WASHINGTON, July 7 (UPI) -- A Marine Corps general has reportedly found evidence of negligence, but no coverup, in the investigation of an alleged massacre of Iraqi civilians.
Citing two unnamed officers in the U.S. Defense Department, The New York Times reported Friday that Lt. Gen. Peter Chiarelli -- the second-ranked commander in Iraq -- found no evidence of a deliberate coverup by Marine officers who investigated the alleged massacre at Haditha in November 2005.
Chiarelli reportedly recommended disciplinary action for some of the officers involved in the investigation. His report cited senior officers in the Second Marine Division and the Second Regimental Combat Team.
"He concludes that some officers were derelict in their duties," one official told the Times.
Investigators say 24 civilians may have been deliberately killed at Haditha after a Marine died in a bomb explosion. Marines who were there at the time originally reported that the Iraqis had also died in the blast.
Discipline for officers found to have been derelict in investigating the incident could involve anything from a reprimand to a career-ending court martial.
