I think he should have been fired for deserting his role, but I don't think there should be any more serious a penalty than if I walked out of my job. The army is a profession, an employer, where people are trained, paid and follow orders. I don't see the legitimacy of any parallel legal structure to be subjected to.

So he felt more compassion for the Afghan victims of US terror. Great, that makes him human. Maybe he's a conscientious objector, maybe he's an idiot. I don't really care. The fact that he was able to view victims of US terror with compassion sets him apart from his accomplices in Afghanistan.