Afghan Civilian Deaths_02

Juan Cole 07/02/2007

Afghanistan’s president, Hamid Karzai, called Sunday for a formal investigation into reports that a US/NATO air strike on Taliban positions in a village last Friday killed 45 civilians. Karzai and NATO have decried the Taliban tactic of hiding among civilian villagers, but the mounting death toll this year of Afghan civilians being killed in NATO and US military actions has angered the public and forced Karzai to speak out in protest.

An Afghan human rights organization estimates that US and NATO air strikes this year killed more civilians than did the resurgent Taliban.

Video from Aljazeera English service via YouTube.

About the Author

Juan Cole is the founder and chief editor of Informed Comment. He is Richard P. Mitchell Distinguished University Professor in the History Department at the University of Michigan He is author of, among many other books, Muhammad: Prophet of Peace amid the Clash of Empires and The Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam. Follow him on Twitter at @jricole or the Informed Comment Facebook Page