Hasan Akbar update: “Diary: Soldier Wrote About Killing Buddies,” from AP, with thanks to Michelle Malkin and Miira. In Onward Muslim Soldiers I wrote about Akbar’s attack in conjunction with postings on Muslim bulletin boards in which the posters discussed joining the American military, going to the Middle East, and switching sides. That may not have been Akbar’s plan from the beginning, but it does seem as if his attack was premeditated.
And again, the gorilla in the living room in this case is the loyalty of Muslim soldiers in the American military, particularly when the foe is Muslim and the Qur’an says that believers who kill other believers will land in hell (4:92).
Akbar, a Muslim convert, is accused of ambushing his fellow soldiers in their tents at an encampment in Kuwait in March 2003, during the opening days of the Iraq war. Two U.S. officers were killed.
Prosecutors have said Akbar told investigators he was worried that U.S. forces would harm fellow Muslims in the Iraq war. They are seeking a premeditated murder conviction, which carries a possible death penalty.
In the entry dated Feb. 4, 2003, Akbar referred to mistreatment by his fellow soldiers:
“I suppose they want to punk me or just humiliate me. Perhaps they feel that I will not do anything about that. They are right about that. I am not going to do anything about it as long as I stay here. But as soon as I am in Iraq, I am going to try and kill as many of them as possible.”
Another entry said: “I will have to decide to kill my Muslim brothers fighting for Saddam Hussein or my battle buddies. I am hoping to get into a position so I don’t have to take any crap from anyone anymore.”
Elsewhere, he wrote: “I may not have killed any Muslims, but being in the Army is the same thing. I may have to make a choice very soon on who to kill.”…