Drone strike: One of the US Air Force Predator unmanned aircraft. (Photo: Reuters)
Mar 06, 2014
At least five Afghan National Army soldiers in Logar Province are dead and many others injured on Thursday after a U.S. drone bombed a former NATO-run military outpost in Afghanistan.
The latest incident of mistaken targeting by a U.S. drone--which the military and Obama administration call a "precision" weapon--is sure to further outrage ordinary Afghans as well as President Hamid Karzai who has repeatedly, and with increasing anger, criticized bother NATO and U.S. forces for their disregard of Afghan lives while operating within the country.
"We believe the strike was the result of poor coordination between the people on the ground and the operators of the drone," said Din Mohammad Darwish, a spokesman for the governor of Logar Province, which is in the east of Afghanistan.
"The area is frequented by insurgents both foreign and local, and drone strikes are carried out quite often in that part of Charkh," Darwish continued. "The A.N.A. outpost was part of the security belt in the province."
According to Agence France-Presse:
Khalilullah Kamal, the Charkh district governor, told AFP he had visited the site of the attack, which he said was from a US drone.
''The post is totally destroyed,'' he said.
''The Americans used to be in that post but since they left, the ANA [Afghan national army] took over. The post is on a hilltop. The attack was conducted by drones.''
NATO's International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) issued a statement following the bombing which confirmed that at least five Afghan soldiers had been killed.
"An investigation is being conducted at this time to determine the circumstances that led to this unfortunate incident,'' read the statement. ''Our condolences go out to the families of the ANA soldiers who lost their lives and were wounded ... we will determine what actions will be taken to ensure incidents like this do not happen again.''
The New York Timesadds: "While no hard data is available, the American military has apparently been using drones in Afghanistan with increasing frequency after strict controls were imposed on airstrikes to prevent civilian casualties, as well as complaints by the Afghan military that they were not getting adequate air support for their operations."
_____________________________________________
Join Us: News for people demanding a better world
Common Dreams is powered by optimists who believe in the power of informed and engaged citizens to ignite and enact change to make the world a better place. We're hundreds of thousands strong, but every single supporter makes the difference. Your contribution supports this bold media model—free, independent, and dedicated to reporting the facts every day. Stand with us in the fight for economic equality, social justice, human rights, and a more sustainable future. As a people-powered nonprofit news outlet, we cover the issues the corporate media never will. |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
At least five Afghan National Army soldiers in Logar Province are dead and many others injured on Thursday after a U.S. drone bombed a former NATO-run military outpost in Afghanistan.
The latest incident of mistaken targeting by a U.S. drone--which the military and Obama administration call a "precision" weapon--is sure to further outrage ordinary Afghans as well as President Hamid Karzai who has repeatedly, and with increasing anger, criticized bother NATO and U.S. forces for their disregard of Afghan lives while operating within the country.
"We believe the strike was the result of poor coordination between the people on the ground and the operators of the drone," said Din Mohammad Darwish, a spokesman for the governor of Logar Province, which is in the east of Afghanistan.
"The area is frequented by insurgents both foreign and local, and drone strikes are carried out quite often in that part of Charkh," Darwish continued. "The A.N.A. outpost was part of the security belt in the province."
According to Agence France-Presse:
Khalilullah Kamal, the Charkh district governor, told AFP he had visited the site of the attack, which he said was from a US drone.
''The post is totally destroyed,'' he said.
''The Americans used to be in that post but since they left, the ANA [Afghan national army] took over. The post is on a hilltop. The attack was conducted by drones.''
NATO's International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) issued a statement following the bombing which confirmed that at least five Afghan soldiers had been killed.
"An investigation is being conducted at this time to determine the circumstances that led to this unfortunate incident,'' read the statement. ''Our condolences go out to the families of the ANA soldiers who lost their lives and were wounded ... we will determine what actions will be taken to ensure incidents like this do not happen again.''
The New York Timesadds: "While no hard data is available, the American military has apparently been using drones in Afghanistan with increasing frequency after strict controls were imposed on airstrikes to prevent civilian casualties, as well as complaints by the Afghan military that they were not getting adequate air support for their operations."
_____________________________________________
At least five Afghan National Army soldiers in Logar Province are dead and many others injured on Thursday after a U.S. drone bombed a former NATO-run military outpost in Afghanistan.
The latest incident of mistaken targeting by a U.S. drone--which the military and Obama administration call a "precision" weapon--is sure to further outrage ordinary Afghans as well as President Hamid Karzai who has repeatedly, and with increasing anger, criticized bother NATO and U.S. forces for their disregard of Afghan lives while operating within the country.
"We believe the strike was the result of poor coordination between the people on the ground and the operators of the drone," said Din Mohammad Darwish, a spokesman for the governor of Logar Province, which is in the east of Afghanistan.
"The area is frequented by insurgents both foreign and local, and drone strikes are carried out quite often in that part of Charkh," Darwish continued. "The A.N.A. outpost was part of the security belt in the province."
According to Agence France-Presse:
Khalilullah Kamal, the Charkh district governor, told AFP he had visited the site of the attack, which he said was from a US drone.
''The post is totally destroyed,'' he said.
''The Americans used to be in that post but since they left, the ANA [Afghan national army] took over. The post is on a hilltop. The attack was conducted by drones.''
NATO's International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) issued a statement following the bombing which confirmed that at least five Afghan soldiers had been killed.
"An investigation is being conducted at this time to determine the circumstances that led to this unfortunate incident,'' read the statement. ''Our condolences go out to the families of the ANA soldiers who lost their lives and were wounded ... we will determine what actions will be taken to ensure incidents like this do not happen again.''
The New York Timesadds: "While no hard data is available, the American military has apparently been using drones in Afghanistan with increasing frequency after strict controls were imposed on airstrikes to prevent civilian casualties, as well as complaints by the Afghan military that they were not getting adequate air support for their operations."
_____________________________________________
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.