VIDEO: US Army Deserters Flee Iraq: Andre Shepherd- Germany Hears Asylum Case Today (Russia Today Report) - Last week’s successful election in Iraq was a major step towards the withdrawal of US troops from the country. But some soldiers are jumping the gun. They’re deserting the US army, insisting the occupation is unjust.

http://RussiaToday.Com

A U.S. soldier who went AWOL after serving in Iraq made his case to the German government Wednesday that he should be given asylum because of his opposition to that war.

U.S. Army Spc. Andre Shepherd walked off his unit's Katterbach base in April 2007 after returning from a six-month tour maintaining Apache helicopters in Tikrit. He said he deserted because he didn't want to return to an illegal conflict.

"We were completely lied to," he said of his fellow soldiers in the Army's 12th combat aviation brigade.

Shepherd was among 71 Army soldiers to desert European bases in 2008, but he is the first known to have sought asylum in Germany. His success could open a new door for soldiers looking to escape the military, his supporters say. But rejection could find him handed over to military authorities, or deported to the U.S.

"Since we're in uncharted waters and the opponent is the United States of America, anything can happen," said Shepherd, of Cleveland, Ohio.

At the closed-door hearing in Karlsruhe, he presented his case to the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees. The hearing lasted all day and a decision will likely take months.

Shepherd, 31, said Germany should grant him asylum because of the country's vocal opposition to the conflict in Iraq during the run-up to the U.S.-led invasion in 2003.

He also pointed to a 2004 European Union directive that established basic guidelines for refugee status within the 27-nation organization. Soldiers who face punishment for refusing to commit a war crime or serve in an unlawful conflict are to be granted that status, the directive says.

Claudia Moebus, a spokeswoman for the refugee office, said the EU directive was incorporated into German law in 2007 but would not comment on how it might be applied in Shepherd's case. She said the office will investigate the merit of Shepherd's claim before issuing a decision.

Moebus would not disclose how many of the 22,085 asylum applications submitted in Germany last year came from U.S. citizens.

"It's so few that I can't say due to data privacy laws," Moebus said.

U.S. Army Europe spokesman Bruce Anderson said Shepherd was the first soldier known to have sought asylum here.

The Army informed German authorities that Shepherd was absent without leave, Anderson said, but it does not actively pursue deserters. But he said Shepherd could face prosecution and jail time if he were deported or returned to military authorities.

"His case would be handled as would every other deserter returned to U.S. custody, in accordance with applicable laws and regulations and on its own merits," Anderson said.

After deserting, Shepherd lived with friends and supporters in southern Germany before applying for asylum last November. Lately he has been sleeping in a refugee center in Karlsruhe.

Tim Huber, director of the Military Counseling Network, a German-based group helping Shepherd with his legal fees, said he has received calls from other U.S. service members, but that Shepherd is the first to formally file for asylum.