US captain charged with murdering Iraqi driver

An American army captain has been charged with murder in connection with the shooting of an Iraqi civilian.

Central Command, which manages US forces in Iraq, issued a written statement last night confirming news reports a day earlier on the case against the officer from the 1st Armoured Division.

The statement, which said the charge was filed on Saturday, also said the time and place of the court hearing had not been determined.

The officer’s name was not released.

Once evidence is presented at what is known as an Article 32 hearing under the Uniform Code of Military Justice, recommendations on how to proceed will be presented to the commanding general of the 1st Armoured, Maj Gen Martin Dempsey. The options would include a court martial.

The accused captain was provided with a defence lawyer by the Army Trial Defence Service, Central Command said.

The case stems from a May 21 incident in which US soldiers conducted a high-speed chase of a vehicle that the soldiers believed was carrying suspected members of Muqtada al-Sadr’s militia, which has been fighting US forces.

During their pursuit, soldiers fired at the vehicle, wounding the driver and passenger. Shortly afterwards, the driver was shot again at close range and died.