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| Afghanistan |
| New NATO idea to avoid killing innocent Afghans |
| 2010-05-04 |
| NATO commanders are weighing a new way to reduce civilian casualties in Afghanistan: recognizing soldiers for "courageous restraint" if they avoid using force that could endanger innocent lives. The concept comes as the coalition continues to struggle with the problem of civilian casualties despite repeated warnings from the top NATO commander, Gen. Stanley McChrystal, that the war effort hinges on the ability to protect the population and win support away from the Taliban. Want to reduce civilian casualties? Kill the bad guys. More than 2,400 civilians were killed in 2009, the United Nations says, making it the deadliest year of a war now more than eight years old.While it says foreign and Afghan troops killed 25 percent fewer civilians last year than in 2008, civilian deaths rose overall, because the number killed by insurgents rose 40 percent. |
| Posted by:ed |
| #7 The only problem with getting India involved is who do you think China will side with? |
| Posted by: chris 2010-05-04 17:12 |
| #6 As the country's own P-A-K-I acronym indicates, Pakistan is a BS country, a myth, an artificial concoction of post-imperial mapmakers. Afghanistan is a non-country. Can't deal with one fake nation without dealing with the other. Time to get India involved. |
| Posted by: lex 2010-05-04 14:05 |
| #5 The only other way to end this war is to destroy Islam, which is almost as impossible. P7 |
| Posted by: g(r)omgoru 2010-05-04 13:49 |
| #4 "Taking the war to the enemy" would mean ending up on the Indian Ocean at Karachi. The politicians will NEVER allow us to do that, yet that's exactly what we will have to do, or pull out in defeat. Pakistan does not want a strong, independent Afghanistan, and will do everything possible to prevent it. The only other way to end this war is to destroy Islam, which is almost as impossible. |
| Posted by: Old Patriot 2010-05-04 13:25 |
| #3 Excellent point, chris, Unfortunately the terrorists use innocents as human shields, making it almost impossible for our soldiers to conduct operations under these restrictive rules of engagement. |
| Posted by: Mike Hunt 2010-05-04 11:37 |
| #2 evidently the politicians didn't learn from Vietnam. I have a good way for civilians not too get killed. Don't hang around bad guys. Guess this will mean more of our troops will have too die by new ROE of not returning fire at all now. |
| Posted by: chris 2010-05-04 11:30 |
| #1 As long as the politicians are running the war we're gonna have problems. Didn't we learn this lesson in Vietnam? We should go in full throttle. A full military assault. Kill a sh!tload of the Taliban / AQ. Take back the country using whatever means necessary (short of nukes) Leave a residual force behind (like in Korea, Japan and Germany) to keep law & order while training the Afghans to keep the peace. Then exit. Maybe 5-10 years total. We need to quit dicking around and get it over with. Other wise we cannot win against an enemy that uses guerrilla & asymmetrical tactics. |
| Posted by: Mike Hunt 2010-05-04 11:27 |