US, Afghan villagers differ over 15 killed in raid

US, Afghan villagers differ over 15 killed in raid

KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) - The American coalition in Afghanistan opened a joint U.S.-Afghan investigation Saturday into an overnight raid that American commanders say killed 15 armed militants but that two Afghan officials say killed 11 civilians.

The accusation of civilian deaths is the latest in a string of incidents over the last year that have raised the ire of Afghan President Hamid Karzai, who has pleaded with foreign military forces to avoid such killings.

A detailed U.S. statement said multiple teams of militants fired on the coalition forces early Saturday during a raid against a Taliban commander in the eastern province of Laghman. The U.S. said a woman carrying a rocket-propelled grenade was among the 15 killed.

“We know the people who were killed were shooting at us,” said Col. Greg Julian, the top U.S. spokesman in Afghanistan. “The people who were killed today were running around, maneuvering against our forces, and we killed them.”

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US, Afghan villagers differ over 15 killed in raid

This was a favorite tactic used by the terrorists of Iraq too. Shoot at U.S. troops or security forces, ie: Blackwater, and then hide in a crowd of women and children, or, fire FROM that crowd, and when the military returns fire it looks as if there was a slaughter committed by our troops.

And here’s another thing that raises my ire regarding ‘civilian‘ casualties. These insurgents, al-Qaeda, Taliban, whatever name they may be using, will fire on U.S. troops and then hide their guns under the folds of a womans burkha, and voila, an instant transformation from enemy combatant to innocent civilian.

This is nothing more than a Public Relations shell game. The Islamic terrorists are evil incarnate, but they aren’t stupid. They are well aware of how media coverage can sway the balance of the battle, and they will use it to their advantage. I’m surprised there weren’t reports of at least 2 medical facilities and an orphanage being struck, those always seem to play well with the terrorist and terrorist supporting audiences.

Our troops need to be painfully aware, they are now under a CiC that doesn’t like them. George W. Bush may have not been the best leader our military ever had, but he truly LOVED our troops and took great pride in being their CiC. Barack Obama is NOT that kind of man. It is MY opinion that Obama will side with those that denigrate our troops and lie about the actions of our troops. I personally would not be surprised to hear the cries of ‘War Crimes’, either from him or his minions.

Ladies and Gentlemen, we are about enter the darkest time in U.S. history. We have a POTUS that is an avowed liberal, he is an obvious Socialist and he has great support from the Democrats and the RINOs. America is in a jam and once ALL Americans see Obama for what he truly is, the aftermath will be even more devastating than the times we are currently enduring. America has at least as many domestic enemies as we do foreign ones. I hope that ALL of our troops and Law Enforcement personnel remember their oaths to defend against BOTH!

“I’m ready to start jihad against the Americans,” an unidentified Afghan man told a Kabul TV station during a protest Saturday in the capital of Laghman.

And those are the exact sentiments that turned the immediate success in Iraq into the insurgent led war that cost us over 4,200 U.S. military dead to date. I wonder how long before we see a mission redefinition?? Operation Afghan Freedom maybe?? Or do we even dare think that the Obama administration would be inclined to do so??