US soldier on Iraq murder charge

The US army is bringing murder charges against a soldier accused of shooting an Iraqi man injured in a car chase.

The accusation stems from an incident last month in the holy city of Kufa in the central Iraq.

Reports at the time claimed US soldiers had chased, fired at and hit a vehicle they believed was carrying members of Shia cleric Moqtada Sadr's militia.

A US Central Command statement said the soldier is alleged to have approached the vehicle and shot the driver dead.

High-speed chase

"The charge stems from a 21 May incident which took place near Kufa. Soldiers conducted a high-speed chase with a vehicle that they believed to be carrying suspected members of Moqtada Sadr's militia," the statement said.

"During their pursuit, soldiers fired at the vehicle, wounding the driver and passenger. Shortly afterward, the driver was shot and killed at close range."

At the time of the incident, US defence officials said it would be considered whether the soldier shot the man to end his suffering after he had been wounded when the vehicle was hit by gunfire.

But one official then added that soldiers "don't get to make those kinds of decisions."

The US military, which did not name the soldier but confirmed he was a member of the 1st Armoured Division, says it will not make any further comment while the investigation is continuing.

The soldier is to undergo what is known as the US military's article 32 probe, the equivalent of a grand jury hearing that could initiate court martial hearings against him.

A full court martial could result in the soldier being jailed, fined and thrown out of the army.