The smoke hasn't yet cleared from an apparent terror attack in the Philippines today, and someone on the official Twitter account for the Department of Defense's improvised explosive device division cracked a joke about it that many in national security circles are saying was in poor taste.
Now, they've been deleted, by orders of the Pentagon Press Secretary.
I just directed the suspension of the @JIEDDO twitter account following inappropriate and offensive tweets. Plainly unacceptable.
— George Little (@PentagonPresSec) September 18, 2013
After news broke that improvised explosive devices were reportedly detonated outside of two movie theaters in Davao City in the Philippines, targeting civilians, the Joint IED Defeat Organization had this to say:
It struck some as odd that an official DoD entity would make light of a situation that presumably took innocent lives. The Guardian's Spencer Ackerman fired back:
JIEDDO doubled down on the joke in the face of criticism:
As criticism mounted, it took about an hour for them to apologize:
But shortly thereafter, the account disappeared completely.
SEE ALSO: CUNY Students Chase And Harass David Petraeus On His First Day Of Class