US Army Private First Class Nasser Abdo, 20, is seeking a discharge on the ground that his religious belief as a Muslim forbids him from fighting in any war as a member of the US military. He applied for conscientious objector status on June 7, and if granted would be discharged from the military under the provisions of AR 600-43 [2]. Despite PFC Abdo's efforts to seek CO status, his unit has decided to deploy him from Fort Campbell, KY, to Afghanistan—possibly as soon as late August or early September.
If deployed, PFC Abdo fears he will be at danger of harassment and even death from his fellow soldiers, many of whom will be resentful of PFC Abdo's religious beliefs and his desire to be discharged from the military. PFC Abdo will continue to do all he can to persuade his unit to cancel his deployment, but if he is unsuccessful in this, he likely will refuse to deploy. (Free Nasser Abdo [3] website, Aug. 18)
See our last post on conscientious objection and war resistance [4].
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