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| Afghanistan |
| NATO says Taliban using civilians as shields, as high toll feared |
| 2006-10-26 |
| The NATO force in Afghanistan has accused the Taliban of using civilians as human shields, as authorities scrambled to verify reports that at least 60 people were killed in military strikes. The International Security Assistance Force said it could not say how many civilians were killed in a series of operations in the southern province of Kandahar late Tuesday, but was helping Afghan authorities to find out. ISAF said late Wednesday that 48 Taliban were killed in three engagements, including air strikes, in Kandahar's Panjwayi area late Tuesday. However, the chief of Panjwayi district, Niaz Mohammad Sarhadi, said he had reports that about 60 locals were killed in aerial bombing that also destroyed a number of houses. Deputy director of Kandahar provincial council, Bismellah Afghanmal, put the figure as high as 85, but national authorities could not immediately confirm the local reports, which have in the past been exaggerated. Asked about civilian casualties, NATO civilian representative Mark Laity said "at the moment we don't know", adding any that had occurred were deeply regretted. ISAF took great care to avoid civilian casualties, but the Taliban were mixing themselves among residents when attacked, NATO officials told reporters in the capital, Kabul. "With insurgents who regard the population as a form of human shield for themselves, it obviously makes life very difficult for us, but it doesn't stop us making every effort to ensure we minimise any problems," Laity said. "We know that the public rely on us and expect us to take every care, and if they (civilians) are accidentally killed then it can affect (public) faith in us," he said. ISAF was working with an Afghan defence ministry team that had been tasked to find out what had happened, he told reporters in Kabul. "We are helping Afghan leaders there fly over the area to make an assessment," added ISAF spokesman Major Luke Knittig at the same briefing. The force would also attend a shura (council) being convened in the area to discuss the matter, he said. |
| Posted by:ed |
| #8 Nope. Couldn't happen. A muslim would never sacrifice another true muslim. |
| Posted by: anymouse 2006-10-26 17:14 |
| #7 I don't see the problem. Just shoot through the human shield. |
| Posted by: wxjames 2006-10-26 12:22 |
| #6 Human shields = the muslim way of war. Perhaps a senior mufti might want to issue a fatwa against his co-religionist for using human shields? No takers? I thought as much. The day will come when Priority Five is to avoid civilian casualties. Priority One, Two, Three, and Four is to just kill the bad guys. |
| Posted by: Mark Z 2006-10-26 11:24 |
| #5 Lol, Perfesser. You've got this cogdis thingy down pat, lol. |
| Posted by: .com 2006-10-26 11:09 |
| #4 If Im living in a war zone and my neighbors start stockpiling weapons next door Im moving. But thats just me. |
| Posted by: bool 2006-10-26 11:03 |
| #3 Oh, they're just afraid of having to deal with George after grilling him about Gitmo and the Geneva Convention that they said should apply to people who don't practice it. It's not the casualties that count, its their pride. It's that embarrassment that they really hate. Us watching them only hurts their pride more. |
| Posted by: Procopious2K 2006-10-26 10:09 |
| #2 Well I DO care. Care a lot. Wait a minute, this soda's warm. I HATE warm soda. |
| Posted by: Perfesser 2006-10-26 09:30 |
| #1 The NATO force in Afghanistan has accused the Taliban of using civilians as human shields I gotta ask: who cares? Because I sure as hell don't. |
| Posted by: Rob Crawford 2006-10-26 07:08 |