I consider the behaviour disgusting and unforgivable - and that's by Western standards. What were those soldiers thinking? They simply cannot have failed to realise what they were doing. They probably didn't realise they were being filmed, or that the video would be posted on YouTube. But that's no excuse.

To the Afghans, whose attitude towards the treatment of the dead is different from Western standards, that behaviour will be regarded as so much worse. It is not surprising they are calling for the Marines concerned to be identified and punished, and I don;t blame them.