The US marines have identified the unit whose forces are suspected of being behind a video apppearing to show them urinating on the bodies of dead Taliban in Afghanistan.
The two that were identified are still part of the 3rd Battalion, 2nd Marines, based out of Camp Lejeune in North Carolina. That unit served in Afghanistan's Helmand province from March until September of 2011.
The video shows what appears to be four servicemen, dressed in US military uniform, relieving themselves onto three bloodied bodies on the ground, apparently aware that they are being filmed.
"Have a great day, buddy," one of them says.
US Defence Secretary Leon Panetta has condemned the video.
"I have seen the footage, and I find the behaviour depicted in it utterly deplorable," Mr Panetta said in a statement.
Mr Panetta said he had ordered the Marine Corps and the commander of US and NATO troops in Afghanistan to investigate the incident.
"Those found to have engaged in such conduct will be held accountable to the fullest extent," he said.
Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said: "Regardless of the circumstances or who is in the video, this is ... egregious, disgusting behaviour, unacceptable for anyone in uniform."
"It turned my stomach," he added of the video, which was posted on the Live Leak website.
The Washington-based Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), a prominent national Muslim civil rights and advocacy organisation, condemned the alleged desecration of corpses by US Marines.
"If verified as authentic, the video shows behaviour that is totally unbecoming of American military personnel and that could ultimately endanger other soldiers and civilians," CAIR said in a statement.
"We trust that this disturbing incident will be promptly investigated in a transparent manner and that appropriate actions will be taken based on the results of that investigation," the group said.
"Any guilty parties must be punished to the full extent allowed by the Uniform Code of Military Justice and by relevant American laws."
US and coalition partners in Afghanistan plan to hand over security for the whole of the country to Afghan forces by the end of 2014, allowing the withdrawal of combat forces.
