As more info becomes available and the video also?
It appears that Admiral Frank M. Bradley made a command decision to order a second strike that killed the men in the water looking skyward for help….
Bradley, it appears gave the order , based on his own , following Defense Sec. Hegseth’s order….
BUT?
We Now learn the Bradley asked for a legal call form a military lawyer on the situation…
The lawyer advised that it appeared the survivor’s of the first strike where ‘ship wrecked’ and ‘OUT of the fight (there was NO fight actually) ….
Bradley THEN ordered a second strike….
BUT?
Bradley , in following the Defense Sec’s order, overrode legal advice changing the situation before him….
Hmmmmm?
Ahead of the Sept. 2 mission, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth had given an order to U.S. forces to kill the passengers, sink the boat and destroy the drugs, three people familiar with the operation said. It appeared to Bradley that none of those objectives had been achieved, the admiral would later recount for lawmakers….
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The video feed showed that the two men were struggling to stay atop the flotsam, which people who’ve seen the footage described as roughly the size of a dining room table. Bradley turned to the military lawyer advising him and requested input, according to members of Congress who spoke with him privately last week and people later briefed on those conversations. Under the law of armed conflict, were the men now “shipwrecked” and therefore out of the fight, rendering them unlawful targets?
The admiral decided that definition did not apply, these people said. Instead, what Bradley explained to lawmakers left some with the impression that there was a prevailing lack of certainty — about the existence of any drugs beneath the wreckage and whether the survivors had a means to call for help or intended to surrender — when he concluded that further action was warranted.
He ordered a second strike, killing both men. Moments earlier, the video feed had shown them waving their arms and looking skyward, people who saw the footage said. It was unclear, they added, why they were doing so….
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Law of war experts and some lawmakers have challenged the admiral’s reasoning and cast doubt on the lawfulness of using the military to kill alleged criminals.
The military lawyer who advised the admiral, whom The Post is not identifying because they serve in a secretive unit, explained to Bradley how the law of armed conflict defines “shipwrecked,” these people said. International law defines “shipwrecked” persons as those who “are in peril at sea” as a result of a mishap affecting their vessel “and who refrain from any act of hostility.” Combatants who are shipwrecked receive special protection because, unlike troops on land, they cannot take refuge, experts note…
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Former military lawyers said that in such situations a commander’s top legal adviser would be expected to offer an assessment, but their role is only to advise, not to approve a strike…
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To legal experts, Bradley’s assertion that he scanned for a sign of surrender reflected a foundational flaw with the Trump administration’s lethal force campaign: The laws of war weren’t written to address the behavior of criminal drug traffickers, they said….
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On the day of the attack, the U.S. military had no personnel or equipment on hand to rescue anyone…..
Note…
Adm. Bradley made the decesion for the second strike….
One wold think he ‘OWNS’ It and the consequences….
Will this situation change anything?
image….Adm. Frank M. Bradley is escorted to a classified meeting on Capitol Hill on Dec. 4. (Demetrius Freeman/The Washington Post)
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