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Stop Civilian Deaths, Karzai Tells Obama
Wedding guests believed killed by U.S. air strike
KANDAHAR, Afghanistan - Afghan President Hamid Karzai urged U.S. president-elect Barack Obama to end civilian casualties once and for all yesterday amid reports that dozens of women and children were killed in U.S. air strikes on a wedding party in southern Afghanistan.
Afghan President Hamid Karzai gestures as he congratulates U.S. President-elect Barack Obama during a news conference in Kabul November 5, 2008. (Omar Sobhani/Reuters) The
U.S. military said it was investigating the reported bombing. A
spokesperson added, "if innocent people were killed, we apologize and
express our condolences."
The governor of Kandahar province, Rahmatullah Raufi, told a news conference yesterday that the Taliban attacked an American convoy in an area where a wedding party was also underway.
The Americans responded by calling in an air strike, he said.
"It was a mistake - they hit the wedding party and thought it was the Taliban," Raufi said. "The plane hit the mountain and the village, too, which resulted in heavy civilian casualties."
The governor declined to venture a guess on the number of dead. Accounts from others varied widely.
One witness, Juma Khan, said 37 people, including 23 children and 10 women, were killed in his compound. A senior official with Kandahar's provincial government put the death toll as high as 90.
The report of air strikes in the Shah Wali Kot district comes three months after the Afghan government and a preliminary UN investigation found that a U.S. operation killed some 90 civilians in western Afghanistan.
Initially, U.S. officials said five to seven people died in that attack on the village in Herat province, but a subsequent American investigation prompted by video evidence raised that toll to 33.
Canadian ground troops also operate in the Shah Wali Kot region but were not involved in Monday's hostilities, said Canadian Forces spokesperson Maj. Jay Janzen.
"Canadian troops are responsible for Kandahar province. We do occasionally go into the Shah Wali Kot area but do not proceed as far north as where the incident occurred."
Karzai referred to the bombing at a news conference yesterday to congratulate Obama on his victory in the U.S. presidential election.
Karzai said his first demand of the new president is to prevent civilian casualties in operations by foreign forces, specifically air strikes that he said had caused deaths in the Shah Wali Kot district.
"As we speak, there are civilian casualties in Afghanistan," Karzai said.
"The coalition and Afghan authorities are investigating reports of non-combatant casualties in the village of Wech Baghtu," said Cmdr. Jeff Bender, spokesperson for the U.S. forces in Afghanistan.
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14 Comments so far
Show AllListen to Karzai. Listen to Petraeus.
I'd be extremely wary of listening to either of these. Karzai's influence extends to only one city in Afghanistan, whose citizens generally don't trust this Bush-installed governor. Petraeus gave Baghdad it's 'pacifying' surge, and through an apparent lack of integrity allowed his superiors to market it as an unequivocal success of military know-how.
I'd say listen to your own instincts, Barack, which tell you to listen to your enemies.
I mean listen to them saying stop the air attacks. Listen to Petreus because he is saying the same thing. He is saying talk, not shoot. Cooperate, not surpress.
I don't care how they market it if it gets our kids out of there. And without this guy we would have been there longer. Thats simply fact. People forget to look at his stategy and tactics, at what he is doing simply because Bush is President.
Take a look at his philosophy. His integity is of the highest order. If I had to fight again, I'd want this guy for my commander. He knows its better to do anything else before you fight.
Every time we've bombed and killed civilians at dinner in their homes, in weddding groups, whatever, we've heard the same lame "IF innocent people were killed, we're very sorry." But it doesn't stop us from doing the same thing all over again. We've killed far more innocent people than those responsible for 9/11, and in countries that had nothing to do with that tragedy.
It's abominable the way we've misused our might just because we have it. We need to let President Obama know the bombings must stop. We need to work with these governments to root out the terrorist cells in their countries, and rebuild our reputation with the peoples of those countries - if that's still possible. At least they'd know we aren't all like those who've run this country and caused the bombing.
wilmoor
That is exactly why I put "Listen to Petraeus" alongside Karzi. His strategy and his tactics are exactly what you propose. What you are thinking is pretty much the way he thinks.
He is our best bet.
When you order or perform the act of bombing civilians, you become a terrorist. When a terrorist like McCain can be revered, by 40% of the country, for killing Vietnamese civilians, it shows how much we need to deglorify military service. Should we really be so proud to be killers?
Why not listen to a source that's deeper than the dubious Karzai?
How about just listening to common sense and common decency:
Out of Iraq and Afghanistan -- entirely! Quickly!
Then, too, just for starters:
No more Amerika Uber Alles foreign policy.
No more invading & murdering innocent peoples in the name of catching 9/11 bombers, or stealing natural resources, or etc. etc., etc.
In many post wedding ceremonies throughout Afghanistan it is tradition for people to celebrate by firing guns in to the air. Unfortunatly, the military keeps mistaking this for the Taliban. Someone needs to better educate the military about this Afghan cultural tradition.
DCBeltway1 November 6th, 2008 4:49 pm
In many post wedding ceremonies throughout Afghanistan it is tradition for people to celebrate by firing guns in to the air.
Strangely enough, the Marines just got a whip on that exact thing. Hopefully we can just get out of there soon and there won't be any chance of a mistake.
What Karzai says to Omaba means absolutely nothing. Just as Bush did what the Generals and the war lobby told him to do, Obama will have to do.
Mr. Karzai, you are an American stooge get use to it. You thought it would be easy working for the little deserter....wrong, just think how hard it will be working for the Kosher Kid and his side kick Schlomo Biden. Do yourself and your country a big favor fill your car with gas and American money and head for the border. That is unless you want your head stuck on a pike in the town square.
dryfruit- it's a mistake to bunchup all US generals as part of the war lobby. More than a few on the general staff are noble people, war haters, and opponents of the MI conplex and Bush.
These days, the core of what you call the war lobby is composed more of bankers, corporate CEO's, int'l arms merchants, and non-libertarian conservative ideologues.
Excellent post and the truth.
Kharzai? What a pig. 100% part of the death and American bloodletting.
Sure; Now he is going to Dictate to Obama?
This creep's days are numbered.
tick, tick, tick.
A lot of despots are nervous. Bush was their man. Obama will not be.