Killing of Afghan civilians was not war crime, Polish court rules
PR dla Zagranicy
Paweł Kononczuk
17.02.2016 11:53
Poland’s Supreme Court on Wednesday upheld a ruling that Polish soldiers who killed six Afghan civilians in the village of Nangar Khel in 2007 were guilty of negligently carrying out orders, not of war crimes.
Supreme Court judges during Wednesday's case. Photo: PAP/Tomasz Gzell
The ruling upheld the decision of a military court in March last year. Following a lengthy legal battle, three Polish soldiers were given suspended jail sentences, while the case of one was conditionally discontinued.
Both the prosecution and defence filed an appeal. Prosecutors wanted a retrial on war crime charges, while the defence pressed for an acquittal.
The Polish soldiers opened mortar fire on the Afghan village of Nangar Khel in August 2007, killing six people and wounding three.
Last year, a Warsaw military court found no evidence of war crimes, but found the soldiers guilty of failure to execute orders by neglecting to carry out a proper reconnaissance before opening fire. (pk)
Source: PAP