General McChrystal Goes On Afghanistan TV To Promise Airstrike Death Inquiry

General Stanley McChyrstal sent Nato officers to meet relatives of victims as part of a fact-finding mission. Photo: AP

From The Telegraph:

The commander of Nato forces in Afghanistan, General Stanley McChyrstal, has promised to investigate fully the airstrike which killed at least 80, many civilians, and injured more.

Gen McChrystal flew to the northeern Kunduz province to see the damage done by the F-15 fighter jet attack on two hijacked fuel tankers, around which villagers had begun to gather shortly before dawn when Nato missiles struck.

Before he did so, Gen McChrystal - who has said that protecting Afghans is the centrepiece of a new Nato strategy - made an unprecedented televised address to the Afghan people, promising to make the outcome of an investigation public.

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My Comment: This case reminds me of what happened in Baghdad in the first few weeks of the war. An American transport column was ambushed, and one of transport vehicles filled with ammunition and weapons had to be left behind. A strike was then ordered to make sure that these weapons and equipment do not fall into the hands of the enemy.

The missile strike occurred at the same time when dozens of civilians were stripping the vehicle of its contents, resulting in the killing and injuring of many of them.

An outcry followed then .... but in the future no abandoned American vehicle was approached by anyone who was aware of the what had happened in Baghdad.

I now expect the same thing to happen in Afghanistan.

This attack also illustrates the failure of German military policy and operations in this region. Time Magazine has done an excellent analysis on what has happened in what was once a peaceful region of Afghanistan .... but more importantly .... how limiting the German military from conducting military operations is now effectively giving the Taliban a strategic advantage in this war .... resulting in the disaster that occurred this week. The link to this article is at .... Target Germany: A Second Front in Afghanistan?