Nato needs to investigate and clarify the issues on the deaths in Kunar

[grantcart]

AFP reporting

http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5gJhEcHHops0gD6qyRhMMvKL4yZAA

NATO forces have disputed the results of the Afghan probe, saying the foreigners involved were non-military Americans on a sanctioned operation who fired in self-defence after being shot at by villagers.

Reports that children were handcuffed, taken outside and executed by US troops have now been replaced by

. . . Afghanistan's powerful NSC accepted the findings of the investigation, saying foreigners entered a house and shot the 10 people, who were unarmed and posed no threat.

"International forces entered the area... and killed 10 youths, eight of them school students inside two rooms in a house, without encountering any armed resistance," the statement said.

The following questions need answers

1) What forces were involved and where do they fit in the chain of command

2) What was the sanctioned operation

3) What was the exact position of the bodies when they were shot, what other forensic evidence is available?


A reliable independent authority needs to establish answers, including conducting autopsies.

Answers to those questions will determine the basis of allegations of war crimes.

[Number23]

1. So now it's "international forces" which could be anybody -- Aussies, Dutch etc

It's always been difficult to get good info out of a war zone but the situation in Afghanistan seems to be particularly difficult.

If it was American soldiers who did this they should be punished, just as the soldiers who committed crimes in Iraq have been.

[grantcart]

2. According to the AFP Nato specifies that it is "non military Americans"

[DevonRex]

9. That's the most troubling part, to me. Non-military Americans will NOT talk.

Not in this decade anyway. Not until they want to make some money on a book deal.

[cliffordu]

3. This has the stink of blackwater all over it.

I hope whoever did this is executed. But We all know that's not going to happen.

[grantcart]

4. It doesn't smell good but independent facts are required

Autopsies should help determine what position the bodies were in at the time they were shot.

The fact that there are no wounded survivors would undermine the NATO claim that they were "returning fire".

[cliffordu]

5. I know the facts are few and far between, but after that

debacle in Iraq - the broad daylight random mass execution - I wouldn't bet against it.

We had a local cop with a reputation for evil deeds that wound up working as an armed contractor over there......

[grantcart]

6. I definitely wouldn't bet against it.

[cliffordu]

7. I'll kick this again. just because.

[DevonRex]

8. Agreed. The story keeps changing and that's not a good sign.

That scene should have been secured and documented immediately, just as it happened. I don't know if we'll ever know the real facts but an attempt must be made to discover them.

The thing is, who do we trust here? I'm not feeling particularly confident in anybody involved. Another question is what will Islamic law allow regarding the deceased. Have they been buried? Can they be exumed and can they be autopsied?

And if a covert operation was involved will the agencies allow more facts to come to light? I rather doubt it.

But we still need answers, no matter how difficult it may be to get them.

[IndianaGreen]

10. You know as well as I do that this has the MO of paramilitary contractors, such as Xe

They have left a bloody trail in every country in which they have operated.

US SOF do not go around executing people in cold blood, as a rule.

You also know that it is nearly impossible to have an impartial investigation in a combat zone.

K&R

:kick:

[grantcart]

13. It is quite common to have very skillful investigations during war

My Lai is one example.

But this is not a "combat zone" making it even easier. An exact definition of bullet entry and calliber of bullets would be very useful.

[NJmaverick]

11. This story doesn't pass the smell test

first off it went from air strike, to handcuffed executions to killing of unarmed people. Still that isn't what bothers me the most. While this story is told and amplified in the liberal blogsphere echo chamber it is getting zero coverage in the regional news publications. If this story were true, one would certainly expect a great deal of regional coverage and outrage. So while this story is great fodder for the Taliban and the anti-war movement, it certainly doesn't come off as a legit story.

Here is a link that allows you to look at newspapers from that region:


http://www.refdesk.com/asia.html#afghan

[grantcart]

12. Things don't add up

No American news outlet is running the story. And the AFP is the only European source and they haven't reported anything in 7 days.

The earlier confusion on the air strike was an innocent one, there was a seperate incident, now no longer being pursued of a predator attack in another province at the same time.

There are many unanswered questions.

It is further complicated by the fact that Karzai's government suffered its worst defeat in Parliment with the rejection of 17 of his ministers and have a strong interest in diverting Afghan attention away from that humiliation.

edited to add

Fifth day that AlJazeera has not run any follow up to the story.

[NJmaverick]

14. I used the "Kunar" as one of the search terms in the various

Afghanistan and Pakistan newspapers. All I ended up getting was stories of taliban activities and various roadside bombings.