![]() One graphically depicted a trail littered with the bodies of dead women, children, and infants, and another captured a group of terrified women and children moments before they were shot. Haeberle’s personal colour photographs, which he did not turn over to the Army, were later published in the Cleveland Plain Dealer and Life magazine. military command directives, such actions were typical of a search-and-destroy mission and did not provide direct evidence of war crimes. Many of the black-and-white images depicted soldiers questioning prisoners, searching possessions, and burning huts although the destruction of property violated U.S. He used a black-and-white camera for official Army records but shot in colour on his personal camera. Army photographer attached to Charlie Company, documented the events of the day. At 9:00 am Calley ordered the execution of as many as 150 Vietnamese civilians who had been herded into an irrigation ditch. ![]() Charlie Company’s 2nd Platoon moved north from the landing zone, killing dozens, while 3rd Platoon followed behind, destroying the hamlet’s remaining buildings and shooting survivors. Over the next hour, groups of women, children, and elderly men were rounded up and shot at close range. Although they encountered no resistance, the soldiers nonetheless killed indiscriminately. Get a Britannica Premium subscription and gain access to exclusive content.īy 7:50 am the remainder of Charlie Company had landed, and Calley led 1st Platoon east through My Lai. William Calley, was inserted a short distance to the west of a sub-hamlet known locally as Xom Lang but marked as My Lai (4) on U.S. Minutes later, Charlie Company’s 1st Platoon, led by Lieut. The preparatory barrage was intended to clear a landing area for Charlie Company’s helicopters, but its actual effect was to force those civilians who had begun leaving the area back to My Lai in search of cover. Shortly before 7:30 am on March 16, 1968, Son My village was shelled by U.S. Moreover, the troops of Charlie Company were ordered to destroy crops and buildings and to kill livestock. Under these rules of engagement, soldiers were free to fire at anyone or anything. Believing that civilians had already left the area for Quang Ngai city, he directed that anyone found in My Lai should be treated as a Viet Cong fighter or sympathizer. ![]() ![]() Ernest Medina, told his men that they would finally be given the opportunity to fight the enemy that had eluded them for over a month. In a briefing on March 15, Charlie Company’s commander, Capt. Intelligence suggested that the 48th Batallion had taken refuge in the My Lai area (though in reality, that unit was in the western Quang Ngai highlands, more than 40 miles away). forces.Ī map of North and South Vietnam during the Vietnam War showing major air bases and the communists' supply routes, including the Ho Chi Minh Trail. After the debacle of the broad Tet Offensive, the Viet Cong had returned to guerrilla tactics and tended to avoid direct encounters with U.S. Throughout February and early March, Charlie Company suffered dozens of casualties due to mines and booby traps, but it failed to engage the 48th Batallion. In January 1968 Charlie was one of three companies tasked with the destruction of the 48th Battalion, an especially effective Viet Cong unit operating in Quang Ngai province. “Pinkville” had earned a reputation as a heavily mined hotbed of Viet Cong activity. By the time Charlie Company of the 1st Battalion, 20th Infantry Regiment, 11th Infantry Brigade, arrived in Vietnam in December 1967. soldiers because of the reddish colour used to indicate the densely populated My Lai area on military maps. The area had been dubbed “Pinkville” by U.S. My Lai, a subdivision of Son My village, was located in the province of Quang Ngai, roughly 7 miles (11 km) northeast of Quang Ngai city. soldiers in the hamlet of My Lai on March 16, 1968, during the Vietnam War. My Lai Massacre, also called Pinkville Massacre, mass killing of as many as 500 unarmed villagers by U.S.
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