US Drone Kills Two Women, Child in Attack on Afghan Home

Karzai: No Deal Unless Drone Strikes Stop

There’s never really a good time to blow up a house-load of civilians, but the Obama Administration seems to find particularly inopportune times to do so, following up a week-long battle with Afghan President Hamid Karzai over extending their occupation by blowing up a home, killing two women and a child within.

President Karzai was quick to condemn the strike is indicative of the US willingness to needlessly endanger civilians in the 12-plus year war, saying he would definitely not sign the Bilateral Security Agreement (BSA) unless such strikes stop.

The US has been demanding Karzai sign the BSA by the end of the year, threatening to withdraw if he refuses and even trying to find ways to get it into effect without the Afghan president’s signature.

Karzai, whose final term in office ends in April, insists that the deal should wait until then, and has pressed the US for more concessions, including ending night raids on Afghan civilian homes and releasing Afghan citizens from Guantanamo Bay, as conditions for an early signature. The drone strike just adds one more thing to the list, since apparently the Obama Administration needs it to be spelled out in writing that they’re not allowed to blow up homes.

Author: Jason Ditz

Jason Ditz is Senior Editor for Antiwar.com. He has 20 years of experience in foreign policy research and his work has appeared in The American Conservative, Responsible Statecraft, Forbes, Toronto Star, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Providence Journal, Washington Times, and the Detroit Free Press.