American Elite unit savaged civilians in Vietnam

[Snake-i]

It was an elite fighting unit in Vietnam - small, mobile, trained to kill.

 

Known as Tiger Force, the platoon was created by a U.S. Army engaged in a new kind of war - one defined by ambushes, booby traps, and a nearly invisible enemy.

 

Promising victory to an anxious American public, military leaders in 1967 sent a task force - including Tiger Force - to fight the enemy in one of the most highly contested areas of South Vietnam: the Central Highlands.

 

But the platoon's mission did not go as planned, with some soldiers breaking the rules of war.

 

Women and children were intentionally blown up in underground bunkers. Elderly farmers were shot as they toiled in the fields. Prisoners were tortured and executed - their ears and scalps severed for souvenirs. One soldier kicked out the teeth of executed civilians for their gold fillings.

 

Two soldiers tried to stop the killings, but their pleas were ignored by commanders. The Army launched an investigation in 1971 that lasted 41/2 years - the longest-known war-crime investigation of the Vietnam conflict.

 

The case reached the highest levels of the Pentagon and the Nixon White House.

 

Investigators concluded that 18 soldiers committed war crimes ranging from murder and assault to dereliction of duty. But no one was charged.

 

Since the war ended, the American public has been fed a dose of movies fictionalizing the excesses of U.S. units in Vietnam, such as Apocalypse Now and Platoon. But in reality, most war-crime cases focused on a single event, like the My Lai massacre.

 

The Tiger Force case is different. The atrocities took place over seven months, leaving an untold number dead - possibly several hundred civilians, former soldiers and villagers now say.

 

One medic said he counted 120 unarmed villagers killed in one month.

 

For decades, the case has remained buried in the archives of the government - not even known to America's most recognized historians of the war.

 

Until now.

 

Starting today and continuing over the next three days, The Blade will tell the platoon's troubling story.

 

series

 

1)

 

http://www.toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20031022/SRTIGERFORCE/110190168

 

2)

 

http://www.toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20031022/SRTIGERFORCE/110200129

 

3)

 

http://www.toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20031022/SRTIGERFORCE/110210075

 

4)

 

http://www.toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20031022/SRTIGERFORCE/110220055

[Animal Farm]

Torture of innocent people and the slaughter of innocent people is taking place in Iraq at the moment, just last night there was a witness on tv from iraq arguing that the US army slaughtered many innocent people.

[Snake-i]

No one wants to accept the truth that American soldiers are tortures that commit atrocities acts. That poor Iraqi witness will be taken serious ten years from now.

[Animal Farm]

^^ Its not being responsible ten years later, they must be held accountable today, the prison scandal, the lies told to go to war, and many other things, they must be held accountable by the american people -- the democrats are the most disapointing political party at the moment, wouldn't you agree?

[Snake-i]

I would have to agree with you, but we need to recognize that conservative or liberal, democrats or republicans, they are all Americans at the end of the day and they know how to play the game of politics. This people aren’t held responsible for what they did in Vietnam I can’t image them being held accountable for what they are doing in Afghanistan and Iraq today. The world should speak-out, the American people are too naïve to understand what there government is doing and we can't expect them to go against there own government, they truly believe that it is the best one there is.

[Animal Farm]

You should watch a documentary called Why We Fight which talks about the arms race in which the Americans are encouraging.

 

Why We fight was also a series produced back in the day by the American government to encourage people to fight against communism and nazis.

 

Clearly, the conservative camp has been able to mobilize the media to rally for war and the neoconservative agenda. The liberals have nothing else but cynical tv shows and commentaries that are just plain jokes, they never suggest serious talk for the purpose of shifting political attitudes and policy.

[Castro]

^ Where did you watch it? I've been wanting to but couldn't find it anywhere.

[Animal Farm]

Castro I downloaded it while back, you can get the bittorrent file still from Chomsky Torrents along with other great documentaries and informative content.

[Snake-i]

thanks animal farm , for others who want to watch why we fight could click on the link below

 

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=1422779427989588955

[Castro]

^ Absolutely riveting. Nothing in there is new but put altogether in one film and it hits you like a brick. Thanks guys.

[Snake-i]

I just finish watching it castro i couldn't agree with you more that was truly riveting

 

The last few minutes just stroked me deeply. Who knows what happened to the poor guy who volunteered to join the army because he couldn’t support himself finically like a normal person. And that American didn’t have an exiting plan when they went into Iraq because they are planning to build 14 permanent bases in Iraq. Nevertheless that was a great documentary to watch. Thanks animal farm

[Animal Farm]

What about the guy who had his sons name put on a missile, and he regrets it in the end. I was glad he came to his senses towards the end.

[Snake-i]

Yeah i remember that guy too; they used his frustration and patriotism to fuel the war on terror, he no longer trust bush, but there is nothing he could do about it. The first bomb they dropped was right before sunrise killing innocent people and seeing the bodies in the hospital (I think it was in a garage) where they were assembled on top of each other, it was sickening to watch. 90% of them were innocent civilians. What does America has to say about the killing of innocent people? nothing other than that they went into iraq to liberate them and some people we die while doing so.

 

The most useful part about the video while I was watching was that if America doesn’t get the oil they need then it will not be able to support their army, it will be feeble, since most of their military equipments runs on oil.

[Animal Farm]

I think they just want to drain the middle east before they invade other nations with oil.

 

You’re right thou, everybody has the technology nowadays, the trick is who has the fuel to move those tanks.

[Didi Kong]

Originally posted by Animal Farm:

What about the guy who had his sons name put on a missile, and he regrets it in the end. I was glad he came to his senses towards the end.

This story always made me angry and re-enforced my view of Americans as being arrogant. Only the US army would grant a cowardly and emotional induced wish such as this. I hope he is sorry for the sake of the innocent men, women and children that might have died as a result of that strike.

 

Snake-i thanks for sharing your informative articles and videos, wallahi these are people who have zero conscience.