Alcohol, Stress Blamed for Afghan Massacre

Afghans gather outside a NATO military base to protest the killing of civilians by a US soldier, in the Panjwai district in Kandahar, Afghanistan, 11 March 2012. EPA/BGNES

The American staff sergeant suspected of killing 16 Afghan villagers had been drinking alcohol, suffered from combat-related stress and had tensions with his wife, a senior US official has revealed.

"When it all comes out, it will be a combination of stress, alcohol and domestic issues — he just snapped," the official summarized, as cited by The New York Times.

The sergeant is on his way to Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, it emerged on Friday.

The soldier has been in protective custody in Kuwait and was expected to arrive at Fort Leavenworth on Friday afternoon, according to his civilian attorney.

CNN informs that the soldier lost part of a foot in Iraq and suffered a traumatic brain injury.

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