BAGHDAD — The United States military said Monday that five American soldiers had been shot to death by a fellow soldier who opened fire on them at one of the biggest American bases in Baghdad, and that the suspected shooter was in custody.This kills me. It just breaks my heart. President Obama has pledged to improve mental health treatment for Veterans. I seriously hope that this is being put into action; not just for "returning" Veterans, but for all members of the military. PTSD doesn't wait until you're home.
The killings appeared to be the worst case of soldier-on-soldier violence among the American forces based in Iraq since the invasion more than six years ago.
The shooting occurred at around 2 p.m. local time at Camp Liberty, part of the sprawling Camp Victory complex near Baghdad, according to a military statement. The names of the dead soldiers were being withheld pending family notification, the statement said.
“Anytime we lose one of our own, it affects us all,” Col. John Robinson, a spokesman for the American military in Iraq, said in the statement.
The attack took place at a clinic for soldiers who are seeking help for stress. CNN, citing identified officials, said that at least three others were wounded in the attack.
My deepest sympathies to the families of these soldiers.
(In addition, I'm upset that this article changes from listing instances of U.S. soldiers attacking each other to listing U.S. deaths by insurgents. It really diminishes the significance of these deaths caused by other U.S. soldiers to tack on a "yeah, but look at all these deaths by insurgents!" coda.)
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