09:00 09/06/2015
New York - Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon's latest list of parties
that kill or injure children in armed conflict does not include Israel,
as some UN officials had recommended, but the UN chief strongly
criticised Israel for the "unprecedented and unacceptable" scale of its
violence against young people.
Ban said in a report circulated on
Monday that the thousands of Palestinian casualties raise "grave
concerns" about Israel's compliance with international law, including
requirements that any military actions must distinguish between
combatants and civilians, be proportional, and avoid excessive use of
force.
UN officials said the UN special envoy for children in
armed conflict, Leila Zerrougui, had recommended that both Israel and
Hamas, which controls the Gaza Strip, be placed on the list of parties
that recruit, use, kill, maim or commit acts of sexual violence against
children.
But
the officials, speaking on condition of anonymity because the
recommendation was not public, said there were differences of opinion
among those on the ground on whether Israel should be listed, a key
reason why it wasn't and neither was Hamas.
Ban said in the annual
report to the UN Security Council and the General Assembly that the
year 2014 saw a dramatic increase in violence against children in the
Israeli-Palestinian conflict, at least 561 children killed and 4 271
injured, almost all Palestinians and the vast majority during last
summer's war in Gaza. It cites 4 Israeli youngsters killed and 22
injured.
'Concrete and immediate steps'
The
annual list is significant because it names and shames governments and
insurgent groups that violate children's rights in conflicts. The
Security Council resolution that established the list in August 2009
states the council's intention "to take action", including possible
sanctions against repeat violators of international laws protecting
children in armed conflicts.
This year, the list in the report
includes groups in Afghanistan, Central African Republic, Colombia,
Congo, Iraq, Mali, Myanmar, Nigeria, Philippines, Somalia, South Sudan,
Sudan, Syria and Yemen. It also lists government forces in Congo,
Somalia, Sudan, South Sudan, Syria and Yemen.
The
secretary-general said that in the Israel-Palestine conflict as well as
the Central African Republic, Iraq, Nigeria, South Sudan and Syria,
"children were affected to a degree which is an affront to our common
humanity."
Israel maintains that its actions in Gaza were in
response to rocket attacks on southern Israel, and were never aimed at
children.
Israel's
UN Ambassador Ron Prosor said Ban "was right not to submit to the
dictates of the terrorist organisations and the Arab states" and include
Israel on a "shameful list" with organisations like ISIS, al-Qaeda and
the Taliban.
Riyad Mansour, the Palestinian UN ambassador, said
the Palestinians "deeply regret" Ban's decision to exclude Israel from
the list which contradicts UN evidence.
"It is without doubt that
Israel, flagrantly, systematically and grossly commits human rights
violations against Palestinian children constituting grave violations
that qualify it for such a listing," Mansour said.
Pummeled with
questions about Israel's exclusion, Ban's spokesman, Stephane Dujarric,
said the list was the "result of a consultative process" and in the end
was Ban's "difficult decision to take".
Dujarric alluded to the
intense lobbying ahead of the report's release by Israel's supporters,
reportedly including the United States, and opponents, saying UN member
states and non-governmental organisations "have never been shy" about
expressing their opinions to Ban.
The secretary-general urged
Israel "to take concrete and immediate steps" including reviewing its
policies and practices to ensure that children are protected, not killed
or maimed, that schools and hospitals aren't attacked, and that
perpetrators of alleged violations are brought to justice.
"I
would like to put all parties to conflict on notice that those that
engage in military action that results in numerous grave violations
against children will, regardless of intent, find themselves under
continued scrutiny by the United Nations, including in future reports
relating to children and armed conflict," Ban said.
News, Events, Entertainment, Lifestyle, Fashion, Beauty, Inspiration and yes... Gossip! *Wink*
Tuesday, 9 June 2015
Rivers pays emotional farewell to Archbishop Nwator
Okoro Chinedu
08:03 09/06/2015
Lagos - Senator for the Rivers South East Constituency of Rivers State, Magnus Abe, has paid tribute to Archbishop Friday Osaro Nwator, the late Special Adviser on Health to former President Shehu Shagari.
Nwator, the former President of the Nigeria Medical Association (NMA), has been laid to rest in his home-town, Ogale in Eleme local government area of the state.
In his tribute, Abe described the late Nwator, who was the first medical doctor from Eleme local government area of Rivers State, as a man of God in many ways, all of which were wonderful and exemplary.
Abe said the deceased Archbishop did not only take care of his immediate family but extended the same to all who were opportune to come in contact with him.
He advised the family to take solace in the fact that he lived an exemplary life.
“He has gone to rest in the bosom of his maker,” Abe said.
In his sermon at the funeral service held at Otor-Eleme Civic Centre, a cleric, and senior Pastor of Redemption Ministries, Stephen Akinola, urged Christians to emulate the virtues of the late Archbishop.
He stressed that the late Nwator touched lives positively in his lifetime.
Among dignitaries at the funeral service were the former Governor of the old Rivers State, Chief Rufus Ada-George; the Chairman of Rivers State Traditional Rulers Council and President Supreme Council of Ogoni Traditional Rulers, Godwin Gininwa, and Dr Dakuku Adol Peterside, the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate in the governorship, among others.
Until his death on April 6 at the age of 74, Nwator was the President of the Integrity Bishops and Faithful Ministers Network Worldwide and a member of Nigeria’s first Constituents Assembly in 1977, an Officer of the Order of the Niger (OON), a philanthropist and bridge-builder.
08:03 09/06/2015
Lagos - Senator for the Rivers South East Constituency of Rivers State, Magnus Abe, has paid tribute to Archbishop Friday Osaro Nwator, the late Special Adviser on Health to former President Shehu Shagari.
Nwator, the former President of the Nigeria Medical Association (NMA), has been laid to rest in his home-town, Ogale in Eleme local government area of the state.
In his tribute, Abe described the late Nwator, who was the first medical doctor from Eleme local government area of Rivers State, as a man of God in many ways, all of which were wonderful and exemplary.
Abe said the deceased Archbishop did not only take care of his immediate family but extended the same to all who were opportune to come in contact with him.
He advised the family to take solace in the fact that he lived an exemplary life.
“He has gone to rest in the bosom of his maker,” Abe said.
In his sermon at the funeral service held at Otor-Eleme Civic Centre, a cleric, and senior Pastor of Redemption Ministries, Stephen Akinola, urged Christians to emulate the virtues of the late Archbishop.
He stressed that the late Nwator touched lives positively in his lifetime.
Among dignitaries at the funeral service were the former Governor of the old Rivers State, Chief Rufus Ada-George; the Chairman of Rivers State Traditional Rulers Council and President Supreme Council of Ogoni Traditional Rulers, Godwin Gininwa, and Dr Dakuku Adol Peterside, the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate in the governorship, among others.
Until his death on April 6 at the age of 74, Nwator was the President of the Integrity Bishops and Faithful Ministers Network Worldwide and a member of Nigeria’s first Constituents Assembly in 1977, an Officer of the Order of the Niger (OON), a philanthropist and bridge-builder.
ISIS' slave markets sell girls for a pack of cigarettes
08:03 09/06/2015
New York - Teenage girls abducted by ISIS fighters in Iraq and Syria are being sold in slave markets "for as little as a pack of cigarettes," the UN envoy on sexual violence said on Monday.
Zainab Bangura visited Iraq and Syria in April, and has since been working on an action plan to address the horrific sexual violence being waged by ISIS fighters.
"This is a war that is being fought on the bodies of women," Bangura told AFP in an interview.
The UN envoy spoke to women and girls who had escaped from captivity in ISIS-controlled areas, met with local religious and political leaders and visited refugees in Turkey, Lebanon and Jordan.
Jihadists continue to run slave markets for girls abducted during fresh offensives, but there are no figures on the numbers enslaved by the fighters.
"They kidnap and abduct women when they take areas so they have, I don't want to call it a fresh supply but they have new girls," she said.
Girls are sold for "as little as a pack of cigarettes" or for several hundred or thousand dollars, she said.
Bangura described the ordeal of several teenage girls, many of whom were part of the Yazidi minority targeted by the jihadists.
"Some were taken, locked up in a room, over 100 of them in a small house stripped naked and washed."
They were then made to stand in front of a group of men who decided "what you are worth."
Bangura gave the account of a 15-year-old girl who was sold to an ISIS leader, a sheikh aged in his 50s, who showed her a gun and a stick and asked her "tell me what you want".
"She said 'the gun' and he replied: 'I didn't buy you so that you could kill yourself'" before raping her, Bangura said.
Foreign fighters get wives
Abducting girls has become a key part of the ISIS strategy to recruit foreign fighters who have been traveling to Iraq and Syria in record numbers over the past 18 months.
"This is how they attract young men, we have women waiting for you, virgins that you can marry," Bangura said. "The foreign fighters are the backbone of the fighting."
A recent UN report said close to 25 000 foreign fighters from over 100 countries were involved in conflicts worldwide, with the largest influx by far into Syria and Iraq.
The envoy likened the jihadists' abuse of women and girls to "medieval" practices and said ISIS wants "to build a society that reflects the 13th century."
Despite the monstrous violence, communities like the Yazidis are welcoming the girls back and offering them support to pick up the pieces of their broken lives, said Bangura.
She praised Yazidi religious leader Baba Sheikh for publicly declaring that the girls need understanding, but noted that no such pronouncements had come from the Turkmen leaders.
Bangura returned from a tour of European capitals to discuss the plight of women and girls under IS and hopes to address the Security Council soon to discuss what can be done.
A UN technical team is due to travel to the region soon to work out details of the plan to help victims of ISIS sexual violence.
New York - Teenage girls abducted by ISIS fighters in Iraq and Syria are being sold in slave markets "for as little as a pack of cigarettes," the UN envoy on sexual violence said on Monday.
Zainab Bangura visited Iraq and Syria in April, and has since been working on an action plan to address the horrific sexual violence being waged by ISIS fighters.
"This is a war that is being fought on the bodies of women," Bangura told AFP in an interview.
The UN envoy spoke to women and girls who had escaped from captivity in ISIS-controlled areas, met with local religious and political leaders and visited refugees in Turkey, Lebanon and Jordan.
Jihadists continue to run slave markets for girls abducted during fresh offensives, but there are no figures on the numbers enslaved by the fighters.
"They kidnap and abduct women when they take areas so they have, I don't want to call it a fresh supply but they have new girls," she said.
Girls are sold for "as little as a pack of cigarettes" or for several hundred or thousand dollars, she said.
Bangura described the ordeal of several teenage girls, many of whom were part of the Yazidi minority targeted by the jihadists.
"Some were taken, locked up in a room, over 100 of them in a small house stripped naked and washed."
They were then made to stand in front of a group of men who decided "what you are worth."
Bangura gave the account of a 15-year-old girl who was sold to an ISIS leader, a sheikh aged in his 50s, who showed her a gun and a stick and asked her "tell me what you want".
"She said 'the gun' and he replied: 'I didn't buy you so that you could kill yourself'" before raping her, Bangura said.
Foreign fighters get wives
Abducting girls has become a key part of the ISIS strategy to recruit foreign fighters who have been traveling to Iraq and Syria in record numbers over the past 18 months.
"This is how they attract young men, we have women waiting for you, virgins that you can marry," Bangura said. "The foreign fighters are the backbone of the fighting."
A recent UN report said close to 25 000 foreign fighters from over 100 countries were involved in conflicts worldwide, with the largest influx by far into Syria and Iraq.
The envoy likened the jihadists' abuse of women and girls to "medieval" practices and said ISIS wants "to build a society that reflects the 13th century."
Despite the monstrous violence, communities like the Yazidis are welcoming the girls back and offering them support to pick up the pieces of their broken lives, said Bangura.
She praised Yazidi religious leader Baba Sheikh for publicly declaring that the girls need understanding, but noted that no such pronouncements had come from the Turkmen leaders.
Bangura returned from a tour of European capitals to discuss the plight of women and girls under IS and hopes to address the Security Council soon to discuss what can be done.
A UN technical team is due to travel to the region soon to work out details of the plan to help victims of ISIS sexual violence.
Ronaldo's mom in trouble with the law
08:03 09/06/2015
Madrid - The mother of Cristiano Ronaldo, the highest-paid footballer in the world, was stopped by Spain's civil guard from returning home to Portugal with €55 000 in her handbag, it emerged on Monday.
Dolores Aveiro, the Real Madrid star's 61-year-old mother, had been waiting to take a flight out of Madrid late April when her hand luggage was inspected and the cash discovered, said a spokesperson for the Civil Guard said.
The €55 000 was way over the €10 000 that passengers are allowed to take out of Spain without declaring the transfer.
The offending €45 000 were seized, pending justification for it from Aveiro, the spokesperson said on Monday.
Ronaldo's mother, who is very close to the Portuguese international, committed no offence but merely an infraction, she added.
Ronaldo is the highest-paid footballer in the world, according to Forbes magazine, which estimated his 2014 income at about €46m.
Madrid - The mother of Cristiano Ronaldo, the highest-paid footballer in the world, was stopped by Spain's civil guard from returning home to Portugal with €55 000 in her handbag, it emerged on Monday.
Dolores Aveiro, the Real Madrid star's 61-year-old mother, had been waiting to take a flight out of Madrid late April when her hand luggage was inspected and the cash discovered, said a spokesperson for the Civil Guard said.
The €55 000 was way over the €10 000 that passengers are allowed to take out of Spain without declaring the transfer.
The offending €45 000 were seized, pending justification for it from Aveiro, the spokesperson said on Monday.
Ronaldo's mother, who is very close to the Portuguese international, committed no offence but merely an infraction, she added.
Ronaldo is the highest-paid footballer in the world, according to Forbes magazine, which estimated his 2014 income at about €46m.
Monday, 8 June 2015
Would you date a guy whose best friend is a woman?
Laura Shortridge
11:15 03/06/2015
“Would you be OK with your man having close female friends?”
A Facebook friend asked this question the other day, and a lot of women said no, they wouldn’t be comfortable with this.
I know many men feel the same about their girlfriends or wives having close male friends. It’s a fairly typical attitude found in heterosexual couples.
I understand the feelings behind this. No one wants to have the worry that their significant other is going to cheat on them. If your boyfriend likes girls, and you’re the only girl he spends any significant time with, then that pretty much means he’s safely yours, right?
Well, no, not really.
I think that not only should we be OK with our partners having close friends who are the same gender as us, it’s something we should want. In other words, I prefer to date men who have close female friends.
See, when a man has close female friends as well as close male friends, it means a few things.
First, how sad must your relationship be if your trust in your significant other is so flimsy that you believe the only way to keep them from not cheating on you is to keep them away from anyone they might potentially find sexually attractive?
Think about it. If the only thing that’s stopping your boyfriend from cheating on you is he hasn’t been given the opportunity, then you’re in a pretty awful relationship that’s guaranteed to end badly.
The fact is, if your boyfriend is going to cheat on you, it’s going to happen sooner or later. I’d rather date a guy who’s trustworthy.
Of course, you might just think no guys at all can be trusted to be left alone with women without having sex with them, or that no single women can be trusted to be left alone with taken men without having sex with them. If that’s really how you see the world then I just kinda feel a little sorry for you.
Second, it means, or should mean if he’s not a hypocrite, that he will be comfortable with you having close male friends, and my friends are far too important for me to abandon or avoid some of them just because they’re male.
I know some people would say “my husband’s my best friend, so I don’t need anyone else!” Frankly I find that a little creepy.
I don’t know how these people function, but even though my fiancé is of course my best friend I still need my non-romantic, close friendships with people who are not family in my life.
Finally, it means he has women in his life who he values for their friendship alone, rather than for the amount of sex he can get out of them.
He views women as humans and equals - people he can talk to, trust, and rely on - rather than mere sex objects. This can only be a good thing. It means he will be able to see you as an equal that he can talk to, trust, and rely on.
If your boyfriend only values women he can have sex with, then how can you expect him to value you for anything other than sex?
And if your boyfriend is unused to having interactions with women that are not strictly romantic or sexual, how can you expect him to be able to understand and relate to you?
The fact is, one of the best ways to learn how to relate to others who are different to us is through friendships. When a person limits their friendships only to people who represent their gender, (or race, or sexual orientation, or anything else for that matter) they risk seeing anyone who doesn’t fit into that group as alien and “other”.
It’s easy to empathise with a friend, but it’s really hard to empathise with someone who is “other”.
That’s how you get these “men are from Mars and women are from Venus” situations, where women tell each other that all men are dogs, while men tell each other that “bitches be crazy”.
So I’m going to go ahead and say it: Not only should you be OK with dating a guy whose best friend is a woman, you should actively look at strong friendships with other women as a major bonus in a guy.
Follow Laura on Twitter and Facebook or visit her blog.
11:15 03/06/2015
“Would you be OK with your man having close female friends?”
A Facebook friend asked this question the other day, and a lot of women said no, they wouldn’t be comfortable with this.
I know many men feel the same about their girlfriends or wives having close male friends. It’s a fairly typical attitude found in heterosexual couples.
I understand the feelings behind this. No one wants to have the worry that their significant other is going to cheat on them. If your boyfriend likes girls, and you’re the only girl he spends any significant time with, then that pretty much means he’s safely yours, right?
Well, no, not really.
I think that not only should we be OK with our partners having close friends who are the same gender as us, it’s something we should want. In other words, I prefer to date men who have close female friends.
See, when a man has close female friends as well as close male friends, it means a few things.
First, how sad must your relationship be if your trust in your significant other is so flimsy that you believe the only way to keep them from not cheating on you is to keep them away from anyone they might potentially find sexually attractive?
Think about it. If the only thing that’s stopping your boyfriend from cheating on you is he hasn’t been given the opportunity, then you’re in a pretty awful relationship that’s guaranteed to end badly.
The fact is, if your boyfriend is going to cheat on you, it’s going to happen sooner or later. I’d rather date a guy who’s trustworthy.
Of course, you might just think no guys at all can be trusted to be left alone with women without having sex with them, or that no single women can be trusted to be left alone with taken men without having sex with them. If that’s really how you see the world then I just kinda feel a little sorry for you.
Second, it means, or should mean if he’s not a hypocrite, that he will be comfortable with you having close male friends, and my friends are far too important for me to abandon or avoid some of them just because they’re male.
I know some people would say “my husband’s my best friend, so I don’t need anyone else!” Frankly I find that a little creepy.
I don’t know how these people function, but even though my fiancé is of course my best friend I still need my non-romantic, close friendships with people who are not family in my life.
Finally, it means he has women in his life who he values for their friendship alone, rather than for the amount of sex he can get out of them.
He views women as humans and equals - people he can talk to, trust, and rely on - rather than mere sex objects. This can only be a good thing. It means he will be able to see you as an equal that he can talk to, trust, and rely on.
If your boyfriend only values women he can have sex with, then how can you expect him to value you for anything other than sex?
And if your boyfriend is unused to having interactions with women that are not strictly romantic or sexual, how can you expect him to be able to understand and relate to you?
The fact is, one of the best ways to learn how to relate to others who are different to us is through friendships. When a person limits their friendships only to people who represent their gender, (or race, or sexual orientation, or anything else for that matter) they risk seeing anyone who doesn’t fit into that group as alien and “other”.
It’s easy to empathise with a friend, but it’s really hard to empathise with someone who is “other”.
That’s how you get these “men are from Mars and women are from Venus” situations, where women tell each other that all men are dogs, while men tell each other that “bitches be crazy”.
So I’m going to go ahead and say it: Not only should you be OK with dating a guy whose best friend is a woman, you should actively look at strong friendships with other women as a major bonus in a guy.
Follow Laura on Twitter and Facebook or visit her blog.
Super Falcons coach, captain Know nothing about Sweden
16:15 08/06/2015
Ottawa - Super Falcons coach Edwin Okon and his skipper Evelyn Nwabuoku have claimed that they don’t know what to expect from Sweden when Nigeria squares off against the European powerhouse tonight in Winnipeg.
The African champions shared the spoils with Sweden when both countries met at the 2007 edition of the tournament, with Cynthia Uwak leveling matters for Nigeria eight minutes from time after Victoria Svensson’s 50th minute goal.
''I know nothing about Sweden. I am very sincere. We just have to prepare well to meet them, I do not know or haven’t read about them.
''It's what happens on the pitch that counts,'' Edwin Okon told reporters.
Nigeria number 14 Evelyn Nwabuoku added: '' I know nothing about the team.''
Nigeria have progressed beyond the group phase only once – in 1999- in previous editions of the tournament.
The Super Falcons have contested 19 games at the World Cup, winning three, drawing two and losing the rest.
-Soccer Laduma
Ottawa - Super Falcons coach Edwin Okon and his skipper Evelyn Nwabuoku have claimed that they don’t know what to expect from Sweden when Nigeria squares off against the European powerhouse tonight in Winnipeg.
The African champions shared the spoils with Sweden when both countries met at the 2007 edition of the tournament, with Cynthia Uwak leveling matters for Nigeria eight minutes from time after Victoria Svensson’s 50th minute goal.
''I know nothing about Sweden. I am very sincere. We just have to prepare well to meet them, I do not know or haven’t read about them.
''It's what happens on the pitch that counts,'' Edwin Okon told reporters.
Nigeria number 14 Evelyn Nwabuoku added: '' I know nothing about the team.''
Nigeria have progressed beyond the group phase only once – in 1999- in previous editions of the tournament.
The Super Falcons have contested 19 games at the World Cup, winning three, drawing two and losing the rest.
-Soccer Laduma
Soldier who killed 16 Afghans: I was consumed by war
12:55 08/06/2015
Tacoma - The US soldier who murdered 16 Afghan villagers in 2012 says he had lost compassion for Iraqis and Afghans over the course of his four combat deployments.
The News Tribune newspaper of Tacoma used the Freedom of Information Act to obtain an eight-page letter that former Staff Sergeant Robert Bales wrote to the senior Army officer at Joint Base Lewis-McChord requesting that his life sentence be reduced.
"My mind was consumed by war," Bales wrote late last year.
"I planted war and hate for the better part of 10 years and harvested violence," he added. "After being in prison two years, I understand that what I thought was normal was the farthest thing from being normal."
In March, Lieutenant General Stephen Lanza rejected the request to overturn Bales' conviction or modify his sentence, an Army spokesperson said on Friday. That automatically sends the case to the Army Court of Criminal Appeal, where it might be considered again by military judges one day.
Bales, an Ohio native and father of two from Lake Tapps, Washington state, shot 22 people in all, including 17 women and children, during pre-dawn raids on two villages in Kandahar Province in March 2012. The massacre prompted such angry protests that the US temporarily halted combat operations, and it was three weeks before Army investigators could reach the crime scene.
Guilty plea
Bales pleaded guilty in a deal to avoid the death penalty, and he apologised in a statement at his sentencing in 2013. He described the perpetual rage he felt, his heavy drinking and reliance on sleeping pills, and his steroid use. He also said he couldn't explain what he did, a sentiment he repeated in the letter.
"Over my past two years of incarceration, I have come to understand there isn't a why; there is only pain," he wrote.
The letter provides additional details about the paranoia Bales says he felt during his last deployment and the toll financial worries were taking on him.
"I didn't want to make a decision on the ground and lose one of my guys," he wrote. "Normally that would be a good thing, but now I know it made me paranoid and ineffective."
Hate
Over his combat tours he came to hate "everyone who isn't American", he wrote, and he became suspicious of local residents who might be supportive of those fighting Americans.
"I became callous to them even being human; they were all enemy. Guilt and fear are with you day and night. Over time your experiences solidify your prejudice," he wrote.
Since his confinement, Bales has been baptized and focused on his Christian faith, he said. He's also taking classes to finish a bachelor's degree and learning to be a barber.
The newspaper also obtained letters from Bales' wife, his in-laws and several soldiers who knew him on his earlier Iraq deployments when he was regarded as a sound infantryman.
His veteran friends described the qualities that led them to trust Bales during earlier tours in Iraq.
"My only regret in life is that I wasn't there in Afghanistan when Robert really needed a friend to see that he was struggling and pull him from the edge," a staff sergeant wrote on Bales' behalf.
Tacoma - The US soldier who murdered 16 Afghan villagers in 2012 says he had lost compassion for Iraqis and Afghans over the course of his four combat deployments.
The News Tribune newspaper of Tacoma used the Freedom of Information Act to obtain an eight-page letter that former Staff Sergeant Robert Bales wrote to the senior Army officer at Joint Base Lewis-McChord requesting that his life sentence be reduced.
"My mind was consumed by war," Bales wrote late last year.
"I planted war and hate for the better part of 10 years and harvested violence," he added. "After being in prison two years, I understand that what I thought was normal was the farthest thing from being normal."
In March, Lieutenant General Stephen Lanza rejected the request to overturn Bales' conviction or modify his sentence, an Army spokesperson said on Friday. That automatically sends the case to the Army Court of Criminal Appeal, where it might be considered again by military judges one day.
Bales, an Ohio native and father of two from Lake Tapps, Washington state, shot 22 people in all, including 17 women and children, during pre-dawn raids on two villages in Kandahar Province in March 2012. The massacre prompted such angry protests that the US temporarily halted combat operations, and it was three weeks before Army investigators could reach the crime scene.
Guilty plea
Bales pleaded guilty in a deal to avoid the death penalty, and he apologised in a statement at his sentencing in 2013. He described the perpetual rage he felt, his heavy drinking and reliance on sleeping pills, and his steroid use. He also said he couldn't explain what he did, a sentiment he repeated in the letter.
"Over my past two years of incarceration, I have come to understand there isn't a why; there is only pain," he wrote.
The letter provides additional details about the paranoia Bales says he felt during his last deployment and the toll financial worries were taking on him.
"I didn't want to make a decision on the ground and lose one of my guys," he wrote. "Normally that would be a good thing, but now I know it made me paranoid and ineffective."
Hate
Over his combat tours he came to hate "everyone who isn't American", he wrote, and he became suspicious of local residents who might be supportive of those fighting Americans.
"I became callous to them even being human; they were all enemy. Guilt and fear are with you day and night. Over time your experiences solidify your prejudice," he wrote.
Since his confinement, Bales has been baptized and focused on his Christian faith, he said. He's also taking classes to finish a bachelor's degree and learning to be a barber.
The newspaper also obtained letters from Bales' wife, his in-laws and several soldiers who knew him on his earlier Iraq deployments when he was regarded as a sound infantryman.
His veteran friends described the qualities that led them to trust Bales during earlier tours in Iraq.
"My only regret in life is that I wasn't there in Afghanistan when Robert really needed a friend to see that he was struggling and pull him from the edge," a staff sergeant wrote on Bales' behalf.
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