Statistically Favoured Drone Targets in Afghanistan
by stan Tuesday, Sep 18 2012, 2:51am
international /
prose /
post
According to coalition figures the most dangerous social pursuits in Afghanistan are attending funerals, weddings and collecting firewood. These civilian groups have been PERSISTENTLY attacked over the YEARS making it impossible to believe that such attacks are targeting errors -- real procedural errors would have been corrected years past! So what are we to make of the latest "precision" air-strike that killed eight women collecting firewood and wounded several others, including children as young as ten?
It is not the first time that children have been mistaken for 'insurgents.' Now consider the advanced camera systems on board Drones and it becomes incredulous that children in the company of adults are mistaken for fighters - unless of course Afghanistan has a group of midget combatants -- I am not making light of these murderous and tragic attacks on INNOCENT civilians by the US and its NATO allies, I am simply highlighting the absurdity of the claims that coalition forces have made over the years and continue to make TODAY.
Clearly, what is URGENTLY required is a LEGAL punitive measure that would prevent these far too frequent attacks in the future; that measure is known to everyone though every effort is made to keep it out of the media and public consciousness -- you KNOW IT, WAR CRIMES TRIALS! Killing civilians is INDEFENSIBLE at the inordinate rates they are consciously or mistakenly targeted today. The LAW and JUSTICE MUST APPLY TO EVERYONE -- not just America's enemies, otherwise the LAW is mocked and becomes a weapon wielded by criminal forces.
Reason and logic dictate that targeting methods are either tragically IMPRECISE, substandard or that these CIVILIAN attacks are intentional reprisals.
Existing LEGAL options must be pursed in order to stem these horrific attacks on women and children -- it is NOT enough, Mr Chris Hedges and Co, to simply take action on behalf of American citizens, INNOCENT PEOPLE everywhere must be defended by people of conscience otherwise you ALL stand as the American HYPOCRITES you appear to be.
http://www.commondreams.org/view/2012/09/17-10