Five U.S. Soldiers Charged Over Iraq Rape, Murder

U.S. Marines on patrol in Iraq (AFP) July 9, 2006 -- Four U.S. soldiers have been charged with the rape and murder of a teenage Iraq girl.

A fifth was charged for dereliction of duty for failing to report the attack.

The U.S. military said today that the five soldiers, who are still on active duty, now face a probe to determine whether there is enough evidence to place them on trial.

The charges follow allegations that soldiers from the 101st Airborne Division raped the teenager in March, and then killed her and three members of her family in Al-Mahmudiyah, south of Baghdad.

(Reuters, AP)