Life Sentence for Soldier who Killed 16 Afghans

He had pleaded guilty to avoid a death sentence

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The U.S. Army Staff Sergeant who massacred 16 Afghan civilians last March was sentenced Friday to life in prison without parole.

Robert Bales, who pleaded guilty to the killings to avoid the possibility of a death sentence, apologized on the witness stand Thursday, calling the attacks on the Kandahar villages “an act of cowardice.” His lawyers argued that his actions were the result of PTSD and traumatic brain damage he sustained during his four military deployments.

The attack is considered one of the worst atrocities of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Most of the victims were women and children.

[The Guardian]