Donald Trump has granted a presidential pardon to a former soldier convicted of a war crime

President Donald Trump peacefully pardoned Michael Behenna, an army special forces veteran convicted of murdering an alleged al-Qaeda terrorist in Iraq in 2008.

"The case of Mr. Behenna had wide support from the army, Oklahoma officials and the public. In addition, while he was serving his sentence, He was a model prisoner ", said White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders. "In light of these facts, Behenna deserves the presidential pardonhe badured.

Behenna, 35, was sentenced for the murder of Iraq Ali Mansur, an alleged jihadist. What He undressed and illegally interrogated before firing two cold shots, one to the chest and one to the head.

The suspect was arrested for alleged involvement in an explosive attack on a US patrol including Behenna in which two soldiers were killed, Sergeant Adam Kohlhaas, 26, and Sergeant Steven Christofferson, 20.

An intelligence report pointed out that Mansur could have been the brain of the operationHe was arrested at his home, where they found a machine gun and a fake pbadport containing information on trips to Syria and Saudi Arabia.

Mansur was questioned, but eventually the high command ordered his release on the grounds that there was no conclusive evidence his participation in the ambush.

It was precisely when Mansur was brought back to his home, Behenna decided to stop the vehicle and to make himself justice..

"I undressed him to intimidate him and told him that he wanted more information about local Al Qaeda leaders and about his trips to Saudi Arabia and to Syria, as well as about the explosion, but he simply replied, "I do not know, I do not know," said Behenna, during his trial.

In 2009, court martial sentenced Behenna to 25 years in prison considering the accused guilty of unpremeditated murder and violation of the military code. After several appeals, his sentence was reduced to 15 years in prison and in 2014, he was released on bail.

Although Behenna can not in principle obtain a presidential pardon until the rest of his sentence is served, in 2024, the lawyer of ex-soldier John Richter confirmed a few months ago that they asked for it because of the favorable climate that currently prevails at the White House for the military. Trump spoke out in favor of torture and rejected what he considers "politically correct".

"We know that we have a very friendly president to the situation that soldiers, sailors and sailors faced in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan," Richter told the newspaper. The Washington Post.

(With information from EFE)