Keep your wits (and the enemy's head) about you!

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Apr 17, 2014
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http://www.funker530.com/soldier-who-returned-to-base-with-taliban-commanders-head-cleared-for-duty/

In July of 2010 Gurkha soldiers conducted a raid in Helmand province to kill or capture a high value individual. The troops killed their man, but the mission had very specific instructions to bring back proof that they had gotten the right guy.
Initially, the Gurkhas attempted to retrieve the entire body for identification, but soon found themselves engaged in an intense Taliban counter attack. The Gurkhas needed to break contact, but they also needed to complete their mission. The soldier made the heat-of-the-moment decision to pull out his traditional Kukri knife and take only the Taliban commander’s head, allowing his men to remain mobile and complete their objective.
Rather than acknowledging the soldier for placing the mission first and his quick initiative under hostile fire, POG commanders who place public relations in a higher priority bracket than mission, went on a CYA campaign of shaming the individual to the media as they rushed him out of country. Eventually, common sense won out, and now the soldier is finally being commended for his dedication to duty.
 
head taking in war is a very very old tradition anyway ! glad they are finally giving this guy his due
 
I heard about this back before "common sense" won. Common sense is sadly not as common as it should be. That soldier followed orders and brought back proof of the death of an enemy commander. There should have been no initial panic over him protecting his men. People are so worried about PR that they make their people look suspicious or guilty by overreacting to a solid decision.
 
that looks a bit like a mercy killing IMO with that royal marine, if you look at the evidence-- very silly he is in prison, thats not like attacking a civilian child or something, he was just putting a heavily wounded guy out of his misery.
 
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