US President Donald Trump and senior Navy officials have clashed over a high-profile war-crimes case as Mr Trump vowed on Twitter he would not allow a Navy SEAL convicted of battlefield misconduct to be expelled from the elite special forces.
Mr Trump again intervened in events surrounding the court-martial of Special Operations Chief Edward Gallagher despite the support of top Navy leaders for the decision to formally review Gallagher’s fitness to remain a SEAL.
Gallagher’s lawyer said his client was told by a naval special warfare command representative on Thursday that proceedings against him will go forward, regardless of Mr Trump’s assertion to the contrary.
The Navy’s chief spokesperson later said that “lawful orders” from the president to halt the review would be followed and the Navy was “awaiting further guidance”.
Navy Special Operations Chief Edward Gallagher and his wife Andrea Gallagher leave court. Source: AP
A military jury in July convicted Gallagher of illegally posing for pictures with the corpse of an IS fighter while deployed to Iraq in 2017 but acquitted him of murder in the detainee’s death.
Gallagher also was cleared of charges that he deliberately fired on unarmed civilians.
He was sentenced to a demotion in rank and pay, but no prison time.
Navy Special Operations Chief Gallagher with his wife, Andrea, as they leave a military court. Source: AP
Mr Trump last Friday restored Gallagher’s rank and pay, allowing him to retire on a full pension while pardoning two Army officers who were separately accused of war crimes in Afghanistan.
Critics said the president’s actions undermined military justice and sent a message that battlefield atrocities would be tolerated.
Special Operations Chief Edward Gallagher, pictured during his 2017 deployment. Source: Supplied, The New York Times
However, the Navy’s top SEAL, Rear Admiral Collin Green, commander of naval special warfare, followed Mr Trump’s move on Gallagher’s behalf by convening a special five-member panel to review the case and recommend whether he should be stripped of the trident pin designating him a SEAL.
