US admits to mistakes in Afghan air strikes
The US has ordered the retraining of personnel involved in conducting air strikes in the country
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Saturday, 20, Jun 2009 11:17
The US has admitted to making mistakes in air strikes in Afghanistan which led to the deaths of many civilians in operations targeting the Taliban.
Civilian casualties in the strikes against the Islamist insurgents have repeatedly strained ties between the US and Afghanistan. On a trip to Washington this year, Afghan president Hamid Karzai labeled any deaths other than those of the Islamist rebels as being unacceptable.
A report prepared by the Pentagon looked into seven strikes that took place in the country's Farah province on May 4th and concluded that guidance had not been followed which resulted in civilian casualties.
The investigation also stated that it was likely that more civilians than the previously announced toll of 26 could have been killed in the strikes, adding that there was no way of finding out the precise number of casualties in the attack.
Authors of the report recommended improvements in communication processes, the retraining of personnel and the introduction of new guidelines to prevent similar mistakes in the future.
While the authors expressed support for the policy of continuing air strikes, they also called for a greater emphasis on avoiding civilian casualties and for it to be seen as a "fundamental aspect of mission success".