The rules

Since 2002, we've had literally tens of thousands of CF members rotating through Afghanistan. The overwhelmingly vast majority have handled themselves in an exemplary fashion. But, statistically speaking, allegations like this were only a matter of time:

The Canadian Forces National Investigation Service is investigating whether proper procedures were followed surrounding the death of a "presumed" insurgent in Afghanistan.

At a news conference in Kandahar, Canadian military officials gave sparse details and took no questions about the investigation.

Master Warrant Officer Bernie Caron, Kandahar detachment commander for the NIS, said a probe has been launched into the death, which occurred on or around Oct. 19, 2008, in Helmand province.

He said the commander of Task Force Kandahar was notified of the allegations on Dec. 27, and quickly notified the NIS, which immediately launched an investigation.

"The Canadian Forces National Investigation Service is investigating the allegation to determine the facts, analyze the evidence and if warranted lay the appropriate charges," Caron said.

Acting commander of Task Force Afghanistan, Col. Jamie Cade, confimed he learned of the incident in late December, and quickly informed the NIS.

Good on the CF for moving as quickly as they did on this once the allegations came to the attention of the senior leadership in theatre. Good on them for calling in the NIS. Good on them for releasing as much information as they can to the public proactively, rather than waiting until it had to be dragged out of them by a reporter with a tip.

As to the allegations themselves, obviously the release is pretty vague. Not following "proper procedures" surrounding the death of a presumed insurgent could suggest anything along a broad spectrum of actions, from not filing a proper report, to standing by while ANSF do bad things, to killing a detainee out of hand. But if the NIS has been called in, I'd suggest it's a bit more serious than just filing an improper report.

I have to admit, I'm more than a bit surprised at the reactions in comments on the CTV article, the majority of which express sentiments similar to this:

Zhimmy
Does this ever make me angry! Yesterday they were blowing our guys up with IEDs and today were conducting an investigation against our own people as to how we treated him. Its unbelievable! Were always having to play the better person! Who cares what happenned to him!

You won't find anyone in Canada who's more supportive of the Canadian soldier than me. But from a military standpoint, following the rules of war and the lawful orders of your superiors is crucial from a purely disciplinary point of view. You may not agree with the particular rules our soldiers are required to follow - when they can pull the trigger, and when they can't, for example - but the idea that they have to follow them is a no-brainer. Nobody who's thought about it for any length of time wants soldiers freelancing as to how they apply force - that makes them no better than an armed gang. The fact that they are controlled by a lawful government authority is what makes the violence they apply morally acceptable.

So, in that context, an NIS investigation is exactly the right thing to do - for the soldier involved, for the other soldiers in the Task Force, for the broader CF, and for the country. Now they just need to make sure the investigation goes by the numbers. If it ends up looking like either a whitewash or a witch-hunt, I'll be the first to cry foul. But until that time, we all need to hold our fire and let the investigation take its natural course.

We'll see how this develops.

Update: Well, it looks pretty damned serious. And the usual cast of suspects is already screaming 'cover-up!':

Amir Attaran, a law professor with the University of Ottawa, told CTV News the timing of the charge "doesn't pass the smell test."

He questioned how quickly the military went from launching the investigation to laying a charge, suggesting that they already knew "who their man was."

The murder charge stirs up unpleasant memories of the Canadian Forces mission in Somalia.

There was a similar reporting delay in the 1993 beating death of a Somalia teenager by members of the Canadian Airborne Regiment. The affair hurt the reputation of the Canadian military and a public inquiry was launched, leading to the disbanding of the Airborne Regiment.

Blatchford says what needs to be said, as usual. And, yes, I'll admit to having a bit of a puffed-chest moment seeing The Torch quoted in her column...