U.S. to lift ban on pictures of flag-draped caskets; Marine-congressman objects
Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates said Thursday that he is lifting the ban on photography of caskets arriving at Dover Air Force Base in Delaware, pending the working out of details that will allow individual families to veto picture taking.
Rep. Duncan Hunter (R-Alpine), a Marine who served in Iraq and Afghanistan, immediately expressed his opposition to the policy change. Hunter believes that the current ban, in place since 1991, has worked well and that there is no need to subject traumatized family members to requests from the news media for permission to take pictures.
"Allowing the media to photograph the flag-draped caskets of America's fallen heroes dishonors their service and sacrifice," Hunter said, "and is a disservice to all those who have ever served in our nation's military."
-- Tony Perry, San Diego
Photo: Caskets being unloaded at Dover Air Force Base. The picture was among 300 released by the Air Force after a Freedom of Information Act request made by the website www.thememoryhole.org.
