Marine A hopes to be home for Christmas, says wife

The wife of a former Royal Marine jailed for the murder of a Taliban fighter has told the BBC she hopes he will be home for Christmas.

Sergeant Alexander Blackman, known as Marine A, is serving a life sentence for murdering a wounded Afghan in 2011.

He has won the right to an appeal and a bail hearing was due on Friday, but was delayed until Wednesday.

Speaking ahead of Friday's hearing, his wife Claire said he was "hopeful but not getting carried away."

His legal team claim Blackman, 42, was suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder when the incident happened while he was serving in Afghanistan.

Mrs Blackman told the BBC's Victoria Derbyshire programme: "We have quite a strong case, we think, for bail and the legal team have worked hard to put together a strong application; we just need to be able to convince the judges this afternoon."

She added: "This was war, it was exceptional circumstances."

Sergeant Alexander Blackman was convicted of murder at a court martial in 2013

A Royal Navy review released by the Ministry of Defence said several factors contributed to the incident.

The report found there was insufficient supervision, a perceived "overly aggressive" culture in Blackman's unit, 42 Commando, and "moral disengagement" on the part of Blackman and his colleagues.

But the former marine, of Taunton, Somerset, last week won the right to appeal against his conviction following the presentation of new evidence relating to his mental health at the time of the murder.

'Icing on the cake'

Mrs Blackman said the decision to go back and look at the evidence gave the family "the most hope".

She said: "Bail would be the icing on the cake.

"But getting back to the appeal courts and getting the conviction and the sentence potentially overturned is our main focus."

The killing, on 15 September 2011, took place after a patrol base in Helmand province came under fire from two insurgents.

One of the attackers was seriously injured by gunfire from an Apache helicopter sent to provide air support, and the marines found him in a field.

Footage from the helmet-mounted camera of another marine in his unit showed Blackman shooting the Afghan prisoner in the chest at close range with a 9mm pistol.

Claire Blackman said support from the public "gives us energy and motivation to keep going"

MP Adam Holloway, a former army officer, said: "The fact remains, what he did was break the Geneva Convention by shooting a wounded prisoner and that is absolutely wrong in all circumstances, unless you can show that you are mentally ill at the time."

Blackman's supporters said the killing was manslaughter, not murder, and launched a campaign to review the case.

Fredrick Forsyth, author and campaigner, told the BBC: "Had he been charged with manslaughter - the technicality of making a bad mistake - he probably would have got three years. Halve it for good behaviour, he'd be out already."

Mrs Blackman said her husband was keeping his spirits up, making the most of his time in prison by studying for a degree.

But not having him at home was "obviously really hard", she said, despite being used to time apart as the wife of a Royal Marine.

She said support from the public had been "incredible", with four people donating £50,000 each in bail money.

"I find it really hard to put into words what a difference that makes.

"To feel like the whole country is behind us just gives us energy and motivation to keep going."

Blackman was convicted of murder in November 2013 and jailed for life. He lost an appeal in May of the following year, but his 10-year minimum term was reduced to eight years.

He was one of three Royal Marines tried by Court Martial for murder. His co-defendants, referred to as Marine B and Marine C, were acquitted.