Hurling Lead in Afghanistan

The President of Afghanistan pleaded to the United States and Great Britain that their troops make a greater effort to stop killing civilians. The plea came recently after 16 civilians, including a family of 12, were killed accidentally in a western offensive in Marja. "We've been hurling lead all day" said a Marine lieutenant involved in the assault. In a recent NATO air strike, 27 civilians were killed. The planes did not know that the convoy they attacked consisted of civilians. Last Thursday, 7 Iraqi policemen were killed in an air strike after they were suspected of planting a bomb. Last Monday, 5 more Iraqis were killed in another mistaken air strike. NATO commander, U.S. General McChrystal apologized. The U.S. said it will see what it can do to prevent civilian casualties. On the bright side, of the 2,412 civilians reported killed last year, only 30 percent were attributed to NATO. It is unclear how many Afghans accepted McChrystal's apology.

While the death of Iraqi soldiers, policemen, and civilians is "regrettable" to Western military officials, it is tragic to the families of those killed. Moreover, civilian deaths and the destruction of property and livestock do little to endear villagers to the Western troops responsible for those deaths and damage. The death and destruction remain long after the insurgents are dead and soldiers and Marines are gone. Western officials say the civilian casualties cannot be helped when enemy insurgents hide among civilians and ambush troops. But is it necessary to launch a determined military assault on a village because some insurgents are holed up there, or launch an air strike to destroy a car or a handful of men lurking suspiciously beside a road? To the military it is. That is their job. They are trained to assault villages and drop bombs. They are not police. They have artillery, tanks, and aircraft. When a village is bombarded and assaulted by soldiers and Marines, it is near certain that civilians will be harmed and killed and property will be damaged. The Taliban know this. Indeed, they count on it.

In regard to the mistaken air attack, a NATO official stated that "a group of suspected insurgents driving SUVs, believed to be en route to attack a joint Afghan-ISAF unit was engaged by an airborne weapons team." What is disturbing is that there were no Afghan forces operating in the area. Neither was their any record of Afghan soldiers requesting an air attack. Dutch soldiers responsible for the area denied requesting air support. If an air strike had not been called for and there were no reports of Afghan insurgents in the area, let alone insurgents driving SUVs, why would the aircraft take it upon themselves to attack two vehicles driving down a road? Who, besides the pilots, suspected that the occupants of the vehicles were insurgents and believed they were on their way to attack NATO forces?

Despite using technology and adopting measures to limit civilian casualties and property damage, civilians are still dying and property is still being destroyed. Once a village is surrounded, the insurgents have nowhere to go. It becomes a matter of ferreting them out; a task better suited the Army or even the police than the Air Force. If it is a case where only a small number of insurgents are suspected of holding out in a village, or planting a bomb, air strikes should not be needed. Air strikes and machine guns may be the surest and safest way to attack a target, but if one wants to win the hearts and minds of the locals, "hurling lead" and dropping bombs on villages and cars is probably not the best way. Bombs and missiles cannot see inside houses or know who or what is in them. Neither can the see inside vehicles or know where they are going. Less impersonal methods may take more time and entail higher risks, but the pay off would be better in the long run.

War is a violent business. People get killed and property gets destroyed. When fighting takes place amidst civilians, it is inevitable that civilians will be killed and injured. Nevertheless, we should give them a chance. Civilians can find refuge from small arms fire. If all else fails, they can come out with their hands up. You cannot surrender to missiles and you cannot hide from bombs.