Czech Soldiers Pardoned by President Pavel Face Prosecution Once Again

Strategic Insights -

The Regional State Prosecutor's Office has published an indictment against four Czech soldiers who were pardoned by President Petr Pavel in May this year for their alleged involvement in the death of an Afghan prisoner of war during a mission in Afghanistan in 2018. The incident occurred when a member of the Afghan armed forces, Vahidullah Khan, shot and killed Czech dog handler Tomas Prochazka and wounded two soldiers at the Shindand base in Herat province. The Afghan soldier was arrested and taken into custody by the Western forces, but shortly after being returned to the Afghan forces, he died. The detained Afghan soldier was also questioned by the four Czech soldiers, members of the 601st Special Forces Group. The prosecutor describes the soldier's alleged behavior towards the detained Afghan in an anonymized indictment, which was released following a request under the freedom of information law.

Key Takeaways:

  • The Regional State Prosecutor's Office has published an indictment against four Czech soldiers accused in the death of an Afghan prisoner of war.
  • The soldiers were pardoned by President Petr Pavel in May this year, but the regional court in Brno halted their prosecution at the end of May.
  • The incident occurred in 2018 at the Shindand base in Herat province, Afghanistan, where an Afghan soldier shot and killed Czech dog handler Tomas Prochazka and wounded two soldiers.
  • The four Czech soldiers are accused of violating guard duty, disobeying an order, extortion, and failure to provide assistance, with breach of guard duty and disobeying an order carrying a statutory penalty of up to 20 years in prison.
  • The publication of the indictment has sparked debate among lawyers and judges, with some arguing that it should not have been published while others argue that it was in order under the freedom of information law.
  • The Brno court will attempt to hand over a copy of the president's decision to the pardoned soldiers next week.
  • President Pavel took into account the exceptional nature of the war situation, the complex international context of the case, and the length of the investigation to date when deciding to halt the prosecution.

Statistics:

  • The incident occurred in 2018 in Herat province, Afghanistan.
  • Four Czech soldiers are accused of violating guard duty, disobeying an order, extortion, and failure to provide assistance.
  • The breach of guard duty and disobeying an order carry a statutory penalty of up to 20 years in prison, or even an exceptional sentence, given the wartime circumstances.
  • The investigation into the incident lasted for several years before the prosecution was halted at the end of May.

Sources:

  • "CTK"
  • "SeznamZpravy"