Jurors picked for Navy SEAL's murder, war crimes trial

A seven-man jury was selected Tuesday to decide the fate of a decorated Navy SEAL charged with killing a teenage Islamic State prisoner under his care in Iraq and other war crimes.

Five Marines and two Navy members were chosen for the high-profile and politically charged court-martial of Special Operations Chief Edward Gallagher. The case is built around testimony from Gallagher's fellow troops and highlights an unusual break in the secrecy of the elite special operations force.

Gallagher says disgruntled platoon mates fabricated the charges. His defense has been championed by his family and some congressional Republicans who have claimed that he's a hero getting railroaded.

FILE - In this Thursday, May 30, 2019, file photo, Navy Special Operations Chief Edward Gallagher leaves a military courtroom on Naval Base San Diego with his wife, Andrea Gallagher, in San Diego. Edward Gallagher, who has been charged with allegedly killing an Islamic State prisoner in his care and attempted murder for the shootings of two Iraq civilians in 2017, is scheduled to go on trial Monday, June 17, 2019. (AP PhotoJulie Watson, File)

President Donald Trump even intervened to get Gallagher removed from the brig as he awaited trial and is said to be considering a pardon for him.

Gallagher is accused of stabbing to death an injured prisoner and wounding two civilians — an elderly man and a school-age girl — in sniper shootings in Iraq in 2017. He has pleaded not guilty to murder and attempted murder — charges that carry a potential life sentence.

The jury picked from a panel of 12 is composed of five enlisted men, including a Navy SEAL and four Marines, plus a Navy commander and a Marine chief warrant officer.

FILE - In this Thursday, May 30, 2019, file photo, U.S. Navy Special Operations Chief Edward Gallagher, left, hugs his wife, Andrea Gallagher, after leaving a military courtroom on Naval Base San Diego, in San Diego. Edward Gallagher, who has been charged with allegedly killing an Islamic State prisoner in his care and attempted murder for the shootings of two Iraq civilians in 2017, is scheduled to go on trial Monday, June 17, 2019. (AP PhotoJulie Watson, File)

Most of the jurors have served in conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Defense attorneys rejected several jurors, including the only woman, a Marine major who advocates for military sexual assault victims. They also had removed a Marine colonel who oversaw investigations, along with another Navy commander and a Marine master sergeant.

Prosecutors did not have anyone removed from the panel.

The case has been plagued by news leaks of court documents and a subsequent investigation to find the source of those leaks. The lead prosecutor was removed from the case earlier this month for tracking the defense team's emails as part of an investigation into the leaks.

Defense lawyers unsuccessfully sought to have a Navy judge dismiss the case because they say investigators and prosecutors withheld evidence that could help Gallagher and violated his rights to a fair trial by embedding tracking software in emails sent to them.

The judge, Capt. Aaron Rugh, refused to dismiss the case. But he took steps to ensure Gallagher gets a fair trial and fix violations of his constitutional right against illegal searches and the right to counsel.

Rugh released Gallagher from custody, removed the lead prosecutor and reduced the maximum penalty he faces if convicted, to life imprisonment with parole instead of no chance of parole.

JERUSALEM (AP) — Yemen's Houthi rebels on Saturday claimed shooting down another of the U.S. military's MQ-9 Reaper drones, airing footage of parts that corresponded to known pieces of the unmanned aircraft.

The Houthis said they shot down the Reaper with a surface-to-air missile, part of a renewed series of assaults this week by the rebels after a relative lull in their pressure campaign over the Israel-Hamas war in the Gaza Strip.

U.S. Air Force Lt. Col. Bryon J. McGarry, a Defense Department spokesperson, acknowledged to The Associated Press on Saturday that “a U.S. Air Force MQ-9 drone crashed in Yemen.” He said an investigation was underway, without elaborating.

The Houthis described the downing as happening Thursday over their stronghold in the country's Saada province.

Footage released by the Houthis included what they described as the missile launch targeting the drone, with a man off-camera reciting the Houthi's slogan after it was hit: “God is the greatest; death to America; death to Israel; curse the Jews; victory to Islam.”

The footage included several close-ups on parts of the drone that included the logo of General Atomics, which manufactures the drone, and serial numbers corresponding with known parts made by the company.

Since the Houthis seized the country’s north and its capital of Sanaa in 2014, the U.S. military has lost at least five drones to the rebels counting Thursday's shootdown — in 2017, 2019, 2023 and this year.

Reapers, which cost around $30 million apiece, can fly at altitudes up to 50,000 feet and have an endurance of up to 24 hours before needing to land.

The drone shootdown comes as the Houthis launch attacks on shipping in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, demanding Israel ends the war in Gaza, which has killed more than 34,000 Palestinians there. The war began after Hamas-led militants attacked Israel on Oct. 7, killing 1,200 people and taking some 250 others hostage.

The Houthis have launched more than 50 attacks on shipping, seized one vessel and sank another since November, according to the U.S. Maritime Administration.

Houthi attacks have dropped in recent weeks as the rebels have been targeted by a U.S.-led airstrike campaign in Yemen. Shipping through the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden has declined because of the threat. American officials have speculated that the rebels may be running out of weapons as a result of the U.S.-led campaign against them and after firing drones and missiles steadily in the last months. However, the rebels have renewed their attacks in the last week.

A Houthi supporter raises a mock rocket during a rally against the U.S. and Israel and to support Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, in Sanaa, Yemen, Friday, April. 26, 2024. (AP Photo/Osamah Abdulrahman)