Jan 24 2009
Is This the Look We’re Going For?
As the Obama team is busy “hitting the ground running” in Washington, the situation in Afghanistan is only getting worse. Worse in a very macabre way. Civilian casualties are on the rise. A nasty by-product of war, and the exact reason why many people are against war in the first place - they don’t want innocent people to die.
Early last week the US military led an operation that killed 19 militants. On Wednesday the Afghan news reported that they took the lives of over two dozen civilians as well. Then on Friday, troops again led an operation against suspected Taliban militants in Kabul. When the smoke cleared 15 militants were dead, as well as 10 civilians. In both instances the US military has said that it will most certainly investigate its own actions. NATO forces are also responsible for the death of one civilian on Friday. He was apparently digging into the ground, which made them nervous, so they shot him, reportedly after firing warning shots.
President Hamid Karzai has repeatedly asked that civilian casualties be avoided at all costs. His government will of course have a difficult time holding power after next year’s elections if innocent people continue to be killed by Americans and NATO. How often do these mistakes only help the agenda of the Taliban? When Karzai met with US General Petraus on Tuesday, he requested that more Afghan troops could be involved in American-led military operations.
The Taliban has succeeded in taking back territory throughout southern Afghanistan since the US military has been in the country. The US says that it needs more assistance, whether from NATO, Afghan forces, or more American troops, if they are going to be able to hold the areas that they win from the Taliban.
