Tillman Saga Continues

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Tillman Saga Continues

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    In a continuation of the drama that has gripped the nation, events surrounding the friendly fire death of Ex-NFL star Pat Tillman took another turn yesterday. Sharm EL Sheikh of the Washington Post reported that "Army Secretary Pete Geren has censured a retired three-star general for misconduct in the investigation of the 2004 "friendly fire" death of former National Football League player and Army Ranger Pat Tillman. Geren also recommended that the general be evaluated for a possible demotion, an extremely rare move" Tillman was killed by friendly fire on April 22, 2004 in Afghanistan, during what was first reported as a battle with Taliban forces but later investigation deemed to be a clear exchange of friendly fire.

    Across Washington today, former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld  and Former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff  Gen Richard Meyers defended their roles in the incident before the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform. Committee Chairman Henry Waxman (D.) California, charged that suspicion surrounding the unanswered questions in Tillman's death reached into the upper echelons of the Department of Defense, but Rumsfeld took no personal responsibility. "Early in my tenure as Secretary of Defense' Rumsfeld retorted, "I wrote a memo for the men and women of the Dept. of Defense" Rumsfeld disseninated that memo to committee members noting that "Principal number one- the very first one was-"Do nothing that could raise questions about the credibility of the DOD'" Meyers also denied involvement in a purported cover up noting that he simply had no idea that any indiscrepancies had existed at the time of the slaying.

    The Tillman saga not only intensifies public scrutiny of government integrity regarding the prosecution of the Global War on Terrorism,  the case also highlights the dangers of friendly fire deaths in todays ever- evolving battlefield environment. globalsecirity.com noted that A U.S. Army War College study in 1995 estimated that between 13 percent
and 24 percent of U.S. combat casualties in the 20th Century were
killed or wounded by their own forces. Thirty five friendly fire deaths on coalition forces occurred in the 1991 Gulf War alone and according to some DOD estimates as many as 9% of Operation Iraqi Freedom casualties may be due to friendly fire. Though systems such as the Force XXI Battle Command Brigade and other tactical communication systems are being implemented to solve the ongoing fratricide of friendly fire problem, the Tillman case highlights that problems do indeed still exist.