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Karzai: U.S. failed to consult Afghans on airstrike that killed 18
June 9, 2012 - 19:17 AMT
PanARMENIAN.Net - Afghanistan's president said Saturday, June 9 that
the United States failed to consult Afghan forces when calling in an
airstrike that killed 18 civilians, and warned that in the future his
government will consider such actions as violating the country's pact
with Washington, AFP reported.
In the east, meanwhile, a Taliban suicide bomber disguised as a woman
wearing a burqa killed four French soldiers when he blew himself up in
a market.
Both Karzai's condemnation of the U.S. operation and the French deaths
as that country rushes to pull out its combat forces were reminders
that the international exit from Afghanistan is going to be far from
orderly. As more agreements are signed promising Afghan sovereignty
and more NATO troops are assigned the role of trainers or advisers,
the international mission in the county is becoming increasingly
muddled.
Presidential spokesman Aimal Faizi said that President Hamid Karzai
met with investigators earlier in the day and concluded that U.S.
troops had called in Wednesday's strike without coordinating with
Afghan units.
The incident occurred during a nighttime raid on militants taking
cover in a village. These raids are a major irritant in Afghan
President Hamid Karzai's relationship with the international military
coalition. Karzai says the raids put civilians at risk of injury or
death. Military officials say such operations are key to capturing and
killing Taliban leaders.
The U.S. and Afghanistan signed an agreement in April that put the
Afghan government in charge of such operations - a move designed to
resolve some of the longstanding tensions. But when villagers in Logar
province displayed the bodies of 18 civilians killed in a U.S.
airstrike on Wednesday, Karzai quickly called on the international
coalition to explain itself.
Faizi said that the investigators told the president that Afghan
forces had surrounded the house in question but that the U.S. troops
decided not to wait for them to try to flush out the militants and
called in aircraft instead. They only discovered later that there had
also been women, children and old men inside.
"This airstrike was a one-sided decision, and not coordinated with
Afghan security forces," Faizi said. He said that Karzai and his
advisers decided after hearing the investigators' report that they
would consider such actions in the future as a breach of the special
operations pact.
From: A. Papazian
June 9, 2012 - 19:17 AMT
PanARMENIAN.Net - Afghanistan's president said Saturday, June 9 that
the United States failed to consult Afghan forces when calling in an
airstrike that killed 18 civilians, and warned that in the future his
government will consider such actions as violating the country's pact
with Washington, AFP reported.
In the east, meanwhile, a Taliban suicide bomber disguised as a woman
wearing a burqa killed four French soldiers when he blew himself up in
a market.
Both Karzai's condemnation of the U.S. operation and the French deaths
as that country rushes to pull out its combat forces were reminders
that the international exit from Afghanistan is going to be far from
orderly. As more agreements are signed promising Afghan sovereignty
and more NATO troops are assigned the role of trainers or advisers,
the international mission in the county is becoming increasingly
muddled.
Presidential spokesman Aimal Faizi said that President Hamid Karzai
met with investigators earlier in the day and concluded that U.S.
troops had called in Wednesday's strike without coordinating with
Afghan units.
The incident occurred during a nighttime raid on militants taking
cover in a village. These raids are a major irritant in Afghan
President Hamid Karzai's relationship with the international military
coalition. Karzai says the raids put civilians at risk of injury or
death. Military officials say such operations are key to capturing and
killing Taliban leaders.
The U.S. and Afghanistan signed an agreement in April that put the
Afghan government in charge of such operations - a move designed to
resolve some of the longstanding tensions. But when villagers in Logar
province displayed the bodies of 18 civilians killed in a U.S.
airstrike on Wednesday, Karzai quickly called on the international
coalition to explain itself.
Faizi said that the investigators told the president that Afghan
forces had surrounded the house in question but that the U.S. troops
decided not to wait for them to try to flush out the militants and
called in aircraft instead. They only discovered later that there had
also been women, children and old men inside.
"This airstrike was a one-sided decision, and not coordinated with
Afghan security forces," Faizi said. He said that Karzai and his
advisers decided after hearing the investigators' report that they
would consider such actions in the future as a breach of the special
operations pact.
From: A. Papazian