Jordanian soldier sentenced to life in prison for killing 3 U.S. servicemen
- by Kelli Lowe
- in Global Media
- — Jul 17, 2017
A military court in Jordan has sentenced a soldier to life in prison with hard labor for killing three USA military trainers at the gate of an air base in the south of the Arab country.
This is not the first time a U.S. trainer has been killed in Jordan. When he was led out of the cage, he said: "I have all the respect for the king, but I was doing my job".
Jordanian military officials said the soldier opened fire on the USA trainers after they failed to stop at a military base checkpoint, but the US embassy refuted that claim. Officials then withdrew the claims under pressure from Washington, which maintained that terrorism could be an issue.
Jordan is a member of the US -led military coalition fighting ISIS.
But video footage of the shooting, described by the relatives who have seen it, said the shooting lasted six minutes, and shows the defendant reloading his gun and shooting at the Americans, even as they waved their hands and yelled, "We're Americans!"
The trial "confirmed that the deceased US service members followed all established procedures when accessing the base the day of the incident, as we have noted before", according to a statement from the US Embassy in Jordan.
Initially Jordanian state media blamed the incident on the U.S. soldiers' failure to adhere to proper procedures at the base's entrance. It also hosts more than 2,000 US military personnel.
Jordan and the USA are close allies, and the incident added strain to the relationship.
The court had heard evidence from base guards and forensic experts.
The soldier, Marik al-Tuwayha, had opened fire on the trainers in November as their vehicle approached al-Jafr airbase in November. Three of the gate guards said they held their fire, but Tuwayha, who was in the guard house at the time, opened fire from inside before walking out and continuing to shoot.
Al-Tuwayha has said he had "no intention of killing anyone" and felt no resentment towards Americans.
In the letter, a copy of which was given to the AP, Moriarty listed several demands to Jordan.
Monday's verdict is still subject to appeal, his lawyer Sobhi al-Mawas told Anadolu Agency.
Earlier this year, a Jordanian soldier who killed seven Israeli schoolgirls in a 1997 shooting rampage was released after 20 years.
