US Troop Admits Role İn Iraq Killing

The soldier has been sentenced to seven months in jail and will be dishonorably discharged, the army said on Thursday.

The defendant, Specialist Belmor Ramos, 23, pleaded guilty at the start of the court martial.

He told a judge at his court martial that he stood guard as the men were killed by three other soldiers from his unit.

The US military court judge had recommended the soldier be jailed for 40 years but a plea agreement led his term to be drastically reduced.

"Because of the plea agreement, he can serve no more than seven months' confinement," a US Army spokeswoman said.

"As part of that agreement, he will testify in the other remaining trials and cooperate with the military in its investigation."

Ramos' defense attorney asked for his client to be formally reprimanded and stay in the army at a reduced rank.

"I understand I should be punished, and will accept any punishment, but I humbly ask you, your honor, that you let me stay in the army,'' Ramos said before the military judge.

The four Iraqi men were blindfolded, hand-cuffed, shot in the head and dumped in a Baghdad canal in April 2007, allegedly in retribution for casualties taken in Ramos' unit.

Ramos testified that he had agreed with the decision to kill the prisoners, and had stood watch from the machine-gun turret of his Humvee when the slayings were carried out. He said he heard the shots, but did not personally witness the killings