CAMP PENDLETON: A battalion leader and two of his company commanders have been relieved of their duties as the Pentagon probes a November 19 incident that led to the deaths of 15 civilians in the Iraqi city of Haditha after a Marine was killed in an explosion.

One week after he and his troops returned to Oceanside from Iraq, Lt. Col. Jeffrey Chessani was dismissed from his post as commanding officer of the 3rd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment. Also relieved were Capt. James Kimber, who headed up the battalion's India Company, and Capt. Luke McConnell, who was in charge of Kilo Company, the company that was involved in the Haditha incident. The dismissals came Friday at the order of 1st Marine Division Maj. Gen. Richard Natonski.

Marine Corps spokesman 2nd Lt. Lawton King said Monday the general ordered the personnel actions "due to lack of confidence in their leadership abilities stemming from their performance during a recent deployment to Iraq."
King also said the decision to make the changes was not based on any single reason. "There were many considerations factored into the decision to relieve the commanders" he said.

'Thundering Third' was deployed to Iraq for third time last year.

The unit, known as 3/1 and by the nickname the "Thundering Third," was in Iraq last year for its third deployment following the March 2003 U.S. invasion. Chessani became its commander last spring. The battalion and its approximately 1,000 Marines and sailors were assigned to the dangerous Anbar province, where most of the fighting outside of Baghdad has been concentrated.

Marine Corps officials did not announce the battalion's return last week as they usually do when units that size return from a deployment. The Iraqi civilian deaths occurred when Kilo Company was conducting a combat operation in Haditha, an Anbar city where military officials have said many insurgents fled after the assault on Fallujah in November 2004. Seven women and three children were among those killed after Kilo Company troops searched for insurgents responsible for the death of Lance Cpl. Miguel Terrazas of Texas.

Terrazas, also a member of Kilo Company, was killed when a roadside bomb detonated as he took part in
combat operation November 19. Allegations that the Marines killed civilians who were not harboring or supporting the insurgents first surfaced in a Time magazine report in March, which quoted Haditha residents as saying the troops had gone on a "rampage" in apparent retaliation for the death of Terrazas.

Reporters for the magazine interviewed dozens of residents and reported their findings to Marine Corps commanders in Iraq, who initially said the civilian deaths were directly tied to the insurgent attack. Each of the relieved officers has been reassigned to staff positions within the 1st Marine Division at Camp Pendieton, King said.

Lt. Col. Philip W Chandler has been appointed battalion commander.

King referred questions about the status of the inquiry into what happened in Haditha to Marine Corps officials in Baghdad. Reached there by telephone, Staff Sgt. Stan Lavery said he could not immediately say what the investigation has revealed thus far nor could he say when it was expected to be completed. The investigation is being conducted by the Naval Criminal Investigative Service. If the probe determines the rules of engagement for noncombatants were violated, troops deemed responsible could face courtsmartial.

The 3/1 was attached to the 2nd Marine Expeditionary Force while in Iraq last year. That force was replaced by the 25,000 member 1st Marine Expeditionary Force from Camp Pendleton in January.