blackascoal
The Force is With Me
Story Highlights
NEW: Video shows rows of blankets, apparent mourners wailing by loved ones
Locals apparently pulled bodies from rubble after U.S. troops left compound
Reports say as many as 90 civilians killed in strike; Pentagon disputes death toll
U.S. says it killed at least 30 militants, uncovered cache of weapons in strike
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Cell phone images are providing evidence that a large number of civilians may have been mistakenly killed by U.S. troops operating in Afghanistan last month, two NATO officials said Sunday.
The Afghan government, a United Nations review and other reports from the region state that as many as 90 civilians were killed in an August 22 airstrike, but the Pentagon has adamantly disputed the death toll.
Another U.S. military official, who has seen the cell phone imagery but asked not to be named because he is not authorized to speak to the media, said Monday there were about 30 bodies, some covered and some in blankets.
There were "several children who appear to be pulled from the rubble," he said.
The grainy cell phone video, viewed by CNN, shows rows of blankets and quilts inside a building. In the video, someone lifts the blankets to show the heads of those slain. People who appear to be mourners sit by their loved ones and wail.
---
On August 25, Afghanistan's Council of Ministers called on the Defense and Foreign Affairs ministries to start negotiating a "status of forces" agreement with international forces -- which include U.S. and NATO troops.
The council also asked that the ministries demand the international forces halt airstrikes on civilian targets, as well as house searches not coordinated with Afghan authorities and the illegal detention of civilians.
That same day, Afghan President Hamid Karzai announced that he had fired two military commanders, including Gen. Jalandar Shah, the Afghan army corps' commander for western Afghanistan.
The humanitarian watchdog group Human Rights Watch released a report Monday saying that U.S. and NATO airstrikes in Afghanistan almost tripled from 2006 to 2007, "fueling a public backlash." The report added that this year, there has been a "massive and unprecedented surge in the use of airpower" there.
more at link --
http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/09/08/afghan.civilians/index.html
NEW: Video shows rows of blankets, apparent mourners wailing by loved ones
Locals apparently pulled bodies from rubble after U.S. troops left compound
Reports say as many as 90 civilians killed in strike; Pentagon disputes death toll
U.S. says it killed at least 30 militants, uncovered cache of weapons in strike
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Cell phone images are providing evidence that a large number of civilians may have been mistakenly killed by U.S. troops operating in Afghanistan last month, two NATO officials said Sunday.
The Afghan government, a United Nations review and other reports from the region state that as many as 90 civilians were killed in an August 22 airstrike, but the Pentagon has adamantly disputed the death toll.
Another U.S. military official, who has seen the cell phone imagery but asked not to be named because he is not authorized to speak to the media, said Monday there were about 30 bodies, some covered and some in blankets.
There were "several children who appear to be pulled from the rubble," he said.
The grainy cell phone video, viewed by CNN, shows rows of blankets and quilts inside a building. In the video, someone lifts the blankets to show the heads of those slain. People who appear to be mourners sit by their loved ones and wail.
---
On August 25, Afghanistan's Council of Ministers called on the Defense and Foreign Affairs ministries to start negotiating a "status of forces" agreement with international forces -- which include U.S. and NATO troops.
The council also asked that the ministries demand the international forces halt airstrikes on civilian targets, as well as house searches not coordinated with Afghan authorities and the illegal detention of civilians.
That same day, Afghan President Hamid Karzai announced that he had fired two military commanders, including Gen. Jalandar Shah, the Afghan army corps' commander for western Afghanistan.
The humanitarian watchdog group Human Rights Watch released a report Monday saying that U.S. and NATO airstrikes in Afghanistan almost tripled from 2006 to 2007, "fueling a public backlash." The report added that this year, there has been a "massive and unprecedented surge in the use of airpower" there.
more at link --
http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/09/08/afghan.civilians/index.html
