WASHINGTON - October 25 - Following news of a young girl’s death resulting from a failed NATO mortar-test in Afghanistan, the Campaign for Innocent Victims in Conflict (CIVIC) today called on NATO to officially review procedures for preventing and assessing harm to civilians during military operations. CIVIC also called for recognition and monetary compensation to the families involved.

A young Afghan girl was killed and two other children injured when a NATO mortar-test fell short of its target on Monday night hitting a civilian home in the eastern province of Kunar, according to Agence France Presse. The mortars were positioned to strike the district of Pache, considered a hotspot for Taliban attacks by NATO’s International Security and Assistance Force (ISAF). One of five rounds misfired during a military exercise. CIVIC condemned the testing of mortars in areas close to civilian populations.

“There is no good reason to test mortars within firing range of children,” said Sarah Holewinski, executive director of CIVIC. “If the goal of rounding up the Taliban is to build a safe Afghanistan for its people, then ISAF has an obligation to look into how its operations might affect civilians.” CIVIC urged the public release of the findings of the needed investigation into the testing of mortars near civilian homes.

NATO military operations have a legal obligation to use force responsibly, including minimizing loss of civilian life and property by all feasible means. Ballistic ordinance – including the ISAF mortars currently targeting Taliban strongholds – have a history of creating countless unintended victims of war when used in populated areas. CIVIC urges military planners to adequately assess the risk to civilians before launching or testing air attacks. “ISAF should investigate this incident in a thorough and fully transparent way,” said Holewinski. “And they should make sure the Afghan people see them do it. That’s the only way to build trust.”

CIVIC is a Washington-based organization founded by the late Marla Ruzicka, a passionate humanitarian killed by a suicide bomb in Baghdad while advocating for war victims in Iraq. CIVIC believes that civilians injured and the families of those killed should be recognized and aided by the governments involved, and is working toward smart, compassionate policies for civilians caught in the crossfire of conflict.

###