A US military investigator has recommended a court-martial on charges that could lead to the death penalty for four soldiers accused of raping and killing of an Iraqi girl, The New York Times website said Monday.

In his recommendation, Col. Dwight Warren agreed with military prosecutors that "reasonable grounds exist to believe that each accused committed the offense for which he is charged," including premeditated murder, which under the Uniform Code of Military Justice could be punishable by death.

Defense lawyers said they would file objections to the recommendation, which goes to a convening authority that will decide whether to follow it.

The finding comes three days after another military investigator recommended that four other soldiers, accused of killing three Iraqi men during a May 9 assault on an island north of Baghdad, face the death penalty in courts-martial.

The four soldiers involved in the most recent recommendation are charged with raping the 14-year-old girl and killing her, her parents and 7-year-old sister in the family's home in Mahmoudiya, Iraq, in March.

Spec. James Barker, Pfc. Jesse Spielman, Pfc. Bryan Howard and Sgt. Paul Cortez are each charged with rape and premeditated murder.

The four, members of the elite 101st Airborne Division, are also charged with arson as prosecutors accused them of burning the body of the teenager in an attempt to conceal evidence.

(Xinhua News Agency September 5, 2006)