Fears of 'Taliban video' backlash
At least two of four US Marines shown in a video appearing to urinate on Taliban corpses have been identified, a Marine Corps official has told
The video, which was posted online, purports to show four US Marines standing over the bodies of several Taliban fighters, at least one of whom is covered in blood.
The Marines have begun a criminal investigation and an internal inquiry.
US officials and Afghan officials have condemned the video as "deplorable".
The origin of the video is not known, but it was originally posted to YouTube.
the official would not confirm the Marines' whereabouts, but news reports suggested the unit involved was based at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina - a major military base.
A US Marines spokesman, Lt Col Joseph Plenzler, told the AFP news agency that "we cannot release the name of the unit at this time since the incident is being investigated.
'Total dismay'
Earlier, US Defence Secretary Leon Panetta condemned the acts shown in the video and vowed a full investigation would be carried out by the Marines and the Kabul-based International Security Assistance Force (Isaf).
In a statement, Mr Panetta said he had seen the footage, and the Pentagon confirmed that he had spoken by telephone with Afghan President Hamid Karzai.
Mr Karzai condemned the attacks in strong terms.
"I find the behaviour depicted in it utterly deplorable. This conduct is entirely inappropriate for members of the United States military," he said.
In a separate news conference, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton expressed her "total dismay" at the video.
Mrs Clinton said she shared Mr Panetta's view that such behaviour was inconsistent with the standards the "that vast, vast majority of our personnel - particularly our marines - hold themselves to".
The video did not change the tone of US efforts to secure Afghanistan, she said, saying the US continued to support security and reconciliation efforts that were "Afghan-led and Afghan-owned".
Tentative moves are being made towards peace in the country, ahead of the planned withdrawal of international combat forces by the end of 2014.
The US has about 20,000 Marines deployed in Afghanistan, based mostly in Kandahar and Helmand provinces. In total, about 90,000 US troops are on the ground in Afghanistan.
The Taliban said last week that they were working to set up a political office, possibly in Qatar, that would help to facilitate negotiations with the Afghan government and Nato countries.
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