18 US soldiers punished for refusing duty in Iraq
Reuters, Baghdad
The US military in Iraq has disciplined 18 soldiers who refused to go out on a transport convoy they thought was too dangerous, but the reservists will not face court-martial, a military spokesman said yesterday. Lieutenant Colonel Steve Boylan said a further five would also face "non-judicial" punishment under Article 15 of the US military justice code, making 23 troops disciplined in this way. He declined to detail the sanctions. Article 15 gives commanders discretion to order brief detention of up to a month, loss of up to a month's pay, extra duties and loss of rank. Asked whether the command had taken into account complaints by the reservists that the fuel trucks they were asked to drive through hostile central Iraq were not sufficiently armored, Boylan declined to comment beyond saying: "The soldiers' performances are all taken into account."
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