Afghan massacre suspect may face the death penalty

The United States soldier, who killed 16 civilians in Afghanistan, could face a death penalty if convicted, Defence Secretary Leon Panetta has said, while asserting that the tragic incident was an "isolated" one.

The suspect, who has been arrested, went on a killing spree over the weekend, shooting down civilians, most of them women and children, in an act that has taken anti-America sentiment to a new high in Afghanistan.

According to Fox news, Panetta told reporters traveling with him to Kyrgyzstan that the suspect may face "capital charges", but the US must resist pressure to change course in
Afghanistan.

The suspect, whose name has not been released by the Pentagon so far, is from a military base in Washington State.

"War is hell," Panetta said, but insisted that the incident is not a sign that the immense stress of 10 years of war was pushing US troops to a breaking point.

"We seem to get tested almost every other day with challenges that test our leadership and our commitment to the mission that we are involved in," Panetta said.

The suspect, 38, suffered traumatic brain injury in 2010 after a vehicle rollover accident in Iraq, though he was later deemed "fit for duty".

Panetta said the suspect had "family problems," possibly related to trouble in his marriage, before deploying for the fourth time.

"I think when you look at that larger picture, it does make clear that these kinds of events are isolated and don't represent what is really happening in Afghanistan," he was quoted as saying by the military Star and Stripes newspaper.

The true test is whether the partnership between the US and Afghan troops is ongoing throughout the country, Panetta added.

"We are not getting large-scale desertions; we are not getting any kind of disruptions," Panetta said, adding that the incidents won't be allowed to derail the US strategy in Afghanistan, which he said was to "work to a point in 2013 where Afghans can take the lead in combat operations with our support and then ultimately be able to meet our drawdown at the end of 2014".

The suspect had been stationed at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, a sprawling military installation between Tacoma and Olympia, Washington, CNN said.

"A handful of soldiers from the base have been involved in violent incidents in the past few years, including four soldiers convicted of killing Afghan civilians in 2010 as part of a kill squad," it said.