7.23.2010

Hypocrisy? Gen. Petraeus slams Taliban for 'indiscriminate' civilian kills in Afghanistan

hypocrisy |hiˈpäkrisē|
noun ( pl. -sies)
the practice of claiming to have moral standards or beliefs to which one's own behavior does not conform; pretense.*
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Perhaps you will find this article: Gen. Petraeus slams Taliban for 'indiscriminate' civilian kills in Afghanistan as hypocritical as did I. From the article:

"Gen. David Petraeus is turning the tables on the Taliban for "indiscriminate" civilian killings, which U.S. forces have taken heat over for years.

The latest in a flurry of statements by NATO's International Security Assistance Force in Kabul, Afghanistan, slammed insurgents for killing one and wounding eight innocents with gunfire, grenades and improvised bombs in Kandahar and Logar provinces.

According to confirmed reports, insurgents have killed 87 civilians and wounded 193 in the past three weeks," ISAF said
"
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But if one were to take a step back and think critically - what do we have to compare the actions of our chosen enemies to so we can determine what can be considered "indiscriminate?"

How about our own actions? Let's see what some mainstream sources can tell us about the performance of the U.S. military when it comes to avoiding civilian casualties.

First please consider: THIS ARTICLE:

" Iraqi Civilians Killed, Estimated - A UN issued report dated Sept 20, 2006 stating that Iraqi civilian casualties have been significantly under-reported. Casualties are reported at 50,000 to over 100,000, but may be much higher. Some informed estimates place Iraqi civilian casualities at over 600,000."

The author of the above article provides THIS LINK to a Brookings Institution Document you may wish to examine for yourself.

Here's another: U.S. drone attacks in Pakistan get mixed response:

" The Khan family never heard it. They had been sleeping for an hour when a Hellfire missile pierced their mud hut on an August night in 2008. Black smoke and dust choked villagers as they dug through the rubble.

Four-year-old Zeerak's legs were severed. His sister Maria, 3, was badly scorched. Both were dead. When their cousin Irfan, 16, saw them, he gently curled them into his arms, squeezed the rumpled bodies to his chest, lightly kissed their faces, and slid into a stupor.
"

...another: 60 drone hits kill 14 al-Qaeda men, 687 civilians

" LAHORE: Of the 60 cross-border predator strikes carried out by the Afghanistan-based American drones in Pakistan between January 14, 2006 and April 8, 2009, only 10 were able to hit their actual targets, killing 14 wanted al-Qaeda leaders, besides perishing 687 innocent Pakistani civilians. The success percentage of the US predator strikes thus comes to not more than six per cent."

...another: The Year of the Drone (New America Foundation) The site has a clickable map you can use interactively:

" Our study shows that the 142 reported drone strikes in northwest Pakistan, including 46 in 2010, from 2004 to the present have killed approximately between 1,013 and 1,362 individuals, of whom around 702 to 1,013 were described as militants in reliable press accounts. Thus, the true non-militant fatality rate since 2004 according to our analysis is approximately 33 percent."

Interactive Drone Strike Map from New America Foundation

View U.S. drone strikes in Pakistan in a larger map

...another: New York Times: Operators of Drones Are Faulted in Afghan Deaths:

" KABUL, Afghanistan — The American military on Saturday released a scathing report on the deaths of 23 Afghan civilians, saying that “inaccurate and unprofessional” reporting by Predator drone operators helped lead to an airstrike in February on a group of innocent men, women and children.

...The Predator operators reported seeing only military-age men in the truck, the report said. The ground commander concurred, the report said, and the Special Operations team asked for an airstrike. An OH-58D Kiowa helicopter fired Hellfire missiles and rockets, destroying the vehicles and killing 23 civilians. Twelve others were wounded.
"

...another: Global Research: International Law: The First Casualty of America's Drone War
A comprehensive legal analysis of U.S. drone strikes in Pakistan
:


" Case Study #1

The first case study selected is the September 8, 2008 missile attack on a North Waziristan village. The drones fired at least five missiles at a religious school founded by Jalaluddin Haqqani—a Taliban leader (who was formerly financed by the CIA) and the official target of the U.S. attack. At least 17 people were killed with some estimates reaching as high as 23.[30] Of those killed, at least eight were children. Haqqani's wife, sister, and sister-in-law were all killed as well. Roughly twenty were wounded, most of which were women and children according to doctors on the scene. Haqqani was not present at the time of the bombing.[31]

Case Study #2

Initially, U.S. and Pakistani officials declared that up to four members of al-Qaeda were killed in the bombings. ABC News could hardly contain its euphoria over the killings and declared the Muslim holiday gathering to be a "terror summit."[33] When the dust settled after the blasts, at least three houses were totally destroyed and at least 18 people were killed, with some reports putting the death toll as high as 22.[34] By all accounts, five children and five women were among the dead while 14 of the dead were likely from the same family.[35] Furthermore, it has since been confirmed that the "terror summit" was nothing of the sort, with U.S. and Pakistani officials later admitting that "none of those al-Qaeda leaders" previously alleged to have "perished in the strike" were in fact killed, noting that "only local villagers were killed."[36]"

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The Global Research article above goes into much depth with more case studies and the legal ramifications. But we can't blame the military for all this mayhem- let's not forget the contractors. You may be familiar with the video below:



...By the way - if you think this is all in the past - think again. Here's one from today: July 24, 2010: 16 killed in US drone attack in Pakistan:

" At least 16 people have been killed during a US drone attack in Pakistan's northwestern
tribal belt, security officials say.
... Over the past few years, hundreds of people, mostly civilians, have been killed in similar US attacks in the region.
"
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Conclusion: Those who live in glass houses should not throw stones. Practice what you preach. Lead by example.
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~picture borrowed from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/General_Atomics_MQ-1_Predator
*Apple dictionary


1 comment:

  1. Islam forbids killing innocent people during war, but the Americans on the other hand... well a people who does not fear the Lord will do anything the devil whispering into their ears. what if America attacked Lebanon or Turkey? would they be able to fight like the Afghans? I dont think so. look at Palestine, they are fucked by the jews and the dirty jews are not powerful like USA. Afghans are born to fight and they will die trying to kill the enemy. God bless all Afghans and Afghan Rebels for their Heroic work.

    ReplyDelete

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