Tag Archives: war crimes

Law & Crime reports: Former Navy SEAL Eddie Gallagher met with President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump at their Mar-a-Lago resort over the weekend. Gallagher and his wife Andrea posted pictures of the meeting on Instagram, saying they gave the first couple a present and thanked POTUS for defending Gallagher throughout his war crimes trial. Gallagher was acquitted …

Politico reports: The military’s top officer today defended efforts to maintain discipline in the ranks amid stiff questioning from lawmakers on whether President Donald Trump’s intervention in the cases of three service members accused or convicted of war crimes will create chaos on the battlefield. “We do maintain, and we will maintain, good order and discipline,” Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. …

The military site Task & Purpose reports: A plan to boost the number of elite Navy SEAL platoons that could deploy across the globe remains in limbo months after the effort was halted by a string of high-profile scandals. The plan was viewed as a positive step toward meeting the demands placed on the highly trained community. More platoons could …

Newsweek reports: “I think what we’re seeing now is the tip of the iceberg, and United American Patriots is supporting those warriors who have been improperly accused of war crimes and unjustly convicted,” said retired Marine Lieutenant Colonel David “Bull” Gurfein, the chairman and CEO of United American Patriots, in a phone call with Newsweek. The non-profit charity which funds …

“Here’s a guy who dedicated his entire life to defending his country, who represented one of the most elite units we have. Let’s say he made a mistake. “The question the president is saying is, is that a big enough mistake to take away his symbol — the trident — of being a SEAL, and in effect have him retire …

CBS News reports: Richard Spencer, the former secretary of the Navy, said he was fired before he could resign over the president’s decision to intervene in an internal review of a Navy SEAL convicted of posing with the corpse, and downplayed a supposed backchannel offer to the White House that served as the justification for his ouster. “I never threatened …

The Daily Beast reports: If Donald Trump gets his wish, he’ll soon take the three convicted or accused war criminals he spared from consequence on the road as special guests in his re-election campaign, according to two sources who have heard Trump discuss their potential roles for the 2020 effort. Despite military and international backlash to Trump’s Nov. 15 clemency—fallout …

The Hill reports: President Trump on Monday defended his intervention in cases involving U.S. service members accused of war crimes, telling reporters he needed to “protect our warfighters.” “A lot of warfighters and people in the military have thanked us very much. It’s about time,” Trump said during an Oval Office meeting with Bulgarian Prime Minister Boyko Borisov. “They wanted …

The Associated Press reports: Defense Secretary Mark Esper said Monday that President Donald Trump gave him a direct order to allow a Navy SEAL accused of war crimes to retire without losing his SEAL status. Esper told reporters at the Pentagon that Trump’s verbal order was the reason Esper announced Sunday that Chief Petty Officer Edward Gallagher would be allowed …

ABC News reports: The top U.S. general said on Monday that as far as he was concerned the case of a Navy SEAL convicted of battlefield misconduct in Iraq was now closed, a day after Defense Secretary Mark Esper fired the Navy’s top civilian over the saga. Esper fired Navy Secretary Richard Spencer on Sunday over his handling of the …

Fox News reports: Defense Secretary Mark Esper fired Navy Secretary Richard Spencer Sunday over his handling of the case of a Navy SEAL who posed for a photo next to an Islamic State terrorist’s corpse in Iraq, and the SEAL will be able to keep his Trident pin, a Pentagon spokesman said Sunday. “Secretary of Defense Mark T. Esper has …

Axios reports: The Navy has been informed that the White House will not intervene to halt the SEALs from removing Chief Petty Officer Eddie Gallagher from their unit, AP reports. The backstory: Secretary of the Navy Richard Spencer and the Navy SEALs’ leading admiral Collin Green have threatened to resign or be fired if President Trump stops plans to expel …

Rupert Murdoch’s New York Post reports: Navy SEAL Eddie Gallagher thanked President Trump for intervening in his war crimes case and said top brass in the elite commando unit are retaliating against him. “I’m overjoyed he stepped in again, being the leader he is,” Gallagher told “Fox & Friends” during an interview on Sunday. “It’s all about retaliation.” Trump tweeted …

The New York Times reports: The secretary of the Navy and the admiral who leads the SEALs have threatened to resign or be fired if plans to expel a commando from the elite unit in a war crimes case are halted by President Trump, administration officials said Saturday. The Navy is proceeding with the disciplinary plans against the commando, Chief …

Reuters reports: U.S. Navy Secretary Richard Spencer said on Friday a Navy SEAL convicted of battlefield misconduct should face a board of peers weighing whether to oust him from the elite force, despite President Donald Trump’s assertion that he not be expelled. “I believe the process matters for good order and discipline,” Spencer told Reuters, weighing in on a confrontation …

The New York Times reports: President Trump on Thursday reversed a decision by the Navy seeking to oust Navy SEAL Chief Petty Officer Edward Gallagher from the elite commando force. Chief Gallagher has been at the center of a high-profile war crime case and was granted clemency by the president on Friday. He was notified on Wednesday that the Navy …

The Washington Post reports: President Trump intervened in three military justice cases involving war-crimes accusations Friday, issuing at least two pardons that will prevent the Pentagon from pursuing future charges against the individuals involved, according to one of their lawyers and a U.S. official. The service members involved were notified by Trump over the phone, said the U.S. official, speaking …

Newsweek reports: Turkey, a NATO member, has allegedly used chemical weapons against civilians in northern Syria. Multiple sources have reported that white phosphorus-loaded munitions are believed to have been dropped in the border town of Ras al-Ayn after images and video surfaced of civilians, including children, suffering gruesome burns associated with the chemical. Anthony Loyd, a journalist for The Times …

CNN reports: Decorated Navy SEAL team leader Eddie Gallagher was acquitted of nearly all charges in the death of an ISIS prisoner in Iraq, including premeditated murder. But a jury of seven soldiers in his court-martial found him guilty of posing for a photo with the 12-year-old ISIS fighter, an offense carrying a maximum sentence of four months. Navy prosecutors …

CNN reports: California Republican Rep. Duncan Hunter said that as an artillery officer, his unit “killed probably hundreds of civilians” during his 2004 tour in Fallujah, Iraq. During a Barstool Sports interview for a podcast that was released on Monday, Hunter defended his support of Eddie Gallagher, a Navy SEAL facing a premeditated murder charge in the stabbing death of …