U.S. Poised to Commit War Crimes in Marjah February 12, 2010
Posted by rogerhollander in Iraq and Afghanistan, War.Tags: Afghanistan, Afghanistan War, civilian casualties, International law, laws of war, marjah, robert naiman, roger hollander, Taliban, War Crimes
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“If [NATO forces] don’t avoid large scale civilian casualties, given the rhetoric about protecting the population, then no matter how many Taliban are routed, the Marjah mission should be considered a failure,” said an analyst with the International Crisis Group.
A report in the Wall Street Journal cast fresh doubt on the ability — and even on the interest — of U.S. forces to distinguish combatants from civilians. “Across southern Afghanistan, including the Marjah district where coalition forces are massing for a large offensive, the line between peaceful villager and enemy fighter is often blurred,” the Journal says. The commander of the U.S. unit responsible for Pashmul estimates that about 95% of the locals are Taliban or aid the militants. Among front-line troops, “frustration is boiling over” over more restrictive rules of engagement than in Iraq, the Journal says — a dangerous harbinger of potential war crimes when the U.S. is about to engage in a major assault in an area densely populated with civilians.
Today, AFP reports, military helicopters dropped leaflets over Marjah as radio broadcasts “warned residents not to shelter Taliban ahead of a massive assault.” Doesn’t this suggest that the invading U.S. forces may regard any civilian alleged to be “sheltering Taliban” as a legitimate target, including women and children?
If the U.S. assault in Marjah results in large scale civilian casualties, the U.S. will have committed a major war crime. If the United States cannot protect civilians in Marjah, as the U.S. is required to do under the laws of war, the assault should be called off. Under international law, every U.S. citizen is legally obligated to work to bring about the compliance of the United States with international law. Raise your voice now, before it is too late.
Robert Naiman is Policy Director at Just Foreign Policy
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