American troops and Pentagon involved in killing of 10 innocent civilians will go unpunished

Photo: Anadolu

According to the Pentagon, no US troops or authorities will face disciplinary punishment as a result of a drone attack in Kabul in August that killed ten Afghan civilians, including seven children.

Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin had received a high-level evaluation of the strike, according to spokesman John Kirby, but no recommendations for accountability had been made.

He approved their recommendations," Kirby said. "The secretary is not ... calling for additional accountability measures.

"There was not a strong enough case to be made for personal accountability," Kirby added.

The drone strike on August 29 occurred in the closing days of the US-led evacuation of Kabul following the Taliban's takeover of the nation.

Officials from the United States stated they received information about a likely Islamic State attack on Kabul airport's evacuation operations and launched a missile from a drone at a target believed to be a vehicle loaded with weapons.

In reality, they targeted a family of seven children and an Afghan man who worked for a US charity organization.

In early November, an initial report carried out by the US Air Force inspector general, Lieutenant General Sami Said, called the strike tragic but "an honest mistake".


Said's report and specific suggestions on protocols for future drone strikes were used in the evaluation by Central Command leader General Kenneth McKenzie Jr and Special Operations Command chief General Richard Clarke.

It did not, however, ask for anyone to be penalized as a result of the error.

"What we saw here was a breakdown in process, in execution and procedural events, not the result of negligence, not the result of misconduct, not the result of poor leadership," Kirby said.

If Austin "believed ... that accountability was warranted, he would certainly support those kinds of efforts," Kirby added.

Publish : 2021-12-14 15:06:00

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