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Obama White House: U.S. Will Not Halt Afghan Air Strikes
WASHINGTON - The United States will not end air strikes in Afghanistan as demanded by President Hamid Karzai after two villages were hit by U.S. warplanes last week, White House National Security Advisor James Jones said on Sunday.
Villagers sit near the graves of air strike victims in the village of Garni, in Afghanistan's western Farah province. the South Asian nation's president, Hamid Karzai, has demanded an end to US air strikes, which he said killed as many as 130 civilians earlier in the week and were infuriating the public. Civilian casualties from U.S. air strikes has caused friction between the Afghan government and the United States. Karzai made his demand last week during a visit to Washington in which he met President Barack Obama.
"We're going to take a look at trying to make sure that we correct those things we can correct, but certainly to tie the hands of our commanders and say we're not going to conduct air strikes, it would be imprudent," Jones, a retired U.S. Marine Corps general, told the ABC program "This Week."
Asked what reaction he expected from Karzai, Jones said: "I think he understands that we have to have the full complement of our offensive military power when we need it. ... We can't fight with one hand tied behind our back."
But Jones said the United States took seriously the issue of civilian casualties and would "redouble our efforts to make sure that innocent civilians are not killed."
Speaking on "Fox News Sunday," Army General David Petraeus, who as head of U.S. Central Command oversees military operations in Afghanistan, said he had named a U.S. brigadier general to look at the use of air strikes in Afghanistan.
'UNDERMINE OUR STRATEGIC GOALS'
Petraeus, who said he spoke to Karzai about air strikes, said it was important to ensure "that our tactical actions don't undermine our strategic goals and objectives."
The U.S. military acknowledged on Saturday that the air strikes in western Afghanistan last week that struck crowded homes in two villages in Farah province had killed civilians. Karzai put the death toll at up to 130 people.
If confirmed, it would be the deadliest single incident affecting Afghan civilians since U.S. forces invaded in 2001 and toppled the Taliban government that had harbored the al Qaeda network responsible for the September 11 attacks.
The deaths in Farah inflamed Afghan anger about the impact of air strikes and overshadowed Karzai's meeting with Obama. A joint U.S.-Afghan statement suggested Taliban fighters may have worsened the toll by using civilians as human shields.
"They're using civilians as shields," Jones said. "So we have to take a look at this, make sure that our commanders understand, you know, the subtleties of the situation, the complexity of it, and do the right thing."
Former U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney, speaking on the CBS program "Face the Nation," also defended air strikes.
"I think we need to do whatever we have to do there to be able to prevail." he said. "Air strikes are an important part of that."
Analysts say Western troops are spread relatively thinly on the ground, making them overly reliant on air support. Karzai has called for greater backing for Afghan institutions and the Afghan security forces to replace bombing raids.
24 Comments so far
Show AllJust what are our strategic goals in Afghanistan? Is it making the pipeline safe?
Kitty Lady Oregon:
I would believe that you have scored a home run with that post. I pine for the day that ALL US troops are out of Afgan, Iraq, Germany, Korea, Japan, you name it they are there. How in the world can the US public have become so complacent and duped is beyond me totally. What a waste of manpower, resources.
I had hoped for more from President Obama.
Opium production is up 4000% (40 times) since America invaded. Mission accomplished?
If they used Psychology on these folks and treated a hostage or "human shield" situation as an opportunity to get real intel and begin negotiations on what they are fighting for, Obama could be a super hero... If ben laden is alive he would love to talk openly or even in a fair international Trial.
Obama wants to Win, Defeat the enemy and he doesn't know that he will create more enemies than he can kill.
In a Long War, you only win by ending it.
Obama should join Win Without War!
"But Jones said the United States took seriously the issue of civilian casualties and would "redouble our efforts to make sure that innocent civilians are not killed.""
What a f-in joke.
I will personally send a brand new crisp one hundred dollar bill to the individual who can give the name of one conflict that the USA has ever been involved with, even on their own soil, that they did not shed innocent blood, most often by the "barrels full". In fact, they are the only nation in history to have used Nuclear (or is that 'nuculer') weapons ----and it was ON a civilian population-----and they did it ---TWICE.
This is just one of the many services that the USA has to offer those who would study history---sometime in the future-----------
Those many services can be condensed into one thoughtful phrase---------
-------------a negative example for history -------to avoid.
History could not have a better teacher in that regard.
But then, this is not "my country"----"my country" was "stolen from me, long before I was born"------------------by the ancestors of those who commit these terrible acts and shed innocent blood.
Good Luck America, you really need it.
What is it with these little rats who run for President? They can hardly wait to order bombs dropped, bullets fired, and torture applied against somebody, somewhere...anybody, anywhere.
Here's a bit from a comment I posted in August, 2007:
_________________________
Amerikan politicians, and particularly Democrats, have long been hagridden by the conviction that it is an absolute necessity for national leaders to expose their War Boner, pardon the expression, to the public at large. It is some kind of powerful, atavistic anxiety transmitted from the dawn of mankind and the bowels of Hell: a settled conviction that a fearful and anxious public demands assurance that its leaders possess a fearful War Boner and an unremitting will to swing it at need.
_________________________
Thus, Amerika is cursed or doomed to elect heads of state who are first and foremost Warlords; conversely, heads of state are ever eager to demonstrate their belligerent bona fides.
IMO, THAT'S what it is with these little rats who run for President.
· Yr Obd't Servant
What is our beef with the Taliban? We drove them out along with the fleeing Al Quaeda. They may not be the best observers of human rights, but are they worse than our friends the Saudis?
The Taliban is the most serious obstacle to securing in Afghanistan what US elites want there: Right of way for oil/gas pipelines. As soon as another entity, e.g. Russia, develops into an obstacle, Rash Limpbaugh will inform us about that government's oppression of its people. We already know Iran's terrorist theocrats hang all Iranians by their thumbs. We had to know cuz Iran is an eternal threat to US ambitions in the region. Please continue to offer US elites the benefit of the doubt though, for generous material rewards.
"Obama Will Not Halt Afghan Air Strikes"
Burning women and children alive is habit forming - ask the IDF.
They need to keep Petrayus and Darth Viper online to prop up the empire in its desperation! Cardinal O'Bamba, how audacious! Is it 1989 for the Soviet Union yet? POSSIBLY! All the deaths of innocents are thanks to 100 million voters of elite candidates in Nov 2008. We on the far left will not be lending any support to US elites or their enablers. We're going to rub it in, and we're not taking any flak about "abusing the victims for political gain". The elites and their enablers OWN ALL the death and destruction.
It's getting just as bad with the Obama flaks as it was with Bush: when they open their mouths, you know they're going to lie.
And why the hell is anyone still asking Cheney his opinion about anything?
Why am I not surprised?
Immediately in the aftermath of the 1969 My Lai Massacre, Gen. Westmoreland proudly proclaimed "128 Vietcong and 22 civilians" were killed in the village during a "fierce fire fight", and congratulated the unit on the "outstanding job" ('Heckuva job'?). As related at the time by the Army's Stars and Stripes magazine, "U.S. infantrymen had killed 128 Communists in a bloody day-long battle."
Three soldiers attempted to halt the massacre and protect the wounded. These men were denounced by Congress, received hate mail, death threats and mutilated animals on their doorsteps. It was not until 1998 that these men were honored for significantly reducing casualties at My Lai.
Seriously, America need to get a grip on itself.
Oh, and more Reuters spin:
"...U.S. forces invaded in 2001 and toppled the Taliban government that had harbored the al Qaeda network responsible for the September 11 attacks."
Funny that the FBI finds zero evidence linking any of the 9/11 Saudi attackers to Bin Laden or Afghanistan.
And finally, we have the ultimate justification that the US throws around daily: "They're using civilians as shields". That is an unfortunate circumstance that only invaders can say of freedom fighters defending their own country and citizenry.
"That is an unfortunate circumstance that only invaders can say of freedom fighters defending their own country and citizenry."
As much as I have recently explained my support of the troop escalation in Afghanistan (hopefully as part of a plan to stabilize it, even though nothing has been made public), that statement is perhaps the most succinct way to put what's going on over there.
What part of the US is the greatest purveyor of violence does Obama not understand? He jokes w/the corporate msm while he is killing the third world poor. Bombard whitehouse.com w/reality!
I wonder if Obama has ever read anything by Gandhi?
Try sending Obama's web site indicating that Afghanistant will be our "tar baby"
the u.s military are cowards. airstrikes against a defenseless people are inexcusable. if those m-fiing assassins can't fight like grown ups they need to get out. They need to get out anyway.
Afghans are not our enemies.
"When men march off to war many do not realize that their enemy marches in front of them. Who speaks of enemies is himself the enemy" - Berthold Brecht
Why do we need politicians when we have the technology to make laws direct democratically? Science studies show that direct democracy beats representative government every time:
"In the 18th century, Marie-Jean-Antoine-Nicolas de Caritat, marquis de Condorcet, welcomed the French Revolution and used mathematical probabilities to argue for the virtues of shared decision making. Known today as Condorcet’s jury theorem, his work describes conditions in which members of a group voting by majority rule are more likely to render a correct choice between two alternatives than is any individual in the group. One of the critical conditions for a happy outcome, the Marquis contended, was that each group member vote independently rather than copy another (possibly mistaken) juror.
Human groups deciding as a whole have scored spooky triumphs. “Nearly everybody is miles out, but when you take the average of these guesses, they’re usually very, very accurate,” says Ashley Ward, a fish behaviorist at the University of Sydney in Australia, whose work is cited in the special Transactions issue. The idea goes by the name “many wrongs,” as in many wrongs make a right."
http://www.sciencenews.org/view/feature/id/43117/title/Swarm_Savvy
And doesn't a majority of our population believe Elvis is still alive? Or in a different community, Tupac?
The studies show that collective decision making is best. It doesn't say that it's perfect.
Emagin peace but abandon hope...
when air strikes killing children is just part of a days work.
"They're using civilians as shields," Jones said, "So we bomb the entire area, a lotta collateral damage, but it works."
Jones sounds like the apologists after Gaza.
Will it never change, stop?