U.S. air strike kills 47 Afghan civilians
Reuters
JALALABAD, Afghanistan (Reuters) - A U.S. coalition force air strike on Sunday killed 47 civilians, including 39 women and children, in the eastern province of Nangarhar, an Afghan official said on Friday.
The issue of civilian casualties is an emotive one, feeding a common perception international forces do not take enough care when launching air strikes, and undermining support for their continued presence in the country.
Residents and officials had earlier told reporters that 23 people were killed, when aircraft bombed a convoy bringing a bride to her new husband's village in Nangarhar.
The U.S. military released a statement after the incident saying there were no civilians in the area and that they had been targeting a large group of militants.
"I reject the coalition statement saying that all those killed were militants," Burhanullah Shinwari, deputy speaker of the upper house, who is heading an investigation into Sunday's incident told Reuters on Friday. "There aren't any Taliban or Al Qaeda even several kilometres near to where the air strike took place. Forty-seven people were killed; 39 of them were women and children," he said shortly after attending prayer ceremonies for the victims in the provincial capital Jalalabad.
An investigation has also been launched into another U.S. air strike carried out two days before Sunday's incident in which local officials say 15 civilians were killed. The U.S. military is conducting its own investigation into Sunday's incident.
"We are still investigating it and we haven't completed our investigation so I can't speak about specifics at this time," a spokesman for the U.S. military said on Friday.
"All I can say is that any loss of innocent life is tragic. I can assure you that civilians are never targeted in operations and that our forces go to great lengths in avoiding civilian casualties," he said.
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) on Wednesday called on all sides in the conflict to take more care to avoid harming civilians.
Nearly 700 Afghan civilians were killed in the first six months of this year, 255 of them by Afghan government and international troops, the rest by Taliban militants.
Civilian deaths at the hands of foreign troops have in the past sparked violent protests in Afghanistan.
"By carrying out such attacks, the Americans are creating a gap between the (Afghan) government and the people," said Shinwari.
"I am sure there have been more Muslim on Muslim deaths/killings/murders (all peoples kill themselves off more than any outsider could ever do).."
Hashim .. the laws of Islam is irrelevnt here in this issue.
US is becoming too much on the external issues. They should be restricted.
^Thats very comforting for civilians.
There is what is written in the good book and then what actually happens in life. I am sure there have been more Muslim on Muslim deaths/killings/murders (all peoples kill themselves off more than any outsider could ever do) that have never even come close to recompense.
How stupid can people get sometimes.
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"If the enemy is in range, so are you." - Infantry Journal
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For the US army to call lass of civilian life "tragic" is really cheap. They don't understand the magnitude of the problem they are creating by saying that. In islam, if you kill somebody by mistake, you still have to either pay with your life or pay a compensation to the family of the deceased. It is the equivalent of $100,000 in today's terms, based on the value of 100 camels ($1000 each). It is left up to the family to decide, and the Quran, although preserving the right for "an eye for an eye", encourages people to forgive and forget since it was not intentional. But to gloss over and suffice by calling it "tragic" and not even attempting to seek pardon from the families concerned, creates a situation of revenge. Watch the movie "The Beast" about an afghan man's unrelenting quest for revenge from a soviet tank squad. Quite realistic.
Rumpel ???
He who lives in a glass house should not throw stones.
Throw all the bait you want. I wont bite. Just thought you should know.
I love your "mwahas" & "uuuhs" & "aaaahs"
But Rumpel i still prefer mwaaaahahaha to hahahaha. LOL.
Damn :?
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I have no option but to bow to you in respect!
any limit to human's sins and nonsense?
Do not dwell in the past, do not dream of the future, concentrate the mind on the present moment. (Gautama Buddha)
What a sin. :(
Visit www.qatarhappening.com
Rump... May be??
this MAY BE CHEMICAL WEAPON killed 1000s at Iraq.
If they have letthem have it.. dont US have it??
for some stupid '' MAY BE '' reasons they kill people.
Another "clever" american!
Sad to say, but reading your posts on this site, it seems they are weapons of mass destruction in your own eyes.
who said they are civilians?
Maybe they were hiding weapons of mass destruction?
the americans created that term for a reason!
no respect for innocent life