage that the sailors are being tried at all for handling a suspect in the contractors’ murders, one of the most notorious incidents in the Iraq war.
The killings got widespread news coverage when the burned bodies of two of the contractors were paraded through the streets of Falluja and hanged from a bridge as their captors cheered.
The article continues at CNN.
