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Posted: 4:30 p.m. Monday, July 15, 2013
RICHLANDS, N.C. —
American Marines were capture on camera and in combat uniform urinating on the bloody bodies of Taliban fighters in Afghanistan.
Sgt. Joseph Chamblin was one of them. The incident happened in 2011 and he is speaking about what happened.
Chamblin said the sniper team he led was on a mission to stop the Taliban insurgents making roadside bombs.
"These were the same guys that were killing our family, killing our brothers," he said.
One of the brothers, Sgt. Mark Bradley, was killed by an IED blast days before the incident.
"We're human," Chamblin said. "Who wouldn't (want to get revenge) if you lost your brother or mother? Wouldn't you want revenge?"
After a gun battle in enemy territory, Chamblin said nearly a dozen Taliban insurgents were dead and he and his colleagues were ordered to recover the bodies, which is when the incident happened.
"It's not like it was a conscious thought or decision but one was like, 'You know what, (urinate) on these guys.' And some said, 'Yeah, (urinate) on them,'" Chamblin said.
Channel 9 asked Chamblin if the team thought about how the behavior could put other American troops in danger.
"No," he said. "And if anything, it was more of a psychological effect on the enemy because if an infidel touches the body, they're not going to Mecca or paradise. So, now these insurgents see what happens when you mess with us."
Chamblin said he regrets any repercussions the incident had on the Marines.
"But do I regret doing it? Hell no," Chamblin said, adding he would do it again.
In The New York Times, Afghanistan's president Hamid Karzai called the behavior "inhuman and condemnable in the strongest possible terms."
Defense Secretary Leon Panetta called the actions" utterly deplorable" at the time and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton vowed to hold the Marines involved accountable.
"Do you want the Marine Corps to be a group of Boy Scout pretty boys or do you want guys that will go out and kill the people trying to take advantage of your country and kill Americans?" Chamblin said. "Which do you want? Because you can't have both."
The military took action against nine men.
Chamblin was court-martialed and pleaded guilty in December to urinating on the bodies and dereliction of duty for not stopping junior marines.
The Marines fined him $500 and demoted him.
Chamblin is now writing a book called "Into Infamy." He said it will be dedicated to Bradley, the brother they didn't bring home.
"A lot of the stories are from my guys," Chamblin said.
After 15 years of service, Chamblin will soon enter civilian life, retiring in September without regrets.
"I didn't do it to be appreciated," he said. "I did it because I love my country and what America stands for. I don't regret my service."
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