Two US soldiers in Afghanistan have been indicted for abusing detainees, the US military said on Monday, adding that the results of a separate probe into the burning of two dead Taleban bodies could be complete this week.
The two soldiers were charged with assaulting two detainees at an army base after reports from another soldier who said they had struck the detainees on the chest, shoulder and stomach, US spokesman Jim Yonts said.
The accused soldiers were not in custody and were still serving with their units, said US spokeswoman Lieutenant Cindy Moore.
Yonts said investigations were continuing into the burning of the bodies of Taleban guerrillas earlier in October and could be completed this week.
"The results will be made public," he told Reuters.
Footage of the body burning incident was shown 11 days ago on Australian television, sparking anger among Afghans after a series of incidents of detainee abuse by US forces in the country.
The TV report quoted US soldiers as saying they burned the bodies for reasons of hygiene. But the act could be deeply offensive to Muslims, whose faith prohibits cremation and demands respect for the dead.
According to the TV report, after the bodies were burned a US psychological operations unit broadcast a propaganda message on loudspeakers to a nearby village thought to harbour Taleban fighters, taunting them to retrieve their dead and fight.
The incidents come amid a stepped up period of militant-related violence this year in which more than 1,100 people have died.
Most of the dead have been militants, but the toll includes more than 50 US soldiers, making it the bloodiest period for US forces in Afghanistan since they overthrew the Taleban in late 2001.