03-11-2011, 07:36 PM
This is interesting, though. Apparently a few British Paratroopers aren't above a few war crimes:
"My research into this focused on the activities of one battalion of the British Army (3rd Battalion the Parachute Regiment '3 Para') which had been the subject of an investigation by Scotland Yard, but in writing my book I examined a number of other purported examples of criminal behaviour by both sides. The Scotland Yard investigation was originally prompted by the publication in 1991 of a book by Vincent Bramley, a former Corporal with 3 Para, called 'Excursion to Hell'. In this book, Bramley described witnessing the shooting of an Argentine POW after the battle of Mount Longdon on 12 June 1982 and journalists who followed up this story also heard rumours of other similar events.
In fact, both the Scotland Yard investigation and my own research (with Christian Jennings) came up with unequivocal evidence of two 'criminal' acts by the British forces during the conflict, both of which were committed by members of 3 Para. These were the shooting of the prisoner, which took place much as Bramley described, and which was carried out by a soldier from A Company of 3 Para, Corporal Gary 'Louis' Sturge; and also the mutilation of Argentine corpses which was carried out by Corporal Stewart McLaughlin of B Company. McLaughlin was killed towards the end of the fighting on Longdon, but when his body was being removed from the battlefield, he was found to have a number of human ears - cut from bodies - in one of his ammunition pouches. McLaughlin was a very intense man and it seems likely that he picked up the idea from reading Michael Herr's Vietnam book 'Dispatches' which describes incidents of US troops taking trophies from the dead: he was certainly the type of person who might consider putting this into practice."
You think OP has an ear paperweight?
"My research into this focused on the activities of one battalion of the British Army (3rd Battalion the Parachute Regiment '3 Para') which had been the subject of an investigation by Scotland Yard, but in writing my book I examined a number of other purported examples of criminal behaviour by both sides. The Scotland Yard investigation was originally prompted by the publication in 1991 of a book by Vincent Bramley, a former Corporal with 3 Para, called 'Excursion to Hell'. In this book, Bramley described witnessing the shooting of an Argentine POW after the battle of Mount Longdon on 12 June 1982 and journalists who followed up this story also heard rumours of other similar events.
In fact, both the Scotland Yard investigation and my own research (with Christian Jennings) came up with unequivocal evidence of two 'criminal' acts by the British forces during the conflict, both of which were committed by members of 3 Para. These were the shooting of the prisoner, which took place much as Bramley described, and which was carried out by a soldier from A Company of 3 Para, Corporal Gary 'Louis' Sturge; and also the mutilation of Argentine corpses which was carried out by Corporal Stewart McLaughlin of B Company. McLaughlin was killed towards the end of the fighting on Longdon, but when his body was being removed from the battlefield, he was found to have a number of human ears - cut from bodies - in one of his ammunition pouches. McLaughlin was a very intense man and it seems likely that he picked up the idea from reading Michael Herr's Vietnam book 'Dispatches' which describes incidents of US troops taking trophies from the dead: he was certainly the type of person who might consider putting this into practice."
You think OP has an ear paperweight?