Photo reveals Australian soldier drinking beer out of dead Taliban fighter's prosthetic leg

[SilentPanda]

Senior Australian special forces soldiers drank beer out of the prosthetic leg of a dead Taliban soldier at an unauthorised bar in Afghanistan – with a photograph of the act being revealed for the first time by Guardian Australia

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A number of photographs obtained by the Guardian show one senior soldier – who is still serving – sculling from the leg in an unofficial bar known as the Fat Lady's Arms, which was set up inside Australia's special forces base in Tarin Kowt, the capital of Uruzgan province, in 2009.

Another appears to show two soldiers performing a dance with the leg.

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The unredacted sections of the Brereton report do not mention the leg or whether any soldiers were under investigation for taking war trophies, but the report does make reference to the Fat Lady's Arms as being an example of how ethical leadership was compromised.

The report states that it was less likely that Special Operations Task Group Headquarters and SOTG commanding officers would have been aware of war crimes due to the fact they were not out in the field.

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The emergence of the picture of Australian armed forces drinking beer from a dead man's prosthetic leg comes at a particularly tense time for the Australian government.

On Monday the Chinese government's foreign affairs spokesman tweeted a doctored image of an Australian soldier with a knife held to the throat of an Afghan child with the words: "Don't be afraid, we are coming to bring you peace" underneath.

Morrison said the tweet was "utterly outrageous" and "repugnant" and called on China to apologise.

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Photo is in link

Photo reveals Australian soldier drinking beer out of dead Taliban fighter's prosthetic leg

Exclusive: Image obtained by Guardian Australia shows limb being used to down drinks in a special forces bar in Afghanistan

www.theguardian.com

 

[blitzblake]

"Well.. that ones real... but the other one isn't!!"

I'm beginning to think that perhaps Army/War breeds monsters?

 

[oreomunsta]

That's disgusting on multiple levels

 

[PaulloDEC]

Wish I could say this surprises me.

 

[SABO.]

Mmm... Disappointing, not surprising.

 

[HiLife]

Yep. This is a thing.

 

[DarkSora]

Least it's not cocainum.

 

[mentok15]

Something really needs to be done about the culture in the military, this shit seems to have been at all levels.

 

[Cheesebu]

I am super shocked that armed forces from 1st world countries are made up of disgusting, morally bankrupt children playing "war" in the streets.

 

[texhnolyze]

To think that these soldiers will go back to their home country and become a part of their own community later, raising a family and all..

 

[DeltaRed]

Imagine all the things that happen and aren't captured on camera.

 

[Tokyo_Funk]

As an Australian, this disappoints me greatly.

 

[Dhx]

It's time we realized that the idea of an honorable soldier is utter fiction. War is brutal as are the soldiers who fight them. It always has been. They always have been.

This is not an indictment of the men. It's an indictment of humanity.

 

[Deleted member 11413]

Something really needs to be done about the culture in the military, this shit seems to have been at all levels.

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Well yeah think about what the purpose of the military is, particularly western imperialist militaries like the US, UK, or Australia.

 

[ToddBonzalez]

Well that's morbid...

 

[ShotyMcFat]

And our Prime Minister Scott Morrison will probably be more outraged from the coverage of this then the actual act of it.

 

[Maximo]

And fucking scomo was having a bitch about China and its photo....how about they fucking look at themselves.

 

[Temp_User]

I wonder if there are any Karl's deployed in Afghanistan.

 

[Hallucinations]

Wow.

Right after the pic from the Chinese government official was being shat on...

 

[Deleted member 45414]

Two wrongs don't make a right

 

[JasonV]

I'm beginning to think that perhaps Army/War breeds monsters?

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Alternatively, the opportunity to murder brown people overseas attracts the very worst scum Australia has to offer.

 

[Mivey]

Two wrongs don't make a right

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I think tweeting a fake image isn't exactly on the same level of wrong as actually taking fucked up trophies and glorifying death. And it actually supports the claim in their tweet pretty well, or at least make it feel far more justified.

 

[Deleted member 45414]

I think tweeting a fake image isn't exactly on the same level of wrong as actually taking fucked up trophies and glorifying death. And it actually supports the claim in their tweet pretty well, or at least make it feel far more justified.

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CCP puts Uighurs in concentration camps

 

[pechorin]

On Monday the Chinese government's foreign affairs spokesman tweeted a doctored image of an Australian soldier with a knife held to the throat of an Afghan child with the words: "Don't be afraid, we are coming to bring you peace" underneath.

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why do they keep calling it a "doctored"and "fake" image as if China tried to pass it as real lol, it was obviously a symbolic photo for media consumption. I don't like China but Western media is so disingenuous.

also these Australians were so bad that Americans/Brits didn't even want to work with them, psychopathic pricks of all them.

 

[Hallucinations]

CCP puts Uighurs in concentration camps

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And yet western governments stand idly by.

Pretending to care about them from afar.

We really shouldn't care what some government Chinese official tweets.

Australia/the west can't stand on some moral high-ground, not unless they actually fight for those Uighurs.

Or else they are just the same, a bunch of effed up mafia's oppressing everyone.

 

[Mivey]

CCP puts Uighurs in concentration camps

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Both the tweet with the fake image, and this recent real image are about the Afghan war, and how Western forces in general, and Australian soldiers specifically behave there. Pretending they literally kill little children is an extreme view, but this leaked image does show that some soldiers definitely exhibited some unacceptable behaviour there.

That the CCP-run Chinese Republic is a genocidal, brutal dictatorship isn't relevant to how a Western democratic nation should act when it sends troops overseas. And it doesn't help that while the CCP is doing evil shit, many governments in the world, including Australia, are happy to ignore it to get that sweet CCP money.

 

[Deleted member 45414]

Both the tweet with the fake image, and this recent real image are about the Afghan war, and how Western forces in general, and Australian soldiers specifically behave there. Pretending they literally kill little children is an extreme view, but this leaked image does show that some soldiers definitely exhibited some unacceptable behaviour there.

That the CCP is a genocidal, brutal dictatorship isn't relevant to how a Western democratic nation should act when it sends troops overseas.

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As I said, 2 wrongs don't make a right.

 

[Hallucinations]

As I said, 2 wrongs don't make a right.

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Then why write your second post?

 

[Ra]

To think that these soldiers will go back to their home country and become a part of their own community later, raising a family and all..

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Straight into the police force.

 

[Richter1887]

Disgusting. Not just because of the "point" they are making but also because it is gross. Who the fuck drinks beer from a prosthetic leg?

What a psychopath.

 

[Baccus]

Propel carrying a gun become such assholes

 

[Maximo]

As I said, 2 wrongs don't make a right.

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Brah like what is even your point, why the second post.

 

[Deleted member 45414]

Brah like what is even your point, why the second post.

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I thought it was clear, but I guess not.

Australia (and all other involved countries in the afghan and iraq invasions) have done fucked up shit clearly, some still are, but that doesn't excuse the fucked up shit that the CCP is also currently doing, regardless of how much they want to point fingers. 2 wrongs don't make a right, Australias wrongs doesn't excuse the CCP's wrongs.

 

[danm999]

Bring them all home and prosecute the ones who committed war crimes. Enough is enough.

 

[HMS_Pinafore]

CCP puts Uighurs in concentration camps

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And we (Australian's) put asylum seekers into concentration camps at Christmas island.

 

[Hallucinations]

I thought it was clear, but I guess not.

Australia (and all other involved countries in the afghan and iraq invasions) have done fucked up shit clearly, some still are, but that doesn't excuse the fucked up shit that the CCP is also currently doing, regardless of how much they want to point fingers. 2 wrongs don't make a right, Australias wrongs doesn't excuse the CCP's wrongs.

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Nobody is saying it does.

The question is ... as I will just presume you are someone not from China and from a western country (or a western influenced country) ... it's of nearly practically zero use pointing out China's hypocrisy.

It's very easy to point out the issues of some foreign country in some far away land. But it really does nothing in any practical sense. Because you can't change China from here.

It's just truly vapid text.

You can only influence those who run your country and your fellow national citizens (or those on ResetEra who are highly unlikely to be from China)

 

[mavericktopgun]

The Matrix was right. Mankind is a Virus.

 

[Koukalaka]

It's time we realized that the idea of an honorable soldier is utter fiction. War is brutal as are the soldiers who fight them. It always has been. They always have been.

This is not an indictment of the men. It's an indictment of humanity.

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Yeah, I only recently found out about US soldiers taking Japanese human remains as war souvenirs during WW2. Horrific stuff that's testament to the dehumanising effect of propaganda at the time.

 

[Deleted member 45414]

Nobody is saying it does.

The question is ... as I will just presume you are someone not from China and from a western country (or a western influenced country) ... it's of nearly practically zero use pointing out China's hypocrisy.

It's very easy to point out the issues of some foreign country in some far away land. But it really does nothing in any practical sense. Because you can't change China from here.

It's just truly vapid text.

You can only influence those who run your country and your fellow national citizens (or those on ResetEra who are highly unlikely to be from China)

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No one can influence shit anywhere, unfortunately, unless they got fucktons of money or power. Of which I, or most other people on Resetera have neither.

 

[Banderdash]

also these Australians were so bad that Americans/Brits didn't even want to work with them, psychopathic pricks of all them.

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Not just the foreign armies... but our own army.
The initial drive for the investigation was finding out why our own Commando units refused to work with the SAS.
I absolutely believe there are elements within our allies armed forces who are completely fine with working with our SAS.

 

[GameChanger]

I wonder if there are any Karl's deployed in Afghanistan.

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This is the first thing that popped up in my head. So god damn gross.

 

[Clefargle]

Nothing as funny as dismemberment of the disabled!

 

[Rendering...]

I am super shocked that armed forces from 1st world countries are made up of disgusting, morally bankrupt children playing "war" in the streets.

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Yep, you said it.

 

[Koukalaka]

Not just the foreign armies... but our own army.
The initial drive for the investigation was finding out why our own Commando units refused to work with the SAS.
I absolutely believe there are elements within our allies armed forces who are completely fine with working with our SAS.

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I do wonder if the selective nature of these special forces units sometimes results in an insular, toxic "warrior" culture. I think the German Army had to disband part of their special forces unit because of rampant far-right infiltration.

 

[Banderdash]

I do wonder if the selective nature of these special forces units sometimes results in an insular, toxic "warrior" culture. I think the German Army had to disband part of their special forces unit because of rampant far-right infiltration.

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Specialist selection criteria, that involves candidates having a some kind of x-factor, makes it very easy to recruit 'your' kind of people.
A culture that is entrenched can stay that way because you recruit the kinds of people who'll 'fit in'.

 

[Truant]

Western country goes to war:

Western country when one of their own commits disgusting shit that gets reported in the news:

 

[Hallucinations]

No one can influence shit anywhere, unfortunately, unless they got fucktons of money or power. Of which I, or most other people on Resetera have neither.

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That's my point.

The United States and Australia do have a fuck tonne of money.

And they choose to ignore helping the Uighurs because Chinese money is just too good.

 

[Pet]

I think tweeting a fake image isn't exactly on the same level of wrong as actually taking fucked up trophies and glorifying death. And it actually supports the claim in their tweet pretty well, or at least make it feel far more justified.

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I thought the so-called "fake image" was supposed to be satire. Isn't it a drawn "photo"?

I mean, I took the image to be a critical image of what is going on. Is it that different from, for example, the depiction of Muhammad in unflattering ways?

The artist that drew it regularly draws anti-Western imperialism material.

Western country goes to war:

Western country when one of their own commits disgusting shit that gets reported in the news:

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Warning: images in link are NFSL.

This reminds of me something; I literally was reading about Hugh Thompson Jr today, and what his role in the Vietnam War. It was less than 50 years ago, and the atrocities committed by American soldiers is absolutely sickening.

 

[Puroresu_kid]

It's time we realized that the idea of an honorable soldier is utter fiction. War is brutal as are the soldiers who fight them. It always has been. They always have been.

This is not an indictment of the men. It's an indictment of humanity.

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This. I hate the way soldiers at times are idolised as great heroes.

 

[Gatti-man]

Not surprising. It's special forces. These dudes see hard action over and over. It becomes mundane and casual. My ex girlfriends brother had photos of his friends kicking a head around like a soccer ball during the first Iraq invasion (pretty sure he took the picture he was there). He was very proud of it. That's the mentality of killers. And that's what these guys are. Even the best of them deep down are killers.