The extended, unedited footage released today by Al Jazeera and documentary maker Brian Hughes after the Pentagon disputed their original report of US soldiers in Afghanistan advocating evangelism and conversion of Afghans:
The statement from Brian Hughes:
On Sunday, May 3, the Al Jazeera English network and I made an agreement to produce a broadcast segment from a rough cut of my documentary film. This opportunity came after a May 2009 Harper’s magazine cover story called “Jesus Killed Mohammed.” While he researched and prepared that article, I allowed the author Jeff Sharlet to view the work-in-progress documentary. Sharlet’s article brought the film to Al Jazeera English’s attention.
UPDATE: Responding to Pentagon claims that it had “grossly misrepresent[ed] the truth”, Al Jazeera has released extended, unedited footage from Brian Hughes recording the statements of US military in “Bible Study”. The footage supports the original claim that US soldiers were advocating evangelism in Afghanistan. We’ve posted the video and Hughes’ further comments in a separate blog.
This is the video report from Al Jazeera, compiled from footage taken by documentary maker Brian Hughes last year, that has sparked controversy over the last 48 hours:
The most sensational call to arms comes from Lieutenant-Colonel Gary Hensley, the chief of the US military chaplains in Afghanistan, who tells soldiers that they have a responsibility “to be witnesses for” Jesus Christ:
The special forces guys – they hunt men basically. We do the same things as Christians, we hunt people for Jesus. We do, we hunt them down. Get the hound of heaven after them, so we get them into the kingdom. That’s what we do, that’s our business.
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