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The Straight Story

(48,121 posts) Sat Mar 2, 2013, 05:55 PM Mar 2013

Two Afghan Boys (11/12 yrs old) Accidentally Killed by NATO Helicopter, thought they were insurgents

Two Afghan Boys Accidentally Killed by NATO Helicopter

KABUL, Afghanistan — Two boys out collecting firewood with their donkeys were killed by weapons fired from a NATO helicopter, Afghan and American military officials announced Saturday.

The new American commander in Afghanistan, Gen. Joseph F. Dunford Jr., promptly issued an apology and said the killings were an accident.

The victims, Toor Jan, 11, and Andul Wodood, 12, were brothers and had been walking behind their donkeys in the Shahed-e-Hasas district of Oruzgan Province when the helicopter fired on them, according to Afghan officials in the district. The two donkeys were killed as well.

General Dunford said that coalition forces had opened fire on what they thought were insurgent forces, and killed the boys by accident. “I offer my personal apology and condolences to the family of the boys who were killed,” General Dunford said. “We take full responsibility for this tragedy.”

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/03/03/world/asia/two-afghan-boys-accidentally-killed-by-nato-helicopter.html?_r=0

5 replies

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Two Afghan Boys (11/12 yrs old) Accidentally Killed by NATO Helicopter, thought they were insurgents (Original Post) The Straight Story Mar 2013 OP

Sad, but innocents dying in wartime has been with us as long as there have been wars SoCalDem Mar 2013 #1

after reading an article like this it is absolutely crucial to remember that green for victory Mar 2013 #2

Bring the troops home and quit killing Afghan children think Mar 2013 #3

+1 Go Vols Mar 2013 #4

Similar incident involving our guys. So terribly sad. SwissTony Mar 2013 #5

SoCalDem

(103,856 posts)

1. Sad, but innocents dying in wartime has been with us as long as there have been wars

Reply to The Straight Story (Original post)

Sat Mar 2, 2013, 06:06 PM

Mar 2013

There were innocents asleep in Dresden when firebombing commenced
There were innocents in rice paddies/villages when B-52s bombed the hell out of Viet Nam, Cambodia, Laos

Wartime hands are all dirty, whether they hold a gun, a grenade, a bomb-sight or a joystick.

green for victory

(591 posts)

2. after reading an article like this it is absolutely crucial to remember that

Reply to The Straight Story (Original post)

Sat Mar 2, 2013, 06:21 PM

Mar 2013

"they" hate us for our freedoms.

Actually, "they" should hate us less now, because we are less free.

Brilliant logic, isn't it?

So, if "We" keep giving up our freedoms, and keep killing "them" soon we'll all be safe. Right?

think

(11,641 posts)

3. Bring the troops home and quit killing Afghan children

Reply to The Straight Story (Original post)

Sat Mar 2, 2013, 06:22 PM

Mar 2013

Please...

Go Vols

(5,902 posts)

4. +1

Reply to think (Reply #3)

Sat Mar 2, 2013, 06:26 PM

Mar 2013

SwissTony

(2,560 posts)

5. Similar incident involving our guys. So terribly sad.

Reply to The Straight Story (Original post)

Sat Mar 2, 2013, 07:00 PM

Mar 2013

Australian troops killed two Afghan children: governor

An Afghan governor says Australian soldiers in the country's south shot dead two children tending cattle, in an incident likely to escalate tensions over the conduct of international troops.

Civilian casualties caused by NATO-led forces have been one of the most contentious issues in the campaign against Taliban insurgents, often triggering widespread public anger and harsh criticism from president Hamid Karzai.

On Friday the Australian Defence Force (ADF) only said Australian troops were involved in an "operational incident" in north-west Uruzgan province and an investigation was underway.

Uruzgan provincial governor Amir Mohammad Akhundzada told AFP on Saturday that Australian troops killed two children, aged seven and eight, in a "mistaken" retaliatory attack.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-03-03/australian-troops-killed-two-afghan-children-governor-says/4549856

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