USA: Former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld says the family of Army Sergeant Pat Tillman deserved the truth

Former Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld says the family of Army Sergeant Pat Tillman deserved the truth. Rumsfeld said there was "no cover-up" as the House Oversight committee conducts another hearing into Tillman's death and what the Defence Department knew about initial claims that he was killed by the enemy rather than accidentally by his own fellow troops. Former U.S. Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld said on Wednesday (August 1, 2007) the family of Army Ranger and football star Pat Tillman deserved the truth and an apology about his death by friendly fire in Afghanistan. Rumsfeld, making his first appearance before the U.S. Congress since leaving office last year, told a hearing the Army made errors in handling the investigation of Tillman's death in 2004, but he said "in no instance" was there a cover-up by the Pentagon. ``I have not been involved in any cover-up whatsoever and I don't believe there is an individual at this table who I know well and observed at close quarters in very difficult situations who had any role in a cover-up on this matter, " Rumsfeld said. General John Abizaid, former head of the U.S. Central Command responsible for Iraq and Afghanistan, said that people tried to do the right thing but messed up. "I do take responsibility for the fact that my headquarters screwed up. I didn't punish anybody. We fixed the problem. It wasn't the first P4 that went astray and it wasn't the last one but it happened and that's all I can say about it," Abizaid said. The two testified before the House of Representatives Oversight and Government Reform Committee. Abizaid acknowledged mistakes were made in relaying information up and down the chain of command, including a failure to quickly advise the Bush administration that friendly fire might have caused Tillman's death. Tillman became a patriotic symbol in the United States when he gave up a $3.6 million USD National Football League career with the Arizona Cardinals to join the Army after the Sept. 11 attacks on New York and Washington. He died on April 22, 2004, in Afghanistan. The Army initially said his death was due to enemy fire and Tillman was awarded the Silver Star eight days later. The military did not acknowledge Tillman's death by friendly fire until a month later on May 29, 2004. Rumsfeld's testimony came a day after the U.S. Army censured retired Lt. Gen. Philip Kensinger, former head of the Army Special Operations Command, for lying about Tillman's death. Six other officers received reprimands. Rumsfeld told the committee he did not recall when he learned Tillman had been killed by American forces, but he said it was sometime after May 20, 2004. He defended his decision not to intervene more directly in the case, which has been investigated repeatedly, saying senior commanders had to avoid doing "anything privately or publicly that could be characterized as command influence, which could alter the outcome of an investigation." As the fifth investigation was beginning, Rumsfeld sent memos to the Army leaders noting that the situation was being badly handled and suggesting they write a letter of apology to Tillman's family. Kensinger, who may be demoted in the case, refused to testify at Wednesday's hearing. He rejected the Pentagon's allegations that he misled investigators, saying in a statement on Tuesday: "Never did I lie or would I lie, deceive or intend to obstruct or mislead in any fashion."

ITN Source | August 2, 2007

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