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BAGHDAD — The former commander of a U.S. Army sniper team testified Friday that he ordered one of his soldiers to kill an Iraqi who had stumbled on their hiding place, saying that was the only way to ensure the safety of his men in hostile territory.

The testimony came as the U.S. military reported that five more soldiers were killed in two separate incidents in Iraq.

Sgt. Michael A. Hensley, who was a staff sergeant at the time of the killing last spring but was later demoted, testified at the court-martial hearing of murder charge against Sgt. Evan Vela.

Hensley said that he and the other members of the sniper team had all fallen asleep, then awoke to find an Iraqi man squatting about three feet from them.

Hensley said he ordered the Iraqi to lie on the ground when he saw "military-aged men" who he thought were carrying weapons about 100 yards away.

He said the Iraqi on the ground began yelling and he decided that killing the man was the only way to keep the sniper hideout from being discovered by what he believed was a group of approaching insurgents.

Hensley was acquitted in November of murder charges in this shooting.