A British state media investigation has uncovered new evidence implicating two U.S. marines in the 2005 killing of eight members of a single family in Haditha, Iraq — an incident that formed part of the wider Haditha massacre, in which 24 civilians were killed.
Survivor Safa Younes, then 13, says she hid in a bedroom with her parents, siblings and aunt when marines entered the house and opened fire.
Newly surfaced recordings from the 2012 pre-trial hearings of squad leader Staff Sergeant Frank Wuterich reveal Lance Corporal Humberto Mendoza admitting he shot Safa’s father despite the man being unarmed.
A separate audio recording shows Mendoza saying he entered the bedroom where Safa’s family died, contradicting earlier statements. Forensic expert Michael Maloney, who investigated the scene in 2006 for the Naval Criminal Investigative Service, said the recording places Mendoza in the same position as one of the shooters identified through crime-scene analysis.
Documents obtained by the BBC also show that another marine, Lance Corporal Stephen Tatum, gave three statements in 2006 describing how he shot women and children in the same room, before charges against him were dropped. Both men ultimately avoided prosecution, and the only marine to stand trial — Wuterich — received a plea deal for negligent dereliction of duty, a charge unrelated to the shootings.
The US Marine Corps said it would not reopen the case without significant new and admissible evidence. Safa, now 33, told the BBC that no one has been held accountable for her family’s deaths, saying she wants those responsible to “be punished by the law” nearly 20 years after the killings.
