Last Updated 2/15 2:55 PM EST
The Battle of Marjah was supposed to be the centerpiece of the Obama escalation, showcasing NATO’s firepower against the farming community while emphasizing strategic changes designed to limit civilian casualties.
This has failed on both fronts, with troops encountering heavy resistance and making slow progress in occupying the town, and even more importantly an embarrasingly high profile mishap involving US forces.
According to NATO, the US was attempting to use its High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HiMARS) to attack some nearby insurgents. The rockets fired from the HiMARS “missed” their targets, and instead hit a crowded home 300 meters away, killing at least 12 Afghan civilians.
Officials were quick to apologize, and the HiMARS has been temporarily barred from service, but after US forces papered the region with leaflets urging civilians to “stay put” during the invasion, the killings have once again drawn uncomfortable attention to the inaccuracy of war inside a town.
Making matters worse, the HiMARS incident wasn’t the only case of NATO forces killing civilians. In neighboring Kandahar Province, NATO confirms they ordered an air strike against what they assumed were “militants” planting IEDs, but were later revealed to be innocent civilians. Five were killed and two injured.
Despite the killings and the fighting, officials insist that the invasion is “going to plan.” Those paying attention over the past month however will recall repeated predictions of a quick victory with little battle, and the reality has been anything but.
now we know the Purpose behind this Mission. Field Proving new Weapon Systems.
is the CIA proof reading the Letters Now ?
stupid is as stupid does – america is a stupid country in a stupid war. What more can be said?
Bad things happen in war, and until there is no more war that will remain true.
Like the natives in Africia in catching a monkey. No arrows or guns just a bottle with a small neck and some nuts.The Bottle is laid on the ground and the monkey climbs down from the coconut tree. Shoves his hand in the bottle and in huury cluthes a hand full. Once the native rushs in,the Monkey refuses to unhold the nuts and his hand is stuck and can't climb to safety—Greed!
Same thing about NATO countries– Pure Greed,can't let go for the resources and Cheap Drugs.
From yesteryear, Scattered bones in the deserts of Afghastian are from 10,000 British soldiers. Stupid like the Monkey discussed.
Can someone tell me what it was that the Afghans did to the USA to deserves this?
Don't matter. Everything is still going to plan and the plan is to make rich people richer. The dead civilians and soldiers? Who cares! They aren't rich. If they were they wouldn't be there.
In an illegal, immoral war of aggression such as this one, everybody's a "civilian".
I guess a slaughter of 12 is "going to plan". But wait, we apologized!!! Support the troops.
Understanding patriotic guerrilla wars or wars of patriotic resistance:
When you fight wars against civilians (no matter what you like to call them) resisting foreign occupation and domination than of course the ones killed are always civilians because there are no others to kill.
PS…. ………or is “patriotism” an exclusive American phenomenon or is it “pseudo-patriotism” Americans are being brainwashed with.
Bush and Cheney and ALL in their Administration should be on trial for WAR CRIMES committed against the people of Iraq and Afghanistan. And now Obama and ALL in his Administration should be added to the group put on trial for WAR Crimes. War in Afghanistan is ALL about the gas pipeline that Big Oil wants to build through that country. IF we have a "war on terror" – which is as phony as a three dollar bill – then why are we attacking the Taliban? The 'lesson' of the Vietnam War is that with stupid arrogance, America refuses to learn the lesson that illegally invading and occupying another country while killing its citizens leads to ultimate defeat! We have met the real terrorists and it is U.S.!
HIMARS is a "small" MLRS(Multiple Launch Rocket System). Fired in large numbers the rockets are intended to destroy a wide area, several acres. These are not meant to be "super accurate". Firing them into a city you almost guarantee a 100% chance of killing a large number of civilians. I am not convinced this was entirely an accident. Perhaps the US officer in charge wanted to level a whole neighborhood in the city where the locals were resisting, and then claim each of the dead was a "Taliban insurgent" but it did not turn out as planned.
Anyway the reports of the battle are ridiculous, in some alternate universe it would read something like this – Chinese Forces today launched an attack against the insurgent stronghold of Denver, Colorado which has been under the control of local extremists for months, together with American allies the Chinese Military pushed into the city early on Sunday.