CAMP LEJEUNE, N.C. — Two Afghan men testified Tuesday that a Marine special operations convoy fired on their vehicles without provocation during an incident last March in which as many as 19 Afghans were reported killed.
Testifying from Afghanistan by video link, the men told a court of inquiry that they had pulled their vehicles to the side of the highway when the Marines suddenly opened fire. They said they did not see anyone fire at the convoy, which had been struck by a van packed with explosives moments before. One Marine was slightly wounded in that attack.
The men were the first Afghans to testify at the court of inquiry, now in its third week of investigating the March 4 encounter near Jalalabad.
An Afghan human rights group has accused the 30-Marine convoy from Special Operations Company F of firing indiscriminately at civilians. A U.S. Army colonel apologized to Afghans last spring, saying the killing and wounding of "innocent Afghans at the hands of Americans is a stain on our honor."
Haji Liwani Qumandan, a Pashtun tribal elder, said through a translator that the blue Toyota SUV that he was driving was riddled by "thousands of bullets" from three Marine vehicles. He said the gunfire killed his father and 12-year-old nephew, and wounded him in the back. "They were shooting at everyone," Qumandan said.
Several Marines from the six-Humvee convoy, along with their Afghan American interpreter, have testified that they heard gunfire after the bomb blast and believed they were under fire as part of a "complex ambush."
One Marine, Staff Sgt. Mohamed Sheik, testified that he saw a "Kalashnikov-type" weapon on the ground next to a blue Toyota SUV. Qumandan testified that no one in his car had a weapon -- "not even a knife."
Told of Sheik's testimony, Qumandan replied: "Whoever said that, this is an absolute lie. If I had a weapon, where is it?"
No weapons have been introduced at the inquiry. Marines have testified that they did not see any enemy gunmen. At least two Humvee gunners have told investigators they fired at gunmen shooting at the convoy. The gunners have been advised by lawyers not to testify because, unlike Marines who have testified, they have not been granted immunity from prosecution
Defense lawyers sparred with Qumandan, pointing out inconsistencies in his testimony. Qumandan said he did not see or hear the car bomb. But other witnesses have described a large, powerful explosion and said the blue Toyota was parked next to the bomb site moments after the blast.
