Hero soldier's story not fully acknowledged

Hero soldier's story not fully acknowledged

Bravery, sacrifice by U.S. troops in Afghanistan called shining examples
New York Times Published
Saturday, March 31, 2012

KABUL, Afghanistan — The story of Specialist Dennis Weichel could easily be a counterpoint to the gruesome account of the U.S. soldier charged with 17 counts of murder in Kandahar on March 11. Weichel, who was 29, was killed while rescuing an Afghan child, but more than a week after that event the military here has yet to officially confirm what happened. Indeed, the initial details of the episode in northeastern Laghman province came not from military officials but from Afghan civilians and then fellow soldiers and friends in the United States.

Matiullah Khan, a vegetable seller and Zaiullah's uncle, said, "As you know, all five fingers on one hand are not equal, and it's the same with American soldiers." "What that soldier did in Kandahar was such a brutal act, no human could do what he did," he said, referring to the accusations against Staff Sgt. Robert Bales in the Kandahar killings. "This soldier, he looked at my nephew as a human being and endangered his life to save my nephew's life."

In a different mission of mercy, three days after the killings of which Bales is accused, medics at a combat outpost in southeastern Paktika province raced to save the life of Mateen, an 8-year-old boy wounded when his Taliban father's homemade bomb exploded. The emergency mission involved two medevac helicopter flights and medical treatment at three military aid stations and hospitals. The boy survived despite losing his eyes and suffering other injuries. With skin grafts and prosthetic eyes, doctors repaired as much of his face as they could. The military finally announced what had happened last week, once the boy had been returned to his family. read more here