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CRIME

US soldiers in Germany charged with Baghdad murders

Three US soldiers from a battalion based in Germany have been charged with premeditated murder in an alleged incident in Baghdad in spring of 2007, US Army officials announced on Wednesday in Grafenwöhr.

US soldiers in Germany charged with Baghdad murders
Photo: DPA

The soldiers will be tried in Germany because they were formerly assigned to the 1st Battalion, 18th Infantry Regiment, which is based in the country, US Army spokesperson Lieutenant Colonel Eric Bloom told The Local.

“Right now it’s just court proceedings, but not an actual trial,” Bloom said. “If there is a verdict they may serve time in our Mannheim facility, depending on how long the sentence is.”

Charges against the three men include premeditated murder, conspiracy to commit premeditated murder and obstruction of justice.

The New York Times reported this August that two of the soldiers had made sworn statements saying that the group had killed four bound and blinded Iraqis execution style near a Baghdad canal.

Two of the soldiers are also being charged with premeditated murder and conspiracy to commit murder in a separate incident in January 2007.

“The judge may, or may not decide to take it to trial, but if he does they will all get the standard US trial by peers,” Bloom told The Local.

BUSINESS

Elon Musk visits Tesla’s sabotage-hit German factory

Elon Musk travelled Wednesday to Tesla's factory near Berlin to lend his workers "support" after the plant was forced to halt production by a suspected arson attack on nearby power lines.

Elon Musk visits Tesla's sabotage-hit German factory

The Tesla CEO addressed thousands of employees on arrival at the site, accusing “eco-terrorists” of the sabotage as he defended his company’s green credentials.

With his son X AE A-XII in his arms, Musk said: “I am here to support you.”

The billionaire’s visit came a week after power lines supplying the electric carmaker’s only European plant were set on fire in an act of sabotage claimed by a far-left group called the Vulkangruppe (Volcano Group).

READ ALSO: Far-left group claims ‘sabotage’ on Tesla’s German factory

Musk had said then that the attack was “extremely dumb”, while the company said it would cost it several hundred million euros.

A week on, the lights have come back on at the site, but Andre Thierig, who heads the site, said on LinkedIn that it would “take a bit of time” before production is back to full speed.

Industry experts have warned that the reputational impact caused by the sabotage on the region could be more severe than the losses suffered by Tesla.

Tesla’s German plant started production in 2022 following an arduous two-year approval and construction process dogged by administrative and legal obstacles.

Tesla wants to expand the site by 170 hectares and boost production up to one million vehicles annually to feed Europe’s growing demand for electric cars and take on rivals who are shifting away from combustion engine vehicles.

But the plans have annoyed local residents, who voted against the project in a non-binding ballot last month.

After the vote, Tesla said it might have to rethink the plans. Environmental activists opposed to the expansion of the factory have recently also set up a camp in a wooded area near the plant.

READ ALSO: Why is Tesla’s expansion near Berlin so controversial?

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