US soldiers charged with murdering Iraqis

Baghdad: Two US soldiers were charged with the premeditated murder of three Iraqis, the US military said on Saturday.

The soldiers are accused of killing the Iraqis in three separate incidents, then planting weapons on the victims' remains, the military said in a statement.

Fellow soldiers reported the alleged crimes, which took place between April and this month in the vicinity of Iskandariyah, south of Baghdad.

The soldiers were identified as Staff Sergeant Michael A. Hensley from Chandler, North Carolina, and Special Jorge G. Sandoval from Laredo, Texas.

Hensley is charged with three counts each of premeditated murder, obstructing justice and "wrongfully placing weapons with the remains of deceased Iraqis." He was placed in military confinement in Kuwait on Thursday.

Sandoval faces one count each of premeditated murder and placing a weapon with the remains of a dead Iraqi. He was taken into custody Tuesday while at home in Texas, and was transferred to military confinement in Kuwait three days later.