Iraq War

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February 13, 2012 | 9:53 AM | By

Whistleblower of SS Marine Photo Speaks Out

Knight's Armament / AP

Camp Pendleton Marines with SS flag

The Iraq War veteran and West Point graduate who first alerted the Marine Corps to the controversial photo of Marine snipers posing with a Nazi symbol flag is speaking out for the first time.

Waitman Beorn is a now a history professor in New Orleans. He also teaches at the National Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington D.C. He spoke with Mother Jones in an exclusive interview about why he felt the need to report the flag photo to the Marine Corps’ inspector general.

According to Beorn, there are two key points about the whole incident that the media has missed:

  1. This was not an isolated incident.
  2. The military, upon learning about the incident, acted swiftly and strongly.

Beorn told Mother Jones:

“I was surprised by the speed with which they (the Marine Corps) acted and the seriousness with which they appeared to take it.”

To read the entire interview with Beorn, click here.

FILED UNDER: Afghanistan, Camp Pendleton, Iraq, Life in the Military, San Diego, Veterans, War, Helmand Province, Iraq War, Knight's Armament, Marine Corps, Marines posing with SS flag, Mother Jones, National Holocaust Memorial Museum, National Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington D.C., Sangin, scout snipers, Waitman Beorn, West Point
February 3, 2012 | 12:51 PM | By

Iraq War Parade Organizers Challenge Other Cities (Video)

KSDK-TV

Welcome Home Parade for Iraq War veterans

The same folks in St. Louis who organized and raised money for last Saturday’s first-ever parade to welcome home Iraq War veterans are now throwing out a challenge to other cities to do the same.

As Home Post reported earlier this week, the parade was a grassroots effort started by Craig Schneider, who helped organize and raise money for the parade through Facebook.

St. Louis television station KSDK-TV estimates more than 100,000 people watched the parade, with roughly 20,000 participating.

What’s cool is that one of the big supporters of this new “City-to-City Challenge” is Staff Sgt. Brian Owens. Owens and Staff Sgt. Angie Johnson (mentioned in an earlier post on Home Post today) were the lead singers of the military band Sidewinder.

The Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America have also joined the movement for more parades, creating an online petition.

Here’s more on the story from KSDK-TV:

FILED UNDER: Iraq, Life in the Military, Spouses & Families, Veterans, War, "The Mission Continues", City-to-City challenge, Craig Schneider, Iraq War, Iraq War parade, January 28 Group, Make January 28th Welcome Home the Heroes from Iraq Day, Sidewinder, St. Louis Missouri, Staff Sgt. Angie Johnson, Staff Sgt. Brian Owens, welcome home parade
February 3, 2012 | 9:14 AM | By

Former Pendleton Marine Alleged To Be Prolific Serial Killer (Video)

Orange County Sheriff's Department / KABC-TV

Itzcoatl "Izzy" Ocampo

Former Camp Pendleton Marine Itzcoatl “Izzy” Ocampo, already facing murder charges in the deaths of four homeless men, is now accused of participating in the double murder of a woman and her son.

Anaheim Police say they’ve connected Ocampo to the stabbing deaths of Raquel Estrada and her son Juan Herrera. Estrada’s other son, Eder Herrera, has already been charged in the deaths of his mother and brother, according to the Associated Press. Policy say Ocampo and Eder Herrera are connected in the murders.

As Home Post reported earlier, Ocampo was an Iraq War veteran who was deployed in 2008 with the Marines’ 1st Medical Battalion based at Camp Pendleton. While there, he was responsible for bagging the bodies of dead troops.

In this video clip from CNN, Orange County District Attorney Tony Rackauckas describes the cold, methodical way he believes Ocampo allegedly committed the murders of the four homeless men.

FILED UNDER: Camp Pendleton, Iraq, Life in the Military, San Diego, Spouses & Families, War, 1st Medical Battalion, Eder Herrera, Homeless Veterans, Iraq War, Itzcoatl "Izzy" Ocampo, James Patrick McGillivray, John Berry, Juan Herrera, Lloyd Middaugh, Orange County, Orange County District Attorney Tony Rackauckas, Paulus Smit, post traumatic stress disorder, PTSD, Raquel Estrada, serial killer, serial killers
February 2, 2012 | 11:27 AM | By

Fallen Marines’ Names Etched on Camp Pendleton Memorial Wall

Alison St John / KPBS

Memorial wall at Camp Pendleton

Much like the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington D.C., a new memorial wall at Camp Pendleton honors fallen Marines and Sailors by etching their names permanently in stone. The base held a ceremony Wednesday to unveil the wall, according to the Los Angeles Times.

There are 1,146 names on the 44-foot-long wall. The dead all lost their lives in the Iraq and Afghanistan wars.

Lt. Gen. Thomas Waldhauser, commander of the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force, reminded the ceremony attendees:

“Sadly, there is space to provide room for more names. Any future fallen hero will have a place on this wall.”

The $65,000 needed to build the wall was raised by local Rotary Clubs, according to the North County Times.

FILED UNDER: Afghanistan, Camp Pendleton, Iraq, Life in the Military, San Diego, Spouses & Families, War, Women in the military, 1st Marine Expeditionary Force, Afghan war, Camp Pendleton memorial wall, Iraq War, Lt. Gen. Thomas Waldhauser, Rotary Club, Vietnam Veterans Memorial, War in Afghanistan
February 2, 2012 | 9:48 AM | By

Once Homeless San Diego Marine Now Hot Sauce Businessman (Video)

ForagerMikes.com

Dang!!! Hot Sauce

Former Marine Mike Hanes fought in the Iraq War. When he returned to San Diego in 2004 he found himself searching for a purpose in life. He wasn’t able to hold down a job because of anger issues that stayed with him after combat. Hanes was homeless for two years while he attended college.

But Hanes used what he learned in the Marine Corps’ Survival, Evasion, Resistance and Escape (SERE) school about edible plants to develop tasty hot sauce. And through a program called Veterans Sustainable Agriculture Training Program (VSAT), he was able to market his creation into something called Dang!!! Hot Sauce. It’s now for sale in stores like Whole Foods. You can also order it online.

KPBS reporter Alison St John has more on Hanes’s amazing story:

FILED UNDER: Camp Pendleton, Iraq, Life in the Military, Veterans, DANG! It's Good Hot Sauce, Earthsource Organics, Homeless Veterans, hot sauce, Iraq War, Mike Hanes, organic food, raw foods, SERE, superfoods, Survival Evasion Resistance and Escape School, Veterans Sustainable Agriculture Training Program (VSAT), VSAT, Whole Foods
January 30, 2012 | 1:45 PM | By

First-Ever Welcome Home Parade Held for Iraq War Vets (Video)

Military Vehicle Preservation Association / Facebook

Welcome Home Parade for Iraq War Vets

The first-ever parade welcoming home troops who fought in the Iraq War went off without a hitch on Saturday in St. Louis. The parade was a grassroots effort sparked by Craig Schneider, who helped organize and raise money for the parade through Facebook.

CNN reported that thousands of folks attended the welcome home parade. In addition to traditional parade standbys like floats and flag-waving, there were booths that provided job resources for veterans.

There was also a vigil for the fallen held the night before Saturday’s parade. Aginette Morgan, the mother of fallen soldier Sgt. Milton Gist Jr., was one of the people who came out for the vigil. Gist was killed by a roadside bomb in Iraq in January 2007. Morgan told a CNN:

“He had just turned 27. He was home for his birthday and left for his birthday and I got a call on the 30th. The chaplains came to my job. I was at work when it happened, and I was a nervous wreck.”

WMFY-TV posted a half-hour’s worth of video from the parade. It will give you chills, and could possible choke you up with pride. Take a look:

FILED UNDER: Iraq, Life in the Military, Spouses & Families, Veterans, War, "The Mission Continues", Craig Schneider, Iraq War, Iraq War parade, January 28 Group, Make January 28th Welcome Home the Heroes from Iraq Day, Sgt. Milton Gist Jr., St. Louis Missouri, welcome home parade
January 24, 2012 | 3:18 PM | By

No Jail Time Recommended for Wuterich in Haditha Case

CBS News / YouTube

Staff Sgt. Frank Wuterich

The judge presiding over the sentencing hearing for Staff Sgt. Frank Wuterich has recommended he serve no jail time, according to the Associated Press. On Monday, Wuterich pleaded guilty to dereliction of duty in a plea deal. He faced nine counts of manslaughter as the leader of a squad that killed 24 Iraqis, many of them unarmed woman and children.

The commander of the Marine Corps Forces Central Command, Gen. James Mattis, will make the final decision on Wuterich’s punishment based on the recommendation of military judge Lt. Col. David Jones.

Prosecutors had asked for the maximum punishment for Wuterich, which would’ve been three months confinement, two-thirds pay reduction, and demotion to the rank of private.

During today’s sentencing hearing, Wuterich apologized to the Iraqi families:

“I wish to assure you that on that day, it was never my intention to harm you or your families. I know that you are the real victims of Nov. 19, 2005.”

FILED UNDER: Camp Pendleton, Iraq, Life in the Military, War, Commander of the Marine Corps Forces Central Command Gen. James Mattis, court martial of Frank Wuterich, dereliction of duty, General James Mattis, Haditha, IED, Improvised Explosive Device, Iraq War, Lt. Col. David Jones, plea bargain, plea deal, Staff Sgt. Frank Wuterich, war crimes
January 24, 2012 | 8:57 AM | By

Grassroots Effort for Iraq War Vet Parade on Saturday (Video)

Facebook / January 28 Group

Craig Schneider started the January 28 Group over dinner with a few friends complaining about their jobs. Schneider realized that his on-the-job troubles were nothing compared to what servicemembers had to go through while fighting in Iraq. According to January28Group.org:

When our nation called our military professionals to work, they showed up to work a job where everything has to play out perfectly the first time, or people die. For nine years, so many of our sons and daughters and moms and dads and brothers and sisters carved big, extremely dangerous years out of their lives and served in the desert. Because as a nation, we asked them to.

Schneider and friends now have an ambitious goal – to organize and raise funds for a welcome home parade for Iraq War veterans in downtown St. Louis, where Schneider lives. It would be the first and only parade so far to welcome home the troops who served in Iraq. The January 28 Group has set up a Facebook page that now has more than 4,500 members in an effort to garner support for the parade.

St. Louis television station KSDK-TV has more on how you can get involved in the parade effort. Click here to watch.

FILED UNDER: Iraq, Life in the Military, Veterans, War, "The Mission Continues", Craig Schneider, Iraq War, Iraq War parade, January 28 Group, Make January 28th Welcome Home the Heroes from Iraq Day, St. Louis Missouri, welcome home parade
January 23, 2012 | 1:25 PM | By

New Softball Team Made Up Of War Amputees (Video)

The Wounded Warrior Softball Team played its first ever game yesterday in Orange County, California – and won. The team is made up of active-duty troops and veterans who lost a limb in the wars of Iraq and Afghanistan. The team motto? “Life without a limb is limitless.”

Television station CBS2 was at the game yesterday, and put together this report:

 

FILED UNDER: Afghanistan, Iraq, Life in the Military, Veterans, War, Afghan war, amputations, amputees, IED, improvised explosive devices, Iraq War, Mission Viejo, Orange County, Orange County Veterans and First Responders softball team, prosthetics, softball, Wounded Warriors Softball Team
January 23, 2012 | 10:15 AM | By

Wuterich Pleads Guilty in Haditha Trial (Video)

CBS News / YouTube

Staff Sgt. Frank Wuterich

Staff Sgt. Frank Wuterich pleaded guilty this morning to dereliction of duty, ending his trial at Camp Pendleton, according to the Associated Press. Wuterich faced charges of nine counts of manslaughter in the Nov. 19, 2005 killing of 24 Iraqis. Many of the dead were unarmed women and children.

The Associated Press reports Wuterich will likely be sentenced tomorrow. He faces up to three months confinement in the brig, two-thirds forfeiture of pay, and being demoting down to the rank of private.

Wuterich gave an interview to 60 Minutes back in 2007. CBS News recently replayed part of that interview, along with some background on the events of November 19, 2005. Click here to watch.

FILED UNDER: Camp Pendleton, Iraq, Life in the Military, San Diego, War, court martial of Frank Wuterich, dereliction of duty, Haditha, IED, Improvised Explosive Device, Iraq War, plea bargain, plea deal, Staff Sgt. Frank Wuterich, war crimes