Karzai: Latest U.S. troop photos "disgusting"

(CBS/AP) KABUL, Afghanistan - Afghan President Hamid Karzai condemned photographs of U.S. soldiers posing with the bloodied remains of three suicide bombers as "disgusting" and said Thursday that only a quicker exit of international forces can prevent such missteps.

Karzai joined top American officials in denouncing that 2-year-old photos, the latest in a string of embarrassing controversies that have jeopardized relations between the two countries in the midst of negotiations over the withdrawal of foreign troops.

He also warned that "similar incidents of an odious nature" in the past sparked angry reactions from Afghans, including violent protests that left dozens dead, although there was no immediate sign of a popular backlash.

The photos were published in Wednesday's Los Angeles Times. One shows members of the 82nd Airborne Division posing in 2010 with Afghan police holding the severed legs of a suicide bomber. The same platoon a few months later was sent to investigate the remains of three insurgents reported to have accidentally blown themselves up and soldiers again posed and mugged for a photo with the remains, the newspaper said.

A photo from the second incident appears to show the hand of a dead insurgent resting on a U.S. soldier's shoulder as the soldier smiles.

Photos show U.S. GIs posing with dead Afghans
Losing the media war in Afghanistan

Many of the soldiers pictured have already been identified and are under investigation. Some are currently deployed in Afghanistan, reports CBS News correspondent David Martin.

A soldier from the Army's 82nd Airborne Division poses with a dead insurgent's hand on his shoulder. The image was first published in the LA Times, which received it from an unnamed soldier in the division.

The White House called the two-year-old photos "reprehensible," joining U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta and other top military officials in expressing regret for the latest in a string of embarrassing missteps by the U.S. military in a war that's built on earning the trust and confidence of ordinary Afghans. In recent months, American troops have been caught up in controversies over burning Muslim holy books, urinating on Afghan corpses and an alleged massacre of 17 Afghan villagers.

Panetta apologized for the actions of the troops in and who took the pictures, actions he said were the consequence of a tough and dirty war.

Some soldiers in photo scandal back in Afghanistan
Pentagon condemns photos showing troops with dead Afghans

"I know that young people sometimes, caught up in the moment, make some very foolish decisions," Panetta said. " ... I'm not excusing that behavior, but neither do I want these images to bring further injury to our people, or to our relationship with the Afghan people."

"It is such a disgusting act to take photos with body parts and then share it with others," Karzai said. "The only way to put an end to such painful experiences is through an accelerated and full transition of security responsibilities to Afghan forces."

Soldiers from the Army's 82nd Airborne Division pose with the mangled corpose of a suicide bomber in Afghanistan's Zabol province. The image was first published in the LA Times, which received it from an unnamed soldier in the division.

"It is different from an American soldier going and killing children, or Americans burning Holy Qurans. These issues and the suicide bombers are completely different," said Hafiz Mansour, a member of parliament from the northern province of Panjshir. "I don't think there will be big protests."

The Afghan government is currently scheduled to start taking the lead in security in 2013 and fully take over by the end of 2014 when the majority of international combat troops leave. It was not clear what Karzai meant by an "accelerated" transition. Karzai has previously talked about speeding up the handover only to later explain that he meant sticking to the agreed timetable.

Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid also called the pictures disrespectful. He condemned both the U.S. soldiers involved in the pictures and the Afghan police also featured in them.

"We strongly condemn these occupiers and their puppets who are without culture, who are brutal and inhuman," Mujahid said. "Next to these occupiers there are some Afghans - puppets - who were ordered to stand next to the bodies of the martyrs."

Afghans have had mixed reactions to scandals involving American troops in recent months, including the burning of Muslim holy books, urinating on Afghan corpses and an alleged massacre of 17 Afghan villagers.

After the burning of the Qurans in February, large-scale demonstrations turned violent, leaving more than 30 Afghan civilians and six Americans dead. However, few protests occurred after a video in January when U.S. Marines were found to have recorded themselves urinating on the bodies of dead Afghans.

Many Afghan lawmakers played down the possibility that the newly revealed photos would spark mass protests, saying the general population has little sympathy for suicide bombers, who frequently kill civilians as well as foreign and Afghan security forces. One bomber detonated his explosives-filled vest at the entrance of a mosque in Kabul on Dec. 6, 2011, killing 80 worshippers during the Shiite Muslim rituals of Ashoura. It was the single deadliest suicide attack since 2008.

"It is different from an American soldier going and killing children, or Americans burning holy Qurans. These issues and the suicide bombers are completely different," said Hafiz Mansour, a lawmaker from the northern province of Panjshir.

Several broadcasters mentioned the photos on evening newscasts, but not everyone in Afghanistan owns a television and very few have access to the Internet. No newspapers were published on Thursday and Friday, the Afghan weekend.

Mohammad Naim Lalai Hamidzai, a parliamentarian from southern Kandahar, said protests would only erupt if somebody tried to organize them.

"The burning of Qurans and the killing of children create emotions in people, but there is no sympathy for suicide bombers who kill innocent people," Hamidzai said.

But some in Kandahar city worried that it would give the Taliban justification for more attacks.

"I don't think people will display outrage because these were not normal people, but this kind of thing can mean more Taliban attacks," said Abdul Ghulam Haidari, a restaurant owner.

[shnovitz]

In Mr Karzai's Afghanistan, far more disgusting things occur than the behaviour of a few traumatized, very young American soldiers. For one thing, the Taliban are disgusting. Second, the corruption in the Karzai government is disgusting. Third, the killing of young American, British and Australian soldiers, who are their mentors, by Afghani soldiers is disgusting. Fourth, the custom of Afghani men in which they collect little boys who are forced to dance for them and be sexual pets - THAT is more than disgusting. He can stop moralizing to the coalition soldiers, because they would not be there in the first place if Afghanis knew how to behave like civilized human beings instead of spending their lives in Islamic hate, murder and corruption.

[xJohnPx]

Anyone who defends these photos on some patriotic nationalistic nonsense should realize that if they had the misfortune of being born in Afghanistan they would probably be members of the taliban since they too also excuse all their actions on nationalistic religious nonsense.

[eatenbyjello]

Do me a favor all you critics...

Step 1: Join the military
Step 2: Get deployed to a war zone
Step 3: Get a good look at some insurgent or friendly hamburger meat
Step 4: Get shot at and blown up by the people your trying to help

There you go, now your opinion matters...

[hypnotoad72]

Propaganda exists on both sides.

Odd, considering our one-world economy...

[mahoubin]

So joining the US terrorist (aka military) is the solution? I don't think so. I'm so sick of Americans being involved in blind military worship. 1. I'm not stupid enough to join the military in the first place 2. I choose not to get involved in wars that don't involve me. 3. I don't need to go to a foreign land to see dead bodies; our gun-loving nation enables me to see drug wars happening in my neighborhood 4. If I invade someone's home or country, I SHOULD expect to get shot at. If I am trespassing, it's not helping.

[bradkt1]

Karzai and his crooks are what is disgusting...but you can't really blame him though. He knows what the Taliban did to his predecessor...they strung him up while he was still alive on a soccer field goal post and slowly cut pieces off of him until he was dead. Karzai is just trying to cover his own azz.

Even more disgusting is the LA Times. They published two year old photos...allegedly because the soldier who gave them these photos wanted to expose wrongdoing and a lack of discipline and control in the chain of command of that particular military unit. One problem: that unit's chain of command of two years ago had changed and was no longer in place.

In order words, the publicly stated rationale of the LAT for releasing these photos is totally bogus. No surprise there. The LA Times has always seized every chance it gets to depict our troops in the worst possible light.

Consider this. On one side of the war in Afghanistan are US troops and the Afghan security forces they are training to take over after they leave. On the other side are the Taliban and Al Qaeda...both supported by Pakistan (our so-called ally, remember them?)

And the LAT and their ilk can't tell who the good guys are?

This is why what the LAT is really up to is a big, smelly load of pure BS. This story is about the LAT pushing their far left wing anti-war, anti-military political aganda at all costs...even when it flies in the face of common sense.

[slatep]

Karzai is the one who is disgusting.

If the Afghanistans have no sympathy for suicide bombers, why is he even bothering to bring this up.

Supposedly, these were "old" pictures.

Karzai continues to collect billions from Obama and Iran every day.

Obama, the DOD and the military are paying for own destruction; borrowing money to keep the war in Afghanistan going for the next year and a half.

I am disgusted by Karzai calling American troops terrorists, disgusting and savages.

The true savages are Karzai, the Taliban and the Muslims who have been fighting among themselves for years.

There are so many different "tribes" in Afghanistan and Pakistan; any attempt to "bring them all together" is pure delusion.!!

Stop taking money from American taxpayers and sending it to corrupt countries who our enemies and start spending it here in the US to reduce our debt and build our infrastructure here in the USA; before our country collapses.!!

[stormerF69]

Karzai,is a crook no doubt about it, he is just in it for his own personal gain,maybe he should condemn the suicide bombers not the people who are there to help his corrupt government maintain a show of control.

[finkfurst4]

Almost none of you Yank morons have got the picture yet, so here is is for you.......

THE ONLY PEOPLE IN THE WORLD WHO DON'T DESPISE YOU ARE THOSE WHO WANT TO CON MONEY FROM YOU... (and that isn't difficult).

[nottblu]

People need to get a perspective. First of all this terrorist was not killed by US soldiers, this suicide bomber was going to blow away innocent civilians by strapping a BOMB to himself, luckily it went off prior to him achieving his goal. These soldiers are subjected to the reality of carnage, death, and destruction every single day. Where is the OUTRAGE of the acts perpetrated by the barbaric savages hell bent on killing for the sake of their twisted ideology known as radical Islam? Why isn't Karzia and the American media disgusted with the enemies behavior? Is what these soldiers did more disgusting than the act which blew this savage apart? Why is it America is always somehow guilty and put on trial by the likes of the L.A. times, or New york times, or Washington Post??? If the leftwing media were on Americas side they could paint the picture of reality based on the evil enemy we fight that would in the end not only motivate Americans but the greater world to wipe these savages off the face of the earth instead of spending blood and treasure to fight the progressive PC war the media demands. Publishing this crapp does nothing but place Soldiers lives in danger and emboldens the enemy with propoganda they could only hope to produce themselves, America used to chatagorize such actions as high treason! Now it's simply agenda driven news, how sad.

[ohitsubob]

The editors of the LA Times are terrorist sympethizers.

[westerly1]

I find Karzai disgustingly odious. He should be apologizing to America for his ineptitude. He needs to take off the kingly robe, cap and trappings of power and get out there among all these tribal elders where the action is. I would bet that he is tapping of a percent of our money and putting it in Swiss bank accounts for the day he will depart Afghanistan to live an extravagant life in Europe.

[slatep]

DITTO.!!

Same applies to Assad.

[lovelygal900]

Im sorry two wrong doesnt make it right. seeing these pictures with the soldiers smiling while carrying the body is disgusting. Not all people in afghanistan are bad people.these soldieer need to be reprimanded. Their action will only add to the fuel and it will be their fault. Im sorry if people dont agree wit me on this.I dont agree with what the taliban did to the dead us soldirers but like I said in the begining two wrong doesnt make it right.

[vjhahn]

I'm not entirely sure the soldiers should be reprimanded. Soldiers are constantly desensitized to the brutality of war when they see, first hand, these types of things over and over. The military also trains soldiers not to act or react emotionally. They don't want their soldiers to identify with the enemy; to see them as people with families and children - otherwise, killing them becomes more difficult; acting without emotion would be impossible. The military shouldn't be surprised when their training is successful and they produce soldiers that act with brutal indifference and without humanity.