CAMP PENDLETON, California (AP):

A major general and two senior officers have been disciplined for their roles in investigating the deaths of 24 Iraqi civilians in the town of Haditha in 2005, the Marine Corps said yesterday.

Maj. Gen. Richard A. Huck, former commanding general of the 2nd Marine Division, has received a letter of censure from the secretary of the Navy for the "actions he took and failed to take" in response to the killings. The statement from the Marine Corps does not elaborate.

In all, 24 civilians were killed by a Marine squad in the aftermath of a bomb blast that killed one Marine on November 19, 2005. Among the dead were women and children who were killed in their homes as Marines went on a house-to-house sweep.

Col. Stephen W. Davis and Col. Robert G. Sokoloski also received letters of censure.

Davis was cited for failure to take action when informed of the slayings. Sokoloski was cited for unsatisfactory performance of his duties.

"Accountability and responsibility are the foundation of all we do as Marines," said General James T. Conway, commandant of the Marine Corps.

"While these three officers have served their country and corps exceedingly well for decades, their actions, inactions and decisions in the aftermath of the Haditha incident did not meet the high standards we expect of Marine senior officer leadership," Conway said.