16 die in U.S., Afghan strike against warlord

[unhappycamper]

16 die in U.S., Afghan strike against warlord
By Amir Shah - The Associated Press
Posted : Monday Apr 7, 2008 14:18:32 EDT

KABUL, Afghanistan — U.S. and Afghan forces attacked a remote village in a mountainous region of northeastern Afghanistan following reports that an infamous insurgent leader was in the area, a governor said Monday. At least 16 people were killed.

Gov. Tamim Nuristani said Afghan soldiers told him Gulbuddin Hekmatyar was meeting with top deputy Kashmir Khan in the Dohabi district of Nuristan province on Sunday, sparking a fierce bombardment. The Defense Ministry said Hekmatyar wasn’t the target but that fighters from his group, Hezb-i-Islami, had gathered in the village alongside Taliban militants.

Other provincial leaders said many civilians were killed in the hours-long clash, which included airstrikes in the remote villages of Shok and Kendal. Nuristani said it was too early to know if any of the 16 killed were civilians. His casualty figures came from police who had reached the remote district.

U.S. officials and the Afghan Defense Ministry have denied that any civilians were killed.

The competing claims were impossible to reconcile because the fighting took part in a remote and dangerous part of the country. U.S. officials say that militants falsely claim civilian casualties as a strategy to weaken the international military coalition and the Afghan government.


Rest of article at: http://www.navytimes.com/news/2008/04/ap_afganistan_040708/

[acmavm]

1. US and Afgan officials are batshit crazy if they think we're stupid enough

not to think heavy bombardment doesn't kill innocent civilians.

Why do they talk to us like we're stupid? Because they can, that's why.

[izzie]

One of these days the same old stuff may work.

Storming the beaches did work once. Their is always hope that we will win another war if we just keep turning our taxes to the problem. To bad if the people who pay the tax need any thing when we have so many nice wars to play in and waste that money. Our waring leaders look sort of sad next to those old time generals like Washington. No rides down the line on a white horse for our sorry leaders. I am so sick of these wars.

[izzie]

2. One of these days the same old stuff may work.

Storming the beaches did work once. Their is always hope that we will win another war if we just keep turning our taxes to the problem. To bad if the people who pay the tax need any thing when we have so many nice wars to play in and waste that money. Our waring leaders look sort of sad next to those old time generals like Washington. No rides down the line on a white horse for our sorry leaders. I am so sick of these wars.