Two Marines charged with urinating on deceased Taliban insurgents and posing for unofficial photographs have been referred to trial by courts-martial.

Marine Corps Lt. Gen. Richard Mills, commander of Marine Corps Combat Development Command, handed down the decision Sept. 21.

The alleged incident took place near Sandala in the Musa Qala district of Afghanistan's Helmand province on or about July 27 of last year, according to a Marine Corps press release.

The two Marines are Staff Sgts. Joseph Chamblin and Edward Deptola. Both are assigned to 3rd Battalion, 2nd Marine Regiment at Camp Lejeune, N.C.

Three other Marines have received nonjudicial punishment for misconduct during the same incident. Their names were not included in the press release.

"There are other pending cases related to this incident. In order to preserve the integrity of the investigations and to ensure fair and impartial legal proceedings in the future, we will not discuss evidence or specific findings of the investigations," the command indicated in a written statement included in the Marine Corps press release.

"We will be as forthright as possible while preserving the rights of the accused and the fairness and integrity of the military justice process," the statement concluded.