US embassy cable - 04THEHAGUE44

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 THE HAGUE 000044 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/07/2014 
TAGS: MOPS, MARR, PREL, IZ, NL 
SUBJECT: IRAQ/NL:  ARREST OF DUTCH MARINE STIRS POLITICAL 
CONTROVERSY IN THE NETHERLANDS 
 
Classified By: CLASSIFIED BY POLITICAL COUNSELOR MARY DALY FOR REASONS 
1.5 (B AND D). 
 
 1. (C) Summary:  The arrest of a Dutch marine serving in 
Iraq following the alleged fatal shooting of an Iraqi 
civilian during a December 27 looting incident has stirred up 
a front page political controversy in the Netherlands with 
leading parliamentarians, the Chief Attorney General and 
Justice Minister Donner all trading public accusations.  The 
incident has damaged the morale of Dutch personnel in Iraq 
and cast a shadow over PM Balkenende's surprise visit to 
Dutch personnel in Iraq on January 7.  Dutch MOD leadership 
has expressed support for its troops but is legally barred 
from involvement in the case.  (Note:  in the Netherlands 
military justice issues are handled by the Ministry of 
Justice, not MOD.  End note.)  Chief of Defense Staff VADM 
Kroon is furious and attempted without success to have the 
case dismissed.  Other uniformed military and MOD working 
levels have expressed concern about the effect of the 
incident on the morale and safety of Dutch forces, and note 
this may also have an effect on future Dutch stabilization 
operations.  End Summary. 
 
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Dutch Public Prosecutor Orders Marine's Arrest 
--------------------------------------------- - 
 
2. (C)  On December 27 a Dutch marine allegedly shot an Iraqi 
civilian during a looting incident near As Samawah in Al 
Muthanna Province.  (Note:  the Dutch have approximately 1100 
personnel, mostly marines, performing stabilization 
operations in Al Muthanna as part of the UK Multinational 
Division South East.  End note.)  Following the incident, 
Dutch military police (the Royal Marechaussee) initiated an 
investigation.  Based on the initial information provided by 
the Marechaussee, the public prosecutor in Arnhem ordered the 
marine detained and returned to the Netherlands where he was 
charged with murder, manslaughter or culpable homicide.  The 
public prosecutor alleged the marine had shot the individual 
in the back from a great distance.  The marine was held for 
five days and then released on January 6 by a military judge 
due to insufficient grounds to merit his further detention. 
(Note:  in military justice matters, the Marechaussee, 
normally a regular branch of the military, reports to the 
Ministry of Justice instead of the MOD.  Dutch civil law 
governs all military justice cases and a three judge military 
court seated in Arnhem hears all military-related cases.  End 
note.)  The marine is currently free, and a trial is expected 
in two to three months upon completion of the Marechaussee's 
investigation. 
 
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The Marine's side of the story 
------------------------------ 
 
3. (U) After the hearing leading to the marine's release, his 
attorney gave his version of events.  The marine, a 43-year 
old sergeant with commando training, was commanding the Dutch 
battalion's Quick Reaction Force when it was called in to 
assist in the December 27 incident.  The alleged shooting 
took place on the road from Al Khidr to As Samawah when Dutch 
forces were trying to protect a container that had dropped 
off a truck from looters.  A Dutch unit already present had 
fired several warning shots into the air to disperse between 
50 and 150 looters.  The marine apparently fired two warning 
shots, one in to the air and one into the ground to the left 
of the crowd.  (His attorney did not rule out that one of the 
bullets may have accidentally ricocheted.)  The marine's 
attorney stated it was not certain that a person was even 
killed in the shooting incident.  According to the attorney, 
an individual had fallen to the ground during the incident 
covered with blood but the marines could not get to him.  It 
was not until several hours later that an individual with a 
gunshot wound was brought to a nearby hospital.  This 
individual, the alleged victim of the shooting, subsequently 
died.  No autopsy was carried out and the body was interred. 
An interview with the marine appeared in the most popular 
Dutch newspaper on January 7 under the headline "I feel 
humiliated."  The marine repeated the same account of events 
as his attorney, and said he was convinced he had acted in 
good faith and that "the safety of my marines came and comes 
first." 
 
----------------------------- 
Political controversy at home 
----------------------------- 
 
4. (C) The marine's arrest and eventual release has caused an 
uproar in the Dutch press as leading Dutch politicians have 
traded accusations.  Prime Minister Balkenende was reported 
to have been received "coolly" during a previously scheduled 
January 7 visit to Dutch troops in Iraq.  Meanwhile, leading 
MPs from the Christian Democrats, Liberals and Liberal 
Democrats (all members of the governing coalition) have 
slammed the conduct of the public prosecutor's office.  They 
strongly criticized Chief Attorney General de Wijkerslooth 
for being careless with the evidence, and for making public 
statements comparing the investigation to one following a 
policeman who kills an individual in the line of duty. 
Christian Democrat Defense Spokesman Kortenhorst accused the 
public prosecutor's office of "not having thought the matter 
through," noting Dutch troops were doing "risky work." 
Liberal Democrat Defense and Foreign Policy spokesman Bakker 
accused the public prosecutor's office of blundering. 
Justice Minister Donner in turn criticized the MPs for 
interfering in the public prosecutor's work.  Minister of 
Defense Kamp wrote to parliament noting the MOD was barred 
from taking part in the investigation.  He stressed that the 
separation from MOD of the Marechaussee's function as an 
investigative body for criminal matters tied to the Ministry 
of Justice was the result of a 1998 report in the wake of the 
Srebrenica massacre.  He also said the rules of engagement 
that Dutch forces operate under were adequate for their 
tasks.  His deputy, State Secretary van der Knaap, expressed 
full support for Dutch troops but said it was good that MOD 
was not involved in the investigation as it had been 
criticized in the past for not investigating similar 
incidents in previous missions.  Finally, Dutch papers 
carried quoted British MG Stewart, commander of UK MND SE, as 
saying "we British know you should first properly round off 
an investigation before you make it public.  This was 
certainly not the best way." 
 
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Comment 
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5. (C)  Dutch military and MOD officials are genuinely 
concerned about the effect on the morale of this incident on 
Dutch troops in Iraq, as well as the marines' willingness to 
use force to defend themselves and carry out their 
stabilization mission.  A lower level official at MOD told 
PolMilOff on January 8 that an investigation was normal 
following such an incident but it was "ridiculous to have 
labeled the marine as a murderer."  The public prosecutor's 
actions reflect the experience of the Netherlands following 
the massacre in Srebrenica in 1995 when Dutch peacekeepers 
were not able to prevent Serb militaries from killing 
thousands of Bosnian Muslims.  This led to years of 
governmental and parliamentary inquiries (only concluded in 
2002) in an attempt to assign blame for the event.  If the 
marine is found guilty in the shooting incident, we judge it 
will complicate future requests for deployments of Dutch 
military assets. 
RUSSEL