Hundreds of Vietnamese villagers slain by U.S. in 1967, soldiers say

Chicago Sun Times ^ | 20 OCT 03 | AP Staff Writer

[dts32041]

TOLEDO, Ohio -- An elite unit of American soldiers killed hundreds of unarmed villagers in 1967 during the Vietnam War, and an Army investigation was closed with no charges filed, the Toledo Blade reported Sunday.

Soldiers of the Tiger Force unit of the Army's 101st Airborne Division dropped grenades into bunkers where villagers -- including women and children -- hid, and shot farmers without warning, the Ohio newspaper reported.

Soldiers told the Blade that they severed ears from the dead and strung them on shoelaces to wear around their necks.

The Army's 41/2-year investigation, never before made public, was initiated by a soldier outraged at the killings.

The probe substantiated 20 war crimes by 18 soldiers and reached the Pentagon and White House before it was closed in 1975, the Blade said.

William Doyle, a former Tiger Force sergeant now living in Willow Springs, Mo., said he killed so many civilians in 1967 he lost count.

''We didn't expect to live. Nobody out there with any brains expected to live,'' he told the newspaper. ''The way to live is to kill because you don't have to worry about anybody who's dead.''

In an eight-month investigation, the Blade reviewed thousands of classified Army documents, National Archive records and radio logs and interviewed former members of the unit and relatives of those who died.

Tiger Force, a unit of 45 volunteers, was created to spy on forces of North Vietnam in South Vietnam's central highlands.

The Blade said it is not known how many Vietnamese civilians were killed.

Records show at least 78 were shot or stabbed, the newspaper said. Based on interviews with former Tiger Force soldiers and Vietnamese civilians, it is estimated the unit killed hundreds of unarmed people, the Blade said.

Army spokesman Joe Burlas said Sunday that only three Tiger Force members were on active duty during the investigation. He said their commanders, acting on the advice of military attorneys, determined there was not enough evidence for successful prosecution.

The only way to prosecute the soldiers was under court-martial procedures, which apply only to active military members, Burlas said.

Investigators took 400 sworn statements from witnesses, Burlas said. Some supported one another and some conflicted, he said.

According to the Blade, the rampage began in May 1967. No one knows what set it off. Less than a week after setting up camp in the central highlands, soldiers began torturing and killing prisoners in violation of American military law and the 1949 Geneva Conventions, the newspaper said.

Sgt. Forrest Miller told Army investigators the killing of prisoners was ''an unwritten law.''

Other soldiers said they sought revenge in the villages after unit members were killed and injured during sniper and grenade attacks.

''Everybody was bloodthirsty at the time, saying, 'We're going to get them back,''' former medic Rion Causey of Livermore, Calif., told the Blade.

Soldiers often cited conflicting views of commanders as a reason they killed unarmed people. Some commanders told investigators that civilians could be targeted in certain circumstances; others said they could never be attacked.

The atrocities carried out by the unit came just months before the killing of about 500 Vietnamese civilians by an Army unit in 1968 at My Lai.

In the years after that, top military officials promised to take war crime accusations seriously. But records from the Tiger Force case show that didn't happen, the Blade said.

The newspaper found that commanders knew about the platoon's atrocities and in some cases encouraged the soldiers to continue the violence. Two soldiers who tried to stop the attacks were warned by their commanders to remain quiet before transferring to other units, according to military records.

Former platoon members still could be prosecuted or sanctioned by the Army, but legal experts say that's unlikely because of the time that has elapsed.

AP

[caisson71]

The article also notes "other" killings such as My Lai in 1998. I don't see the tone of this article as being only from the 101st. It also does not state that Sgt. Forrest Miller was with the 101st. Sorry, but I'm a bit sensitive to this type of reporting and want them to be as specific as possible. Too many good men fought and died there for haphazard reporting to go unchellanged.

[onedoug]

America The Good

[Yardstick]

Good piece.

[razorback-bert]

See


http://hankstigerforce.spedia.net/

[in the Arena]

Agreed, poor journalism at the least.

[geopyg]

I recall a WWII documentary where the Marines capturing the islands did not take any prisoners (although few of the enemy surrendored anyway). In the doctor's office there was a Medical History of War book. A Doc was telling how they entered a concentration camp in Germany and were shocked to see the bodies stacked up like cord wood. They shot the German guards where they stood.

I think (and in most cases hope) that the Wars we fight are a bit more "compassionate" (at least in terms of civilians and people that surrender - with the exception perhaps of the German guards).

[secretagent]

"I submit that the army was composed of many volunteers, especially each battalion's reconnaissnace
platoons, who wanted to take the fight to the enemy without committing war crimes."



Yes, mostly volunteers in Vietnam, including combat deaths. This supports your point:



DRAFTEES VS. VOLUNTEERS

* 25% (648,500) of total forces in country were draftees.

* Draftees accounted for 30.4% (17,725) of combat deaths in Vietnam. · Reservists killed: 5,977.

* National Guard: 6,140 served; 101 died.

* Total draftees (1965-73): 1,728,344.

* Actually served in Vietnam: 38%.

* Marine Corps draft: 42,633.

* Last man drafted: June 30, 1973.

http://ojc.org/NL/march/warriors.htm

[in the Arena]

thanks.

[secretagent]

The article also notes "other" killings such as My Lai in 1998. I don't see the tone of this article as being only from the 101st. It also does not state that Sgt. Forrest Miller was with the 101st. Sorry, but I'm a bit sensitive to this type of reporting and want them to be as specific as possible. Too many good men fought and died there for haphazard reporting to go unchellanged.

Good eye with Miller.

Sceptics welcome. I know some like to believe the worst about "US Imperialism".

[secretagent]

I recall a WWII documentary where the Marines capturing the islands did not take any prisoners (although few of the enemy surrendored anyway).

Different case, of course. The US Army didn't seek the surrender of the civilians in Vietnam, nor see them as the enemy.

Looks like this "Tiger unit" missed out on the overall gameplan.

[Travis McGee]

the latest James Patterson novel is an anti-gun screed, similar to the new movie version of Runaway Jury.

[AmericanVictory]

We all know just how truthful homosexual activists are, particularly about the consequences of their behavior, homosexual "marriage", and the military.

[Guenevere]

#51..Yes, I agree.
I'm sure we must be talking about the same book....I just didn't want to give him further publicity by mentioning the name.

Very disappointed, I was.

[Travis McGee]

Me too, but now I'm happy to say that there is a conservative alternative in the suspense thriller genre. (Hint hint.)

[Guenevere]

#54..;^)

[Travis McGee]

;^)

;^)

[neverdem]

Thanks for the link. What a pity so many were betrayed.