May our last Veteran of WW1 find peace in heaven. John Babcock 109 years has slipped away, to meet comrades from many years ago. God Bless.
The death Thursday of John Babcock, Canada's last surviving veteran of the First World War, snips the final living link to a cataclysm that helped forge the country and the modern world.
The war now slips into the sepia mists of time and what was a memory of flesh and blood becomes one of yellowed documents, faded photographs and dusty artifacts.
Farewell Old Soldier.
(CNN) -- A controversial policy that limits the amount of time NATO troops can hold Afghan detainees is under review by U.S. Defense Department officials, a spokesman for the department told CNN.
The review of what's known as the 96-hour rule is under way as CNN questioned whether the policy was putting soldiers in danger. Under the rule, NATO troops have 96 hours to either turn over detainees to Afghan authorities or release them
Appathurai announced the rule in December 2005.
At CNN's request, NATO compiled statistics on what has happened to detainees since the agency began keeping such records in 2006. Under the 96-hour rule, about one in four detainees has been released.
Now this is the kicker to this story by CNN:
The case of Roger Hill, a former Army captain who received a general discharge for his role in the questioning of 12 detainees, prompted CNN's investigation of the 96-hour rule. Those 12 men had worked on his base in Afghanistan, including one who was his trusted interpreter.
Hill was the commander in charge of the Wardak Province in eastern Afghanistan for much of 2008. He said he feared the enemy was tracking his every move and suspected an inside threat.
Out of a 90-man company, we had 30 wounded, to include two killed in action, he said.
He told CNN that his headquarters sent a team to the base to detect possible spies. The team screened cell phone activity to find out which Afghan civilians working on the base might be working for the Taliban.
It turned out that it wasn't just one or two or three, but we actually had a full dozen, Hill said.
Hill's trusted interpreter was one of them.
Angry and frustrated that the interpreter might be sabotaging missions, Hill detained all 12 men in a small building on the base. When he took the men in the building, the 96-hour countdown began.
The rule is designed to give the Afghan government control over detainees. But Hill said the rule does not work, and many times dangerous suspects are released because there's not enough time to gather evidence.
The other problem, he said, was that the evidence against the 12 men was too sensitive to hand over to the Afghans. Hill was ordered not to share classified intelligence with the Afghans for fear it could be used against U.S. soldiers in future battles.
So we're in this Catch-22, where they're saying, 'Hey we'll take these guys off your hands, but give us the evidence,' Hill said. And I'm saying, 'I can't do that because there are technologies and techniques utilized that I can't sacrifice for this one particular case that will be used again in a fight later on.' 'Well, if you can't give us the evidence, then we can't take these guys off your hands.' So, the clock continues to tick.
As the clock ticked toward the 96-hour NATO deadline, Hill made a decision that would cost him his military career.
I decided that I needed to break protocol and interrogate them myself, he said. I took three gentlemen outside, sat them down, walked away, and fired my weapon into the ground three times, hoping that the men inside, left to their own imagination, would think that they really needed to talk.
Hill walked back inside.
And sure enough, some of the detainees started to talk, Hill said.
What the detainees told him was enough to convince the Afghans to take all 12 men into custody, including Hill's interpreter.
Hill said he felt he had made the correct decision to protect his soldiers, but the Army charged him with detainee abuse, leading to his discharge from the military.
And the 12 men ended up being released, despite the confessions, according to Army investigators. No one knows where they are now and what they're doing.
Personally I see nothing wrong with this Captains method of Interrogation. I do however agree that to turn insurgents over to Afghanis must certainly be in error many times, due to tribal and political affiliations.
I really hope that the Canadian Government and especially the members of the opposition keep this story in mind when asking Why Canadians and Other NATO troops are being betrayed from within. I feel that this is a war that we cannot win outright using traditional rules of war. With an enemy who respects nothing of mankind in general. Life means absolutely zero to these people who terrorise women , children and the majority of oppressed Afghanis.
So as I ramble on with my thoughts. I continue by saying a prayer for our troops and the magnificent job they are doing around the Globe.
'Lord Jesus, hold our troops in your loving hands Protect them as they protect us and our global neighbours.
Bless them and their families for the selfless acts they perform for us in our time of need, fighting oppression in many countries. Please bring them safely home to the bosom of loved ones.
Amen.'
Some readers may have their opinions on my prayer for the troops. BUT>>> this freedom of expression is what makes Canadians Free, a hearty Thank You to all our military..
Nil Sine Labore
Robby
