Fresh testimonies and forensic findings have reignited international outrage over what analysts and rights groups say is one of the clearest examples of U.S. war crimes committed during the occupation of Iraq: the 2005 Haditha Massacre.

Newly surfaced evidence indicates that U.S. Marines deliberately killed Iraqi children and other civilians—yet nearly two decades later, not a single American soldier has been convicted.

The massacre took place on 19 November 2005, when U.S. Marines stormed homes in the town of Haditha after one Marine was killed by a roadside bomb. Instead of conducting a targeted operation, troops went on what survivors describe as a “house-to-house execution,” killing 24 civilians, including women, elderly residents, and multiple children.

The only survivor from one of the families, Safa Yunus—then 13 years old—recalled how Marines shot her parents, five siblings, and her aunt inside their home. She survived by pretending to be dead. “We were never accused of anything. We didn’t even have a weapon,” she said, calling the killings a deliberate slaughter of innocents.

A BBC investigation has now uncovered new testimonies, documents, and audio recordings that directly contradict the U.S. military’s official version of events and suggest a systematic effort to shield the perpetrators from accountability.

One Marine, Mendoza, previously admitted to shooting Safa’s father at the door. Newly unearthed audio from the trial of Sgt. Frank Wuterich—who led the raid—shows Mendoza stating he stepped inside the room where Safa and other children were hiding, despite later claims that he did not enter. Another Marine, Corporal Stephen Tatum, confessed in early testimonies to shooting children at close range. “I saw children kneeling… I fired two shots to the chest and head,” he reportedly told investigators. He later admitted knowing he was shooting a child.

Yet both men escaped prosecution. Charges were dropped after a series of immunity deals, contradictory testimonies, and what experts now say was a deeply flawed investigation designed to protect U.S. forces rather than deliver justice.

Forensic expert Michael Maloney, who reviewed the evidence, concluded that Mendoza entered the room first and that Tatum fired from above the bed at Safa’s family—details that further implicate both Marines in unlawful killings.

A U.S. official familiar with the original inquiry described the process as “a cover-up,” saying: “People were paid to lie, and those payments granted them immunity. They abused the legal process. The Haditha case was never about giving justice to the victims.”

Rights organizations argue that the massacre fits the definition of a war crime under international law: the intentional killing of civilians with no military justification. Critics say the U.S. government’s failure to prosecute the perpetrators underscores a long-standing pattern of impunity for U.S. forces abroad.

Nearly 20 years later, Safa still lives in Haditha and continues to demand accountability. “Mendoza should have been imprisoned the moment the massacre happened,” she said after viewing the newly revealed recording. “Those who did this should face justice. It has been almost 20 years, and still there is no justice. That is the real crime.” (ILKHA)