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Motivation

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The characteristics of the Vietnam War resulted in high stress for military officers and NCOs, and their troops. At the same time, relations within the military reflected social problems and issues in the US such as racial tension, drug use, and resentment toward authoritative leaders within the ranks. As the program of training Vietnamese for combat roles known as Vietnamization began, young American enlisted men lost a sense of purpose in fighting the war, and the relationship between enlisted men and their officers deteriorated. The resentment directed from enlisted men toward officers was exacerbated by their generational gaps, as well as different perceptions of how the military should be conducted. Enforcement of military regulations, especially if done overzealously, led to troops' complaining and sometimes threats of physical violence directed toward officers.[1]. Most incidents of fragging during the Vietnam War spawned from incompetent officers or personal philosophies on the war. However, other motivations such as religious intolerance could also contribute to fragging. An incident in the early days of the Iraq invasion proves this point [2]. 34-year old Sergeant Hasan Akbar killed two officers and wounded fourteen other soldiers. His fellow soldiers displayed symbols of the Ku Klux Klan and Akbar was provoked by this racial attack. This case highlights the multi-dimensional nature of fragging incidents.

Fragging most often involved the murder of a commanding officer (C.O.) or a senior non-commissioned officer perceived as unpopular, harsh, inept or overzealous. As the Vietnam War became more unpopular in the United States, soldiers became less willing to go into harm's way. They expected their leaders to have a similar sense of self-preservation, even if these motives were obstructive to the goals of the overall war effort. If a C.O. was incompetent, fragging the officer was considered a means of self-defense for the men serving under him. Fragging might also occur if a commander freely took on dangerous or suicidal missions, especially if he was deemed to be seeking personal glory. Lower enlisted-rank soldiers used the threat of fragging to influence officers. Sometimes a warning would be given to the target by placing a grenade pin on his bed. Fragging would take place if his actions continued as before.

The use of fragging served to warn junior officers to avoid angering their enlisted men through recklessness, cowardice, or lack of leadership. George Cantero, who served as a medic in Vietnam during the early 1970s, later explained that incompetent officers who gave dangerous orders and refused to listen to reason or threats were fragged because that was the only way for the men to gain a new and presumably safer commanding officer.[3] Underground GI newspapers sometimes listed bounties offered by units for the fragging of unpopular commanding officers.[4]. A potential catalyst for fragging incidents has been an unwillingness to tackle the issue head-on. By simply changing commanding officers after a fragging incident without evaluating the core issues presented, junior officers become even more incentivized to eliminate their commanding officers because there were no true repercussions. Unlike the Roman tradition of crucifying entire legions for disobedience or cowardice, swift administrative responses were ineffective at eradicating the source of the discontent.

Throughout the course of the Vietnam War, fragging was reportedly common. Cases have been documented of at least 230 American officers killed by their own troops, and as many as 1,400 other officers' deaths could not be explained.[5] Between 1970 and 1971 alone, there were 363 cases of "assault with explosive devices" against officers in Vietnam.[6]

Incidents of fragging have been recorded as far back as the 18th-century Battle of Blenheim.

New section: Administration Responses

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While fragging has been documented in the Vietnam War and in Iraq, there have been attempted cases of official government organizations attempting to suppress such allegations. It is understandable from an administrative perspective that this type of behavior within the armed forces is publicly embarrassing and politically damaging. In fact, fragging incidents in Iraq have been silenced by the mainstream media [7]. Often times, these fragging incidents can be subtly detected through friendly force attacks. Given the nature of such attacks, governments deny the existence of such incidents, such as coining the term "combat refusal"[8]. This term does not hide the true sentiment behind fragging. Journalists often quoted military commanders using this term when describing the deaths of fellow commanding officers.

Even though most attention is directed to fragging incidents among American forces, these deliberate attacks against commanding officers can occur anywhere given sufficient motivating forces. But, it is evident that not all administrations respond to fragging in the same way. In fact, the police force in Bangalore has experienced similar issues[9]. Plummeting morale of an overworked police force has partly contributed to this hostile environment. Before, in the 1990s, lower rank police officials had fought with their seniors in the state for not granting them leave or for making them work day in and day out. Normally, these disgruntled police forces would seek a transfer from the police station if the senior officer is not in good terms with him. In contrast to the American response, the police department issued a statement vowing to improve working conditions and prevent such a tragic deed from occurring in the future. Evidently, official statements responding to fragging varies between different situations and administrations.

Notable incidents

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  • 1704 — Battle of Blenheim: An unpopular Major of the 15th Regiment of Foot was shot in the head by his own men after the battle had been won.[10]
  • 1718 — Charles XII of Sweden: It is speculated that the bullet that killed the King during the Siege of Fredriksten was shot by his own troops.[11]
  • 1815 — Battle of Quatre Bras: The commander of the 92nd (Gordon Highlanders) Regiment of Foot, Colonel John Cameron of Fassfern, was shot and killed by a man whom he had recently flogged.[10]
  • 1894 - Battle of the Yalu River: Admiral Ding Ruchang's legs were crushed due to the deliberate misfiring of his ship's main battery by the ship's Captain.[12]
  • World War I: An unpopular Sergeant was killed when one of his men came up behind him and dropped an unpinned hand grenade down his trousers.[13][need quotation to verify]
  • Vietnam War (American forces): On 21 April 1969, a grenade was thrown into the company office of K Company, 9th Marines, at Quang Tri Combat Base, RVN; First Lieutenant Robert T. Rohweller died of wounds he received in the explosion. Private Reginald F. Smith pleaded guilty to the premeditated murder of Rohweller and was sentenced to 40 years' imprisonment; he died in custody on 25 June 1982. On 15 March 1971, a grenade tossed into an officer billet at Bien Hoa Army Airfield killed Lieutenants Thomas A. Dellwo and Richard E. Harlan of the 1st Cavalry Division (Airmobile); Private E-2 Billy Dean Smith was charged with killing the Officers but was acquitted in November 1972.[14]. Between 1969 and 1972, there were 1,1013 documented fragging incidents, an average of 68 cases of desertion out of 1000 soldiers every year, and average yearly cases of AWOLs of 24 out of 1000.
  • Vietnam War (Australian forces): On 23 November 1969, Lieutenant Robert Thomas Convery of the 9th Battalion of the Royal Australian Regiment was killed when a grenade exploded while he was sleeping in his tent at Nui Dat, South Vietnam. Private Peter Denzil Allen was convicted of Convery's murder and served ten years and eight months of a life sentence in Risdon Prison.[15] On Christmas Day 1970, Sergeants Allan Brian Moss and John Wallace Galvin were shot dead and Sergeant Frederick Edwin Bowtell injured when Private Paul Ramon Ferriday opened fire with his rifle into the Sergeant's Mess of the Royal Australian Army Service Corps at Nui Dat, South Vietnam after an all-day drinking session. Ferriday was convicted on two counts of manslaughter and one of assault with a weapon, and served eight years of a ten-year sentence.[16]
  • War in Afghanistan: 17 August 2002 – British Army Sergeant Robert Busuttil of the Royal Logistic Corps was shot dead by subordinate Corporal John Gregory during a barbecue at Kabul International Airport. It was later revealed that Corporal Gregory had been drinking and the two men were involved in an altercation prior. It was in the immediate aftermath of this that Corporal Gregory returned with his weapon loaded, and fired up to 10 rounds killing Sergeant Busuttil as he lay in a hammock before turning the weapon on himself.[17]
  • Iraq War: Captain Phillip Esposito and 1st Lieutenant Louis Allen died as a result of the explosion on June 7, 2005, of a Claymore mine placed on Esposito's office window at Forward Operating Base Danger in Tikrit, Iraq. The unit's supply sergeant was charged with the murder, but was acquitted at court martial.[18]

See also

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  1. ^ Lepre, George (2011). Fragging: Why U.S. Soldiers Assaulted Their Officers in Vietnam. Lubbock: Texas Tech University Press.
  2. ^ http://www.theguardian.com/world/2005/apr/30/iraq.usa1
  3. ^ “Interview with George Cantero, 1981.” 05/12/1981. WGBH Media Library & Archives, Web. 3 Nov 2010.
  4. ^ Robert D. Heinl, Jr. (7 June 1971). "The collapse of the armed forces: Bounties and evasions". Armed Forces Journal.
  5. ^ Hedges, Chris (2003). What Every Person Should Know About War. Free Press. ISBN 0-7432-5512-7.
  6. ^ Hixson, Walter (2000). Military Aspects of the Vietnam Conflict. Taylor & Francis. p. 154. ISBN 0-8153-3532-6.
  7. ^ http://rense.com/general95/fragg.html
  8. ^ http://home.mweb.co.za/re/redcap/vietcrim.htm
  9. ^ http://www.dnaindia.com/bangalore/report-bangalore-cop-fragging-more-such-incidents-waiting-to-happen-1793336
  10. ^ a b Regan, G. (2004). More Military Blunders. Carlton Books. ISBN 1-84442-710-2.
  11. ^ Lindqvist, Herman (2009-11-29). "Karl XII:s död ger inte forskarna någon ro". Aftonbladet.
  12. ^ Paine, S.C.M. (2003). The Sino-Japanese War of 1894-1895: Perception, Power, and Primacy, Cambridge University Press. pp. 179–189.
  13. ^ Regan, G. Backfire: A History of Friendly Fire from Ancient Warfare to the Present Day, Robson Books, 2002. page?
  14. ^ George Lepre, Fragging: Why U.S. Soldiers Assaulted Their Officers in Vietnam (Lubbock: Texas Tech University Press), 89-93, 51-57.
  15. ^ Private Allen sentenced to life in jail for killing Convery
  16. ^ Private Ferriday killings
  17. ^ "Army accused over soldier deaths". BBC News. 17 September 2003. Retrieved 8 March 2014.
  18. ^ von Zielbauer, Paul (February 21, 2009). "After Guilty Plea Offer, G.I. Cleared of Iraq Deaths". New York Times. Retrieved February 23, 2009.
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