Afghans: US bombing run kills dozens of civilians

[Alamuti Lotus]

Source: AP

KABUL – Afghan officials said U.S.-ordered bombing runs killed dozens of civilians taking shelter Tuesday from a battle with Taliban militants, and villagers took several truckloads of bodies to show the provincial governor. The U.S. promised a joint investigation.

A provincial councilman said he saw about 30 bodies, many of them women and children.

Khan said villagers brought bodies, including women and children, to Farah city to show the province's governor. Khan estimated that villagers brought about 30 bodies.

"It was difficult to count because they were in very bad shape. Some had no legs," Khan said.

Farah's hospital treated at least three wounded villagers, including an 11-year-old boy whose chest, arms and shoulders were completely bandaged. A girl named Shafiqa had bandages under her chin. Two of her toes were severed in the fighting.

"We were at home when the bombing started," she told AP Television News. "Seven members of my family were killed."

Khan said villagers told him more than 150 civilians had died, but he said he had no way to know whether that claim was true.

Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090506/ap_on_re_as/as_afghanistan

[Downwinder]

1. But we observe the Geneva Convention.

We don't maim, kill, or torture noncombatants.

[Alamuti Lotus]

2. and we're certainly not barbarians, either

[Downwinder]

3. We just use distance weapons, it's safer and easier that way. n/t

[EFerrari]

7. Safer for the Pentagon.

[ronnie624]

5. I detect a note of sarcasm.

Am I correct, fellow Denisonian?

[Downwinder]

11. Read MZB's Darkover series.

[excess_3]

9. IIRC, G.C. does not apply to non-prisoners n/t

[EFerrari]

10. Geneva has provisions for just about every class of person you can think of

no matter what the criminals in the Bush administration said.

It's widely available on line with some good summaries.

Edit to add: And how sad is it that some of us had to go and read it ourselves to verify that the Torture President was full of it.

[Downwinder]

12. I'm sure he knows it much better than he lets on.

We both learned it at the same place. The Air Force has some pretty decent training.

[EFerrari]

14. But I bet most of you all showed up, sober and everything.

:)

[Downwinder]

15. You had better insure that bet with AIG.

[EFerrari]

17. LOL!

[excess_3]

20. please be as specific as you can

here is what Wiki has


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geneva_convention

[Downwinder]

21. OK. If not enough there's more.

civilian

A civilian is any person who does not belong to any of the following categories: members of the armed forces, militias or volunteer corps, organized resistance movements, and residents of an occupied territory who spontaneously take up arms. If there is any doubt whether a person is civilian, then he or she is to be considered a civilian. (Protocol I, Art. 50, Sec. 1)

civilian immunity

Civilians have special protections under Convention IV, Protocol I, and Protocol II.

They must be treated humanely, without discrimination based on race, color, religion or faith, sex, birth or wealth, or other similar criteria.

Violence to life and person including murder, mutilation, cruel treatment and torture are prohibited.

The taking of hostages is prohibited.

Outrages upon personal dignity, including humiliating and degrading treatment are prohibited.

Sentences and executions without a judgment from a regularly constituted court and without benefit of the standard judicial guarantees are prohibited. (Convention IV, Art. 3)

See civilian population, women, murder, rape, torture, discrimination, civilian property, places of worship, cultural objects, grave breaches, and indiscriminate bombing to start with.

[excess_3]

26. how were hostages involved? ,n/t

[Downwinder]

27. By your selective choice

you are admitting to all of the other violations.

[muriel_volestrangler]

22. That's fairly easy - there are the 4 conventions

* First Geneva Convention "for the Amelioration of the Condition of the Wounded and Sick in Armed Forces in the Field" (first adopted in 1864, last revision in 1949).
* Second Geneva Convention "for the Amelioration of the Condition of Wounded, Sick and Shipwrecked Members of Armed Forces at Sea" (first adopted in 1906).
* Third Geneva Convention "relative to the Treatment of Prisoners of War" (first adopted in 1929, last revision in 1949).
* Fourth Geneva Convention "relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War" (first adopted in 1949, based on parts of the 1907 Hague Convention IV).

So that's wounded, sick and shipwrecked armed forces; prisoners of war; and civilians. Here, it's the one about civilians that's of interest.

[excess_3]

28. it's the 4th G.C that is of concern to others?

so what exactly is the violation when
civilian shields are killed as incidental to battle

thanks for any comments, BTW

[bvar22]

4. Change we can believe in....

?

[frog92969]

6. No

We can't blame bu$h for this one,
these are Obama's victims.

[fbahrami]

8. Shame

on America.

[winyanstaz]

13. This breaks my heart...

What kind of monsters think it is acceptable to blow up women and kids anyways? Will someone please tell me what we are in Afghanistan for?
Its not the Neocons waging endless wars now.

[EFerrari]

16. NeoCon Richard Holbrooke is our Special Rep to Afghanistan and Pakistan. n/t

[Downwinder]

18. I think Richard Armitage is still floating through the area.

The whole crew is there. except the "blond ghost" died. Thats where the poppies are.

Edit to add: It must be a strain on Holbrooke to handle both Bolivia and Afghanistan. Both are going south. He turned 68 last month.

[EFerrari]

19. Yep. There's no way the "entrepreneurs" are going to walk away from that.

Especially with the leftists like Morales in Bolivia kicking DEA and our "ambassadors" out of their countries.

[Vidar]

23. Collateral damage: what we do best.

[Downwinder]

24. by intention. Shock and Awe

collateral damage

Weapons, projectiles and methods of warfare that cause superfluous injury or unnecessary suffering are prohibited. (Protocol I, Art. 35, Sec. 2)

civilian property

Combatants must distinguish between civilian and military property and attack only military property. (Protocol I, Art. 48)


Edit to add: We do it here -- send out the SWAT team to a frat party.

[Vidar]

25. Too true.

[Alamuti Lotus]

29. after several thousand "mistakenly killed', can it really be called a mistake?

[ohio2007]

30. Taliban staged "air strike" attack on three families as PR stunt

winning the hearts and minds



Taliban may have killed families
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/22425001/vp/30605155#30605155
and 'staged an airstrike' later

[Alamuti Lotus]

31. Staging airstrikes against themselves now?

You really think that? Golly, next they'll be kicking puppies and dumping aborted white fetuses out of incubators. The machine is on full whurl.

[ohio2007]

32. You got owned by the Taliban propaganda you posted . Why didn't you watch the video I posted ?

oh, yeah,
You didn't like what they said and

NBC isn't to be trusted by the 'tin foil' crowd

btw

you still plan to be his 4rth wife when he gets to your door ?


bear his suicide bomber unaborted children ?