Afghan President Hamid Karzai on Sunday condemned the murder of 16 civilians by a U.S. soldier in southern Afghanistan, as an “unforgivable crime”.
“Late last night, an American soldier went inside people’s homes in Balandi Pul, in the Zangabad area of Panjwai district and killed 16 civilians, including nine children and three women, and wounded five others,” a Presidential palace statement said.
“The Afghan government has often condemned those so-called counter-terrorism operations in which civilians suffer casualties,” Mr. Karzai was quoted as saying in the statement. “But if American soldiers intentionally kill people, then it is... an unforgivable crime.” Mr. Karzai had asked the United States to explain the incident to the people of Afghanistan. The statement also quoted Haji Samad Aka, members of whose family were among those killed.
“American forces have killed innocent people despite your continued calls to prevent civilian causalities,” Mr. Aka told Mr. Karzai by telephone. “American soldiers oppress us.”
A delegation had been sent to Panjwai to investigate the killings, the palace said.
Keywords: Panjwai killing, rogue U.S. soldier, NATO forces, Kandahar
Jim Kendall, the reason we are in that country is because Terrorists that attacked the World Trade Center, along with civilian planes, with children on them. The Terrorists made that country their home. We had every right to be there. We are not the ones that started this. You also can't blame all Americans because of one psycho. s.
US have to pay high price for this brutal act.
American people should live the Afghanistan alone so that they can make their own country peace.
When if ever will this tragedy ever end! It is extremely sad to hear about the
massacre of innocent Afghan women & children. USA has proved time and again that
all its honeyed words about fighting terrorism, establishing freedom are merely
words. What this military occupation entails for the Afghan civilians are drone
attacks, Koran burnings, torture in US controlled prisons and random slaughter of
innocents by well armed, mentally disturbed, out of control soldiers. It is time that
USA, instead of issuing one more apology, pack all its forces lock, stock & barrel and
leave the Afghan people to its own devices.
While neither a journalist nor a nurse can diagnose the soldier with PTSD, I think it would benefit world relations to discuss this topic in the news AT THE SAME TIME AS SUCH TRAGIC EVENTS ARE REPORTED. I need to hear about more science in my news and less about what politicians say. Politicians dominate the news; yet they represent only one discipline and one way of seeing the world. For example, I question the wisdom of reporting that anything is "unforgivable" without balancing it with a comment from a peer-reviewed scholar in the field of political science or sociology or psychology. I would like to see some evidence please that reading your articles promotes understanding and peace. Perhaps there is also a story to be found where an Afghani soldier killed innocent people for no apparent reason? Could that help us make peace? I want to see evidence that peace is the goal of your writing; I want to believe that reading is a way to seek understanding and peace.
You give guns to these American brats, with their Republican-sponsored-"freedoms" then you wonder why? the brats can feel free to impinge-revoke the freedoms of others in foreign lands. War is an irrational condition. To be in Afghanistan - fighting for God knows what? - is to invite irrational outcome. I'm an American; and I say that the war these irresponsible brats were given guns to fight in; reflects the karma of America, in its outcome.
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