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US Air Strikes in Afghanistan Kill 90 Civilians

Posted on: Wednesday, August 27, 2008

Keywords: Peace Building, Afghanistan, Middle East

Last week, in one of the most devastating attacks since the US-led invasion of Afghanistan in 2001, US air strikes took the lives of at least 90 civilians—including 60 children. These numbers have been verified by a team of UN investigators, who cite "convincing evidence" and eyewitness testimony of the damage and loss of life.

Statements from the US military have attempted to brush away these charges, and the US forces have initiated their own separate investigation. The attack has been justified as a "legitimate" targeting of Taliban militants. The US has disputed the number of dead, stating 25 militants and five civilians were killed.

Afghan President Hamid Karzai condemned the indiscriminate use of air strikes that ignore the danger to civilian life and called for an immediate stop to such tactics. Yet, these repeated demands have gone unheeded. While the US media focuses attention on the upcoming elections, the war in Afghanistan has continued to exist under the radar. Furthermore, the "war on terror" provides blanket coverage for US military spokespeople to dismiss civilian deaths in the context of a "legitimate strike on a Taliban target." MADRE supports the call for an end to the air strikes and denounces US military attacks that destroy communities, homes and lives.

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