Afghan military says Taliban were at hospital- October 20th , 2015
LYNNE O'DONNELL THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
KABUL -Afghanistan's acting defence minister said on Monday that the Doctors Without Borders hospital in the north of the country that was bombed by U.S. forces was being used by insurgents who were fighting government forces.
Masoom Stanekzai told The Associated Press in an interview that Taliban insurgents and possibly Pakistani intelligence operatives were using the facility in Kunduz city as a ‟safe place." The hospital was bombed by a U.S. AC-130 gunship in the early hours of Oct. 3, killing at least 22 people and injuring many more. The main building was destroyed and the hospital has been shut down.
‟That was a place they wanted to use as a safe place because everybody knows that our security forces and international security forces were very careful not to do anything with a hospital," Stanekzai said. ‟But when there was on one of the walls of the hospital, there was a Taliban flag - what can you think?" The group, also known by its French acronym MSF, has repeatedly denied the presence of Taliban fighters in the hospital compound at the time of the attack.
Kate Stegeman, MSF's communications director in Afghanistan said on Monday: ‟We reiterate that every staff member in Kunduz working for MSF has repeatedly reported to us that there were no armed people in the hospital at the time of the bombing." Doctors without Borders has acknowledged that it treated wounded Taliban fighters at the Kunduz hospital, but it insists no weapons were allowed in. Afghans who worked at the hospital have told the AP that no one was firing from within.
But Stanekzai insisted that a Taliban flag had been hoisted on the walls around the hospital compound and that the militants were using it as a base.
‟I am saying the compound was being used by people who were fighting there, whether it was Taliban or ISI or whoever they were," he said, referring to Pakistan's powerful Inter-Services Intelligence agency, long accused by Kabul of supporting the Taliban. ‟If the fighting was not coming from there, that kind of a mistake will never happen."
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our beloved Afghans have NOT given up ...not once... except for screaming to the women of the world... 'where are u... why aren't u helping us???
and our NATO TROOPS SCREAMING... how can u call your sons and daughters of Nato flags to war- whilst u give medical help to the evil baby killing machine ...so they can come back and kill and destroy innocents and your troops... YET AGAIN?
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www.nytimes.com/2012/05/.../the-kabul-hospital-that-treats-all-comers.html - Similar
18 May 2012 ... There is one hospital in Kabul that treats
anyone, from any side, no questions asked. ... followed the bed for
almost an hour, along with her mother and
little sister, ... as a surgeon for
the International Committee of the Red Cross
in Kabul ... Valley still permit Taliban casualties to be taken to the hospital
there, ...
AND...
www.how-tofind.com/watch/taliban-bodies-red-cross - Cached
Short Videos with Quick
Answers Video Responses to taliban bodies red
cross. ... and its fallout. In one treatment centre in the city of Kenema, the Red
Cross also runs a kindergarten. ... Aus
forces evacuate victims funeral preps local Red
Cross Am Samoa 2009 News ... British Red Cross doctor kidnapped in
Pakistan.
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Perception of Humanitarian Medicine by Military and Political Stakeholders
Paul Bouvier
Humanitarian Medicine and the Mirrors of Perception
Compared with other human activities, humanitarian
assistance enjoys a globally positive perception in our contemporary world. By
contrast, military, political, or commercial activities may arouse rather
negative perceptions. This may induce some stakeholders to associate with
humanitarian assistance in order to globally improve their image and be
perceived in a more positive light by local people. In armed conflicts,
however, blending humanitarian aims with military, political, or commercial
goals often leads to a blurring of objectives and a confusion of roles. This
could in turn change the perception and acceptance of humanitarian action by
potential beneficiaries and other stakeholders.
On the other hand, armed conflicts have catastrophic
effects on the health of populations, and the provision of medical care to
populations affected by armed conflicts responds to major health needs (Levy
and Sidel, 2008). Furthermore, political authorities and military forces have a
duty to provide medical care to the wounded and sick and to the affected
populations.
Based on some examples, this article will explore the
risks associated with medical programs designed to influence perceptions, and
the conditions which should be respected by stakeholders in the provision of
medical assistance in armed conflicts.
Military Medical operations for Populations Affected by
Armed Conflicts
During the Vietnam War, the US military introduced a new
kind of medical program inside the combat operation, the Medical Civic Action
Programs (MEDCAP), defined as “the use of military medical personnel and
resources to treat the native population.” This program would become a
significant operational activity, with about 40 million encounters between
American military physicians and Vietnamese civilians, at a cost of $500–750
million, from 1963 to 1971 (Wilensky 2004).
The program was conceived as a way to improve perception
by the population of South Vietnam, with the objectives “to enhance the
prestige of the Government of Vietnam in the eyes of the people” and “to win
the confidence, and gain the cooperation of the local population in areas where
relatively large US military forces are employed” (Eisner 1966). In addition to
the political goal to “win the hearts and minds of the people,” (Wilensky
2004), there were tactical objectives as medical care could yield useful
intelligence. However, it seems that the program didn’t have significant public
health impact, and questions are raised over whether it was lacking relevant
and efficient approaches. Opportunistic, poorly planned, and isolated medical
visits to remote villages could only provide, at best, transient relief of
diseases and ailments, but couldn’t have any significant lasting impact on the
health of the population. However, the primary concern seems to have been
perception by the population rather than community health impact. A doctor
involved in the program wrote in 1966 that “MEDCAP, to be effective, must be on
a regularly scheduled basis. A single visit to a hamlet produces no lasting
impression, but regularly scheduled sick call is a potent factor in
demonstrating to the people that their government and their allies have a
continuing interest in their welfare” (Eisner 1966). Obviously, for this
practitioner, MEDCAP activities in Vietnam were about people’s perception.
Indeed, the medical care provided by “sick-call patrols” in remote villages was
extremely limited and rudimentary. There is no evidence that capacities
developed by US doctors transferred to South Vietnamese medical personnel; on
the contrary, these programs may have emphasized the inability of the Republic
of Vietnam to provide basic health care to its own people. The ethics of this
practice were also questionable (Malsby 2008).
MEDCAP operations recently returned to activity in Iraq
and Afghanistan. They started in a rather improvised way before integrating
into a strategy aimed to “win hearts and minds.” Whereas their impact on the
health of the population remains unknown, military health authorities have been
rather enthusiastic about their impact on the perception of the US military by
the local population (Cascells 2009). In 2009 the approach developed into a new
concept, the Medical Stability Operations (MSOs), which would build on the
experience of MEDCAP in a more professional and effective way (Pueschel, 2009).
Recognizing the limits of MEDCAP, the new strategy seeks to learn from this
experience and to collaborate with humanitarian organizations (SOMA conference,
2009). In order to facilitate collaboration with humanitarian actors, the US
military forces have created a guide covering its interaction with NGOs: “The
guide shows how the military can work with NGOs that may not want to be
perceived as being aligned with people in uniform on the ground” (US DoD, Jan.
2010).
A supplementary role is recognized for NGOs: “In many
cases NGOs can operate in space Department of Defense (DoD) can’t. They can
move faster through customs, etc., and many NGOs have been in countries longer
than DoD and have experience. NGOs prefer to maintain neutrality from the
government, so there is an inherent friction between them and DoD. There are
some NGOs that have former military members in them that are more amenable to
working with DoD, and then a wide range of other international and local NGOs.”
(Pueschel 2010). Interestingly, while they recognize that NGOs can access
vulnerable populations that military medical services couldn’t reach, the
authors fail to see that this access is only possible because these
humanitarian NGOs remain absolutely neutral to the conflict and independent
from governments and military forces. Even more worrying is the perception of
humanitarian neutrality as a cause of tension between humanitarian actors and
armed forces.
In May 2010, the US DoD announced a new policy which
“elevates the importance of military health support in stability operations,
called Medical Stability Operations (MSOs), to a DoD priority that is
comparable with combat operations” (US DoD, May 2010).
Medical Assistance to War Wounded in Afghanistan
At about the same time, the ICRC published an operational
update article about the medical assistance to war wounded persons in Kandahar.
In this article, the ICRC reiterated that it provided basic first-aid training
and dressing kits to arms carriers and to civilians living in conflict areas,
and stated that in April it reached “over 70 members of the armed opposition”
(ICRC May 2010). In fact, since 1987 the ICRC has provided medical assistance
across Afghanistan, to care for conflict victims and to provide neutral,
independent support to health structures and staff across Afghanistan (ICRC
2009). Training first aid workers living in remote areas of conflict is part of
this humanitarian assistance. These training sessions are also a unique
opportunity to disseminate humanitarian principles.
The ICRC’s operational update triggered critical
reactions in international media, and the organization had subsequently to
justify its action, explaining that “It’s the core of its mandate to make sure
that people are cured whether they are from one side or the other side” (the Guardian,
the Huffington Post, USA Today, 2010). This episode revealed
how fundamental humanitarian principles such as impartial care to wounded
persons and medical neutrality could become a matter of controversy in
international media—even when they were accepted by armed forces in the field.
It also provided the ICRC with an opportunity to reaffirm the vital importance
of respecting those humanitarian principles.
Perception of Humanitarian Principles in the Media and in
the Field
In striking contrast with controversies in international
media regarding the neutrality of medical action in conflicts, persons directly
affected by armed conflicts and wars affirm the vital importance of these
humanitarian principles.
This was recently demonstrated by a survey, published by
the ICRC in June 2009, about the perception of humanitarian principles by
people in countries in war (ICRC 2009). About 4,200 persons from eight
countries affected by armed conflicts were interviewed, notably about their
views regarding provision of health care to victims of conflict. Ninety-six
percent of all participants agreed that “everyone wounded or sick during an armed
conflict should have the right to health care.” For 89 percent, “Health workers
should treat wounded and sick civilians from all sides of a conflict”; and 89
percent agreed that “Health workers must be protected when they are treating
wounded or sick enemy combatants, especially when treating enemy civilians.”
For 89 percent, under no circumstances is it acceptable for combatants to
target health workers in a situation of armed conflict, and 87 percent agreed
that combatants should never target ambulances.
This important study demonstrates that, for the
populations living in contexts of armed conflict, despite all the suffering and
losses endured during war, the principles of humanity and impartiality and the
respect of medical neutrality are essential.
Medical Assistance Must Have Strong Ethics
The devastating effects of armed conflicts on the health
of populations and on their access to medical care represent major challenges
to the political and military authorities. Medical care and public health programs
should be provided in response to the health needs of the populations affected
by the conflict and not driven by strategic goals.
In many contexts, political and military stakeholders
face enormous difficulties in organizing services and providing medical care to
vulnerable populations. Much can be learned from the experiences of the US
military forces in Vietnam or in Afghanistan (Malsby 2008). The recent
evolution from MEDCAP programs to an MSO policy could improve the efficacy and
pertinence of these interventions.
In a different context, the activity of first-aid workers
in Afghanistan working in very insecure and deprived conditions poses very
difficult challenges. In these situations, as in any other context, the sole
and unique purpose of health care assistance should be to respond to the needs
of sick and wounded persons. Health care must be impartial and medical
neutrality must be respected by all parties at all times. Health personnel
shall never engage in acts of war, and the provision of health care must always
respect the principles of medical ethics (Sidel and Levy 2008). The insertion
of political or military goals into medical or public health programs is not
compatible with the fundamental principles of international humanitarian law.
Stakeholders should be extremely cautious when faced with
the temptation to use any form of humanitarian assistance for the sake of their
image or perception. Most importantly for them, populations affected by armed
conflicts actually understand their own needs and recognize the importance of
neutrality and impartiality in the provision of health care. It is comforting
that, even when some media raise controversy on neutral and impartial
humanitarian action, the affected populations demonstrate their commitment to
ethical and humanitarian principles. They know by experience, with their blood
and tears as much as with their hearts and their minds, that even in armed
conflicts, respecting principles of humanity and ethics is a vital matter.
Footnotes
1.
The author is the senior medical adviser of the International Committee of the
Red Cross (ICRC). The opinions expressed in this article are the author’s alone
and not necessarily those of the ICRC.
Bibliography
Casscells, W. “The Role of the US Military in Global
Health,” Center for Strategic and International Studies. http://www.
health.mil/Content//docs/CSIS%20Transcript%20Jan%20 7%202009.pdf, Jan 7, 2009.
Eisner, DG. Medical Civic Action Programs (MEDCAP). USARV
Medical Bulletin 1 (7), 27–28, 1966.
ICRC. “Afghanistan: ICRC Steps Up Efforts to Help the
Sick and Wounded.” http://www.icrc.org/web/eng/siteeng0.nsf/htmlall/
afghanistan-update-250510, May 25, 2010.
ICRC. “Afghanistan: Assistance to the War-Wounded.”
http:// www.icrc.org/web/eng/siteeng0.nsf/htmlall/afghanistanfeature-080409,
April 8, 2009
ICRC. “Our World—Views from the Field: Summary Report:
Afghanistan, Colombia, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Georgia, Haiti,
Lebanon, Liberia, and the Philippines.” IPSOS & ICRC, 2009. http://www.icrc.org/web/eng/siteeng0.nsf/htmlall/
views-from-field-report-240609, June 24, 2009.
Checchi, F., L. Roberts. 2005. Interpreting and using
mortality data in humanitarian emergencies. A primer for non-epidemiologists.
Network 59 Paper 52. London: Humanitarian Practice Network.
Levy and Sidel. War and Public Health. New York,
Oxford University Press, 2nd ed., 2008.
Malsby, RF III. “Into Which End Does the Thermometer Go?
Application of Military Medicine in Counterinsurgency: Does Direct Patient Care
by American Service Members Work?” Thesis, Faculty of the U.S. Army Command and
General Staff College, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, 2008.
Pueschel, M. “Developing Training for Health Stability
Deployments.” US Department of Defense. http://fhp.osd.mil/intl-health/news.jsp?newsID=122,
Nov. 2009.
Pueschel, M. “A Hit at SOMA: ‘New Guide Aimed at
Improving DoD-NGO Work in the Field’.” http://fhp.osd.mil/intlhealth/
news.jsp?newsID=130, Dec. 2009.
Sidel, VW. “The Roles and Ethical Dilemmas for Military
Medical Care Workers.” In Levy BS, Sidel VE. War and Public Health. New York,
Oxford University Press, p 393, 2008.
SOMA Conference. “International Health Growing Theme at
Special Ops Medical Conference.” Tampa (FL) http://fhp.osd.
mil/intlhealth/news.jsp?newsID=129, Dec. 2009
The Guardian. “Red Cross Gives Aid Lessons to
Taliban.” http:// www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/may/25/red-cross-first-aid-taliban?INTCMP=...,
May 25, 2010
The Huffington Post. “Red Cross Under Fire for
Teaching First Aid to Taliban.” http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/05/26/red
cross-under-fire-for-_n_590577.html, May 25, 2010
US DoD. “New Guide Aimed at Improving DoD-NGO Work in the
Field.” http://fhp.osd.mil/intlhealth/news.jsp?newsID=130,
Jan. 2010.
US DoD. “New DoD Policy Outlines Military Health Support
in Global Stability Missions.” http://www.health.mil/News_And_Multimedia/Releases/detail/10-05-24/New_D...,
May 24, 2010
USA Today. “International Red
Cross Defends Taliban First Aid Courses.” http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/afghanistan/2010-05-26-red-cross-tali...,
May 26, 2010
Wilensky, RJ. Military Medicine to Win Hearts and
Minds: Aid to Civilians in the Vietnam War. Texas Tech University Press,
2004.
-----------
2010
Red Cross is training the thugs that kill our troops
The Red Cross says it has trained Taliban fighters in
first aid and will keep doing so.
Canadian Forces Media Photo
You’ll
have to forgive me for not being over the moon at news that the Red Cross is training Taliban fighters in proper first aid
and supplying them with kits.
For the past four years or so
I’ve had family and friends in the Khandahar area, some fighting against these
very same Taliban, others providing support services or supplying the forward
operating bases and development projects Canada is involved in there. So,
expecting me to sound objective about people that want to kill my family is
unrealistic. Based on recent developments I’ll probably have family or friends
there when we finally end the mission.
In the worldly eyes of the Red
Cross there is nothing wrong with what they are doing, comparing training
sessions for the Taliban to giving treatment to the wounded. That’s what comes
from spending too much time in the finer salons of the world. There is a great
deal of difference though between saving the life of someone who has been
wounded in battle and training, as well as equipping, one side of that battle.
Were the Red Cross operating a
field hospital and treating the wounded of both sides of the fight in
Afghanistan that would be one thing, they don’t run such a hospital though and
they never treat Canadian, American or British wounded. They also never visit
the allied prisoners of war to ensure that the Taliban are properly treating
their captives. The reason for that, the Taliban don’t take prisoners. In fact
the Taliban pretty much ignore the entire Geneva Conventions and the Laws of
War except for the part that details how we must treat their members that
become prisoners.
So as things currently stand,
the International Committee of the Red Cross spends time inspecting Afghan
prisons and examining how Canadian and other allied forces capture, detain and
hand over Taliban fighters so that they can write reports in the event anything
goes wrong. We currently have in Canada the spectacle of politicians looking
through mounds of paperwork looking for information, including Red Cross
reports, which may implicate Canadian soldiers or the government in war crimes
for the way Afghan jailers treat Afghan prisoners.
What happens if the Taliban
capture a Canadian, American or Brit? They shoot them. That is when they are
not engaging our troops through the use of hidden roadside bombs which is
another violation of the Geneva Conventions which call for armed combatants to
wear distinctive uniforms or markings and to carry their arms openly.
That’s part of what makes all
of this so infuriating, the Red Cross insists that groups follow the Geneva
Conventions yet here they are equipping for battle a guerrilla group that
doesn’t abide by the Conventions. Can you imagine the Red Cross training the
Irish Republican Army back in the 1970s and sending them off to the streets of
Belfast with little first aid kits? No one in their right mind would have
considered the Red Cross neutral for training the IRA and no one should consider
them neutral for training the Taliban, this is clearly crossing the line.
The British Red Cross has posted an explanation for the training saying that they
need to be seen as neutral in order to remain credible, I’d argue that through
this misguided use of their time and resources they are losing credibility and
their much valued neutrality. The Canadian Red Cross says they support this training as well. So far I have yet to
see any reaction from the American Red Cross but I doubt average Americans
would appreciate this news on Memorial Day weekend.
When I first heard this news,
driving into work and listening to talk radio, what surprised me was the
disproportionate number of women calling in, many of them mothers of soldiers
calling to express their outrage. I think we should all be outraged that
donations and tax dollars given to support a great organization with a long and
distinguished tradition are being used to train the thugs that kill our troops.
It’s time for the Red Cross to rethink what they are doing.
Brian Lilley is the Ottawa Bureau Chief for radio stations Newstalk
1010 in
Toronto and CJAD 800
in
Montreal. Follow Brian on Twitter to get the latest as it happens.
·
Comment: Writersfamily says: "In fact the Canadian government
should act quickly and rescind any charity status they have immediately."
The ICRC is an organization
based in Geneva and has no charitable status in Canada. My donations to the
Canadian Red Cross, a separate entity, are for its work in Canada or for its
humanitarian work in Haiti.
With a modicum of research,
Brian Lilley would have discovered that the ICRC in fact DOES treat wounded
from all sides in Afghanistan and has done so for decades. Why would US and
NATO forces seek ICRC treatment when they already have the best-equipped
medical facilities in Afghanistan? US and NATO medics evacuate and treat
wounded Taliban. Why's there no outcry over that?
The ICRC clearly explains
what it's doing, and why, in its report at:
www.icrc.org/web/eng/siteeng0.nsf/html/afghanistan-update-250510
www.icrc.org/web/eng/siteeng0.nsf/html/afghanistan-update-250510
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US
commander: Afghans requested US airstrike that killed 22 people at Kunduz
hospital
ROBERT
BURNS The Associated Press
Published October 5, 2015 - 1:46pm
Published October 5, 2015 - 1:46pm
WASHINGTON — Afghan forces who reported being under
Taliban fire requested the U.S. airstrike that killed 22 people at a medical
clinic in northern Afghanistan over the weekend, the top commander of American
and coalition forces in Afghanistan said Monday, correcting an initial U.S.
statement that the strike had been launched because U.S. forces were
threatened.
The strike wasn’t sought by U.S. forces, Gen. John F.
Campbell said at a hastily arranged Pentagon news conference.
“We have now learned that on Oct. 3, Afghan forces
advised that they were taking fire from enemy positions and asked for air
support from U.S. forces,” Campbell said. “An airstrike was then called to
eliminate the Taliban threat and several civilians were accidentally struck.
This is different from the initial reports which indicated that U.S. forces
were threatened and that the airstrike was called on their behalf.”
The clinic was operated by the medical charity
Doctors Without Borders. The attack killed at least 22 people and wounded
dozens more, setting the hospital on fire.
The charity’s general director, Christopher Stokes,
said on Monday he was “disgusted by the recent statements coming from some
Afghanistan government authorities justifying the attack.”
“These statements imply that Afghan and U.S. forces
working together decided to raze to the ground a fully functioning hospital,”
Stokes was quoted as saying in a statement.
On Sunday, NATO, under whose umbrella the U.S.-led
coalition operates in Afghanistan, issued a statement saying U.S. forces had
conducted an airstrike against “insurgents who were directly firing upon U.S.
service members” who were advising Afghan forces in Kunduz. The statement also
said NATO was undertaking a preliminary assessment of the incident by a
multi-national “casualty assessment team,” and that it would produce initial
results “in a matter of days.”
Campbell’s revised account does not clarify whether
the clinic was targeted in error or whether U.S. military personnel followed
procedure. They are required to verify that the target of the requested
airstrike is valid before firing. Asked about those procedures, Campbell said
he would not discuss the rules of engagement under which U.S. forces operate.
“If errors were committed we will acknowledge them,”
Campbell said. “We’ll hold those responsible accountable and we’ll take steps
to ensure mistakes are not repeated.”
He declined to say who authorized the strike, which
he said was carried out by an AC-130 gunship, which is an Air Force special
operations aircraft equipped with heavy weaponry and often used against
close-range ground targets.
Campbell declined to provide more details, saying
military investigations by the U.S. as well as Afghanistan are ongoing. He said
he learned from the U.S. military’s lead investigator that it was the Afghans,
not the Americans, who requested the airstrike.
Kunduz has been the scene of heavy fighting in recent
days. The Taliban captured the city earlier this month, but Afghan forces
retook it after several days. Clashes were still underway between government
forces and the Taliban on the city’s outskirts on Monday, according to Khosh
Mohammad, a member of the Kunduz provincial council.
Campbell, whose headquarters is in Kabul, was in
Washington on Monday because he is testifying before two congressional
committees this week. He noted that the Kunduz airstrike happened one day after
a U.S. C-130 cargo plane crashed at an air base in northern Afghanistan,
killing all six U.S. crew members as well as five civilian passengers.
Campbell said the bodies of the six dead C-130 crew
members were scheduled to arrive at Dover Air Force Base, Delaware, on Monday.
Campbell is expected to testify about his
recommendations on the future of the U.S. military mission in Afghanistan. A
key question is whether President Barack Obama will alter his plan for reducing
the U.S. troop presence from its current level of about 9,800 to leave only an
embassy-based security co-operation office after 2016.
Defence Secretary Ash Carter said Monday the U.S.
intends to continue a military presence after 2016, adding, “it’s not a matter
of whether but how many and how.”
Speaking during a press conference in Madrid, Carter
said, “The president and all the rest of us continue to respond to and adjust
to circumstances there and I expect that will continue.”
He said the Pentagon is providing options to the
White House and Obama will be making decisions about future force levels later
this fall.
———
U.S. Military treat & save Afghan civilians...and taliban
30 June 2008
by Bill Thomas
On the night of June 30, 2008 four Afghan
men brought two men who had been shot to a U.S. Military Combat Outpost in
Kapisa Province seeking emergency medical care. Because there is nearly no
Afghan run trauma care facilities in the outlying regions, a occurrence like this
is not unusual. This unit has treated civilian injuries ranging from farming
and car accidents to children injured by Taliban mortar fire. The Taliban
bringing their own wounded to the American's under the guise of innocent local
caught in the crossfire is not unheard of either. Figuring out who's who can be
a bigger challenge then saving their lives at times. On this night one man had
a gun shot to the right side of his chest that exited around his left shoulder.
The other man had shrapnel wounds to a eye and a ankle. The medical facilities
at this Outpost are very limited and are for purely stabilizing patients until
a helicopter can come and evacuate them to a U.S. or NATO hospital. While the
contingent of Army Medic's and Navy Corpsman treated these men in the aid
station, a combination of Army, Marine, Afghan Army and translator's
questioned the men who brought them in
trying to find out their identities and how all of this happened. For a while
it seemed as though the gunshot victim may have been one of the Taliban who had
apparently attacked some men in a nearby village, while the other a victim of
the attack. While the facts and stories were being figured out, Taliban or not,
both of the wounded men fell in the category of possibly losing life, limb or
eyesight. Because of this a MEDEVAC helicopter was called in to transfer them
to the U.S. hospital in Jalalabad. In addition, quoting the senior physician on
the scene Major Jack Cheasty, "It's the right thing to do". A week
later the soldiers were informed that both men had survived their injuries and
the intelligence was pointing to that they were civilians defending their
village from Taliban in the area.
----------------
Patched Up in Pakistan: Red Cross Hospital Treats Taliban and Children
By Hasnain
Kazim in Peshawar, Pakistan
A Red Cross field hospital in Peshawar
specializes in treating victims of the armed conflicts in northwest Pakistan
and Afghanistan. The doctors don't ask which side their patients are on. For
them, they are all victims.
Wahida's
outstretched leg is in a cast and secured to the bed. The 5-year-old girl
cannot move it. The wounds and fractures cause her pain, the doctors say, but
the girl is sitting upright and smiling. Her smile gets wider and wider, her
white teeth become visible. Then her mouth opens and her little body begins to
shake with laughter.
The bomb, the nightmare of the explosion, the arduous journey in her
mother's arms -- all of that is forgotten in this moment, when the doctors and
nurses come to her bedside, stroke her cheek and tell her how brave she is.
"How are you?" asks one nurse in Pashto. "Good," she
replies. She looks radiant, as if this little bit of attention has made her
very happy.
Wahida's
right leg was shattered by shrapnel in an explosion at the beginning of June
near the city of Jalalabad in eastern Afghanistan. Her family has no money to
pay doctors. But someone told them that in Peshawar, just a few miles from the
border in neighboring Pakistan, there was a hospital that treated patients for
free. A few days later, Wahida's mother arrived with her severely injured child
at the entrance of the Surgical Hospital for Weapon Wounded, which is operated
by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC).
"We
know very little about this girl," says Sabahat Gilani, a senior nurse at
the clinic, which is located in the center of Peshawar. "Only that she
comes from Afghanistan." Wahida was hospitalized and underwent surgery.
The doctors saved her leg.
No
Time for Psychological Support
Since
April 2009, the ICRC has been running the field hospital, which was set up to
treat victims of the ongoing conflict between government forces and armed
groups in Pakistan's tribal areas and North West Frontier Province. White tents
stand close together on a well-guarded property in the middle of Peshawar,
about 30 kilometers (19 miles) from the border with Afghanistan. Norway has
donated the funding for the accommodation.
Some
200 people work here, including 180 Pakistanis. Two surgical teams operate and
carry out amputations every day in one of the tents, battling to save people's
lives. The building next door, which has two brand new operating theaters, is
almost finished. But there are just too many victims. Usually up to 12 new
patients are admitted per day, but after military operations or attacks by
insurgents sometimes 40 seriously injured people arrive at one time.
"In
April, for example, two suicide bombers blew themselves up in a refugee camp in
the town of Kohat," recalls Gilani. The bombers were standing in the
middle of a group of people who were waiting to receive food, she says.
"Many were killed instantly. We had our hands full trying to deal with the
seriously injured."
The
hospital specializes in emergency assistance. There is no time for giving the
patients psychological support. Gilani strokes Wahida's head -- the girl is still
smiling -- then she leaves the tent.
'Body
Parts Everywhere'
In this field hospital, the victims of attacks in
Afghanistan and Pakistan, only numbers in the news reports, get names and
faces. People like Syed Hussain Shah, 22, who ran to the scene of the explosion
in Kohat after the first bomb went off. "I wanted to help," he says.
"There were bleeding people and severed body parts everywhere."
Shortly
after Shah arrived at the scene, the second bomber blew himself up, and Shah
was seriously injured in the knee. He has been in the hospital in Peshawar for
two months now. The bed next to his is occupied by Shayaz Ali, 15, whose leg
was damaged in the same attack. They have become friends in the hospital,
brought together by war.
With
most of the injured that come to the hospital, the staff only know their names
and approximately where they live. There are men and women, old people and
children. They are victims of the Taliban, the Pakistani military or American drones. Wahida is currently the youngest
patient.
The beds are occupied by all
kinds of people, including civilians and extremists. Sometimes there are
members of the Pakistani security forces and sometimes fighters from the ranks
of the Taliban. "We do not ask if they were actively involved in fighting or
who they are fighting for," says the hospital's manager, Richard Cook.
Most patients are traumatized by what they have experienced and don't want to
talk anyway, he says. "We treat everyone the same. The ICRC is impartial
and neutral," says Cook, who is originally from New Zealand.
Recently the ICRC came in for criticism after it was reported in
international media that the organization had allowed Taliban fighters to
participate in first-aid courses in Afghanistan. "Naturally we also train
Taliban, although not here in Pakistan but in Afghanistan," says Cook.
"We are proud of that. We are there to help everyone in armed
conflicts."
Horrors of War
The hospital is full of victims
of the horrors of war. Zubair, 13, is lying in his bed, staring silently at the
ceiling. He was tending cows in the tribal areas of northwest Pakistan in early
June when he stepped on a mine. The surgeons in Peshawar had to amputate his
right leg below the knee.
An unknown assailant shot
Mohammed Sajid, 13, in the face as the boy was watching a cricket match. The
bullet shattered his jaw. His attacker has not yet been caught.
In the tent next door, a
Hungarian surgeon and his Greek colleague are operating on a man who was
wounded in the head. His brain swelled up, and the doctors now have to saw open
his skull. On the neighboring table, an Italian surgeon is treating a young woman
with a leg injury. A Mexican anesthesiologist goes backwards and forwards
between the two patients.
'A Victim Is a Victim'
People from areas all along the
Afghan-Pakistan border come to the Red Cross hospital. Currently, 72 beds from
a total of 120 are occupied. There are no ambulances -- patients have to get
there by themselves. The travel costs are covered by the Red Cross, which
provides a flat sum of 2,000 rupees (around €19 or $23). In this region, one
can travel for several hundred kilometers with that kind of money.
The only condition for being
accepted at the hospital is that the patient must have an injury caused by
armed conflict that was suffered within the previous two months.
What happens if the patient is a
wanted terrorist? Cook shakes his head. "A victim is a victim," he
says. "Medicine does not differentiate between people in that
respect." If the intelligence agencies make inquiries, they are given
access to documents and allowed to enter the hospital. The ICRC prefers not to
say how often that happens. Overall, the Red Cross enjoys considerable trust
from all sides, Cook says.
Soap and the Koran
Representatives of the insurgents confirm that they appreciate the
work the Red Cross is doing. They also appreciate the fact that ICRC employees
visit imprisoned Taliban fighters who no one else cares about. Red Cross
workers try to ensure that such prisoners receive humane treatment. They bring
them soap, clean clothes and books, including the Koran, and deliver letters to
their relatives.
In the tent for the most
seriously injured patients are men with long beards. Some have bomb shrapnel in
their chests, while others have broken shoulders. Some are missing arms and
legs. They don't want to say anything about their past, talk about what they
have experienced or say whose side they are on.
"We just want to get
well," says one man. "And then go home and live in peace."
·
Part 1: Red Cross Hospital Treats Taliban and
Children
----------
Red
Cross aid to Taliban reflects moral dilemma
Foot, Canwest News Service
· May 26, 2010 | Last Updated: May 26, 2010 5:02 PM ET
Jim Davis says it’s “disgusting” that the Red Cross would teach Taliban
fighters how to save the lives of their wounded comrades on the battlefield.
Maureen Eykelenboom says it’s the right thing to do.
Both are parents of Canadian soldiers killed in Afghanistan. Their
divergent views on the subject reflect the uneasy moral dilemmas that keep
arising out of the long Afghan war.
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) raised eyebrows on
Tuesday when it announced it was giving first aid training and medical kits
directly to the Taliban insurgency.
The move is part of a wider Red Cross effort to save lives in
Afghanistan. The agency is teaching local doctors and Afghan security forces
how to deal with weapon-related wounds. But in April it also provided basic
first aid training and emergency medical kits to “over 70 members of the armed
opposition,” the ICRC said.
Although NATO says it supports the ICRC’s humanitarian work, Britain’s
Guardian newspaper quoted an Afghan government leader in Kandahar on Tuesday
saying the Red Cross -- or Red Crescent as it’s known in South Asia -- should
not be helping Taliban fighters because they do “not deserve to be treated like
humans.”
Mr. Davis, whose 26-year-old son Cpl. Paul Davis was killed in 2006,
says he wouldn’t go that far, but insists no outside agency should be teaching
the Taliban how to heal its wounded.
“The Red Cross should be there to help civilians harmed in the
fighting, but if the Red Cross is teaching the Taliban how to administer first
aid to their fallen, well then they’re helping the Taliban,” he says. “I think
that’s disgusting. I wonder why they’d want to do that?”
Bill Lawlor, a spokesman and disaster management specialist with the
Canadian Red Cross, says the agency fully supports the ICRC’s decision, which
is rooted in the long Red Cross history of neutrality.
“Our main objective in all Red Cross societies is to alleviate human
suffering in any circumstance, whether it be a disaster, internal conflict or
war,” he says. “It’s not a matter of taking any side.
“I certainly wouldn’t take away from the concerns of families of fallen
soldiers, but we have a long-standing reputation for neutrality. We uphold that
to the best of our ability.”
Ms. Eykelenboom, whose 23-year-old son Cpl. Andrew Eykelenboom -- an
army medic -- was killed by a Taliban suicide bomber in 2006, says Andrew
treated battle-wounded insurgents in Afghanistan, so why shouldn’t the Red
Cross?
“They’re still humans. And maybe by giving them that kind of training
and support, there’s the potential that they could be better humans,” she says.
For years, Canadian soldiers and military doctors have treated the
wounds of insurgents that come into Canadian custody following battles with the
Taliban. The difference with the ICRC’s training is that it is provided to
active insurgents.
“When wounded Taliban come into our custody, we don’t patch them up and
let them go and say, ‘Here’s your rifle, go back at it,’” Mr. Davis says. “The
Red Cross is teaching the Taliban to fix their wounds and maybe fight another
day. That’s harming our soldiers.
“I think this will hurt the Red Cross’s reputation in Canada.”
Ms. Eykelenboom agrees that the ICRC’s actions raise some difficult
questions for Canadians, but says the only way out of the Afghan war is for all
sides to treat each other with more humanity, not less.
“It’s an ugly situation, the whole war,” she says.
“But I don’t believe not
training the Taliban to look after their injured is going to solve the problem.
It’s only going to heighten the problem. Because when you have injured Taliban
dying, you’re going to get their families more up in arms and only strengthen
the insurgency, and then what? The cycle of hate and anger just continues.”
---
10:02 AM ET Dec. 15, 2009
TALIBAN ALLOWS RED CROSS TO VISIT DETAINEES FOR 1ST
TIME
Kabul,
Afghanistan (CNN) - For the first time, the Taliban has allowed Red Cross
workers to check the conditions of its detainees in Afghanistan.
The International Committee of the Red Cross announced today that its team
recently visited three Afghan security forces being held by the Taliban in the
northwestern province of Badghis. A small Red Cross team visited the detained
Afghan security forces twice in late November, the agency said.
The ICRC says it regularly visits detained people in conflict zones to
assess their conditions and treatment, including 136 places of detention in
Afghanistan. But last month's visit marked the first time the Taliban allowed
the agency access to its detainees since the start of the current conflict in
Afghanistan.
"We plan to conduct and repeat visits in other regions, and hope to
visit people held by other armed opposition groups, with the aim of ensuring
that everyone detained in relation to the armed conflict is treated
humanely," said Reto Stocker, head of the ICRC's delegation in Kabul.
The Red Cross did not release information on the detainees' conditions or
when they were seized by the Taliban "to protect their identity,"
ICRC spokesman Simon Schorno told CNN.
The Red Cross will not inform the Afghan government of the captured forces'
condition as a matter of standard policy, he said.
"When we carry out visits and submit reports ... this is done only
with the detaining authority, which is the Taliban," Schorno said. He
noted that the same policy was carried out during Red Cross visits to detainees
at the U.S. military's facility in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.
------------
(English text follow)
Un vent de fraîcheur se transporte sur notre troupe des forces canadiennes ... un changement de garde positif. Félicitation au nouveau Chef d'État Major, le général Jon Vance : un homme de combat honnête, d'intégrité et d'honneur.
An era of freshness whispers through our Canadian Forces ... a positive change of guard. Congratulations to the new Chief of General Staff, General Jon Vance: an honest fighting man of integrity and honor.
Bravo Zulu. Honour the Fallen, Help the Living/Honorer Ceux qui sont Tombés, Tendre la Main aux Blessés! www.woundedwarriors.ca
- 30 -
- notice of distribution / distribution
notice -
(English text follow)
A wind of freshness is carries on our troop of the Canadian forces... A change of guard positive. Congratulations to the new chief of staff, general Jon Vance: a man of combat honest, integrity and honour.
An era of freshness whispers through our Canadian Forces ... a positive change of guard. Congratulations to the new Chief of General Staff, General Jon Vance: an honest fighting man of integrity and honor.
Bravo Zulu. Honour the fallen, help the living / honor those who have fallen, reach out to the injured! www.woundedwarriors.ca
- 30 –
(English text follow)
A wind of freshness is carries on our troop of the Canadian forces... A change of guard positive. Congratulations to the new chief of staff, general Jon Vance: a man of combat honest, integrity and honour.
An era of freshness whispers through our Canadian Forces ... a positive change of guard. Congratulations to the new Chief of General Staff, General Jon Vance: an honest fighting man of integrity and honor.
Bravo Zulu. Honour the fallen, help the living / honor those who have fallen, reach out to the injured! www.woundedwarriors.ca
- 30 –
Jonathan Vance nouveau chef d'état-major des Forces canadiennes
----
GENERAL CAMPBELL- u raise the
troops up and inspire us all over the world who have supported and loved and
full devotion to our troops and yours since 2001 when u could not find a media
or entity who cared about the human waste by vicious monsters who wipe their
butts on the Geneva Convention.... what an injustice to our troops and
humanity.... and the UN umbrella of red cross and doctors without borders must
identify in huge letters that they care for the monsters along.... with their
horrific injured victims perpetrated by these same monsters - children and
women- so the monsters can come back and kill our troops and innocents AGAIN!
- best quote: Dear G.campbl
please save afghanistan from pakistan terrorists. We are a human like you and your poeple. It is about 40 years that pakistan kill us. Why?
Peace never come.
Engineer parwez a human from kabul afghanistan.
please save afghanistan from pakistan terrorists. We are a human like you and your poeple. It is about 40 years that pakistan kill us. Why?
Peace never come.
Engineer parwez a human from kabul afghanistan.
--------------
This is WHY CANADA STANDS WITH
ISRAEL FOLKS.... the real deal poorest Canadians are scrambling with church and
community groups - giving their last $$$ and sponsoring Syrian Refugees from
Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey.... and Isreal does it Canada style.... 3.4 billion
Christians are not wrong.... Palestine needs to stop always being so jealous
when the world wants to help other Muslims.... of this world.... God bless our
Canada, God bless Israel and God bless the beautiful people of Syria and
humanity.... Peace of Christ...cause that's how I roll.
Israeli sailors rescue Syrian, Iraqi refugees after boat capsizes
In dramatic operation, Ashdod sailing club members pull Syrian and Iraqi refugees out of Mediterranean Sea
A group of Israeli sailing club members out for a leisurely sail on Sunday morning quickly found themselves leading a dramatic rescue operation to save the lives of 11 Syrian and Iraqi refugees whose boat had capsized in the Mediterranean Sea. The Posidon Sailing Club members pulled eight adults and four children – among them tragically a dead baby still cradled in his mother’s arms — out of the water.The dramatic rescue, first reported by Ynet, took place near the tourist town of Kas in Turkey, not far from the Greek island, Kastelórizo.
“I’ve been at sea for 40 years and this is the first time something like this happened to me. I heard ‘save me’ from the waters, we stopped the boat and saw a youth with a life jacket. We brought him out of the water and he told us his brother had gone missing and was probably dead,” Shlomo Asban, captain of the Israeli yacht, told Ynet.
The young refugee told his saviors that he was from a town in Syria.
“He spoke Arabic and said he was from Syria. We asked him if he was with other people, and he began to cry and point all over the place,” Gal Baruch, one of the rescuers/sailors from the Ashdod club, told Ynet.
Asban recounted that a few minutes after the stirring rescue, the Israeli sailors noticed others bobbing in the water beside an overturned dinghy. The Ashdod sailing club members pulled them out of the water, including a mother cradling her dead son.
“The mother said she had held her baby son’s body all night,” he told the Hebrew news site.
The refugees were a mixed group from Iraq and Syria. Asban said he and his friends gave them water and let them use their cell phones to call their families.
Baruch said that one of the people rescued was “a man going into diabetic shock. We gave him sweet things to eat and were able to save his life.”
“After we told them that we are Jews from Israel, they kissed us and said ‘thank you,'” Asban related.
Baruch added that the rescue was extremely trying: “It’s not easy to see this kind of situation. After an hour at sea with us, we dropped them off safely and they were transferred to Greek authorities.”
To see the video of the dramatic rescue, click here.
-----------
-----
------------
Whether he is in a state to comprehend the irony of his situation is not clear, but the strained expression on Sgt Tyrone Jordan’s face shows it doesn’t matter who the patient is as he tries to put a drip into the Afghan’s arm.
He shouts over the din of the engines to the crew to turn on the medical monitor equipment behind him.
Beside him, a Marine from the unit that shot the Afghan during a firefight near Marja in Helmand province sits stony-faced, masking the adrenaline coursing through his veins as he guards the Black Hawk helicopter as it prepares for take-off.
Sgt Jordan, from Charlotte, North Carolina, is one of the unsung heroes of the U.S. operation in Afghanistan - the members of Dustoff, the Medevac teams that evacuate the injured by helicopter.
The medics operate under conditions of enormous physical and mental pressure, their days spent rushing from one blood-soaked casualty to the next.
Every emergency starts with a radio call that provides what is known as a nine-line report, which gives nine crucial details about the incident including its location, the number of wounded and the extent of the injuries - plus the threat from the enemy.
The closest crew will already be getting ready while commanders decide whether it is a valid mission. The Medevac team are never far from their radio or their helicopter - they must sleep within 50 yards of the chopper. Equipment, body armour and helmets are always left on board, so they can run to it quicker.
The crew - a medic, a mechanic and two pilots - and that of their escort helicopter must be in the air within 15 minutes of the call, although Major Jason Davis, the Medevac commander in southern Afghanistan, told the Daily Mail they usually manage it in eight. The team must then get any casualties to hospital within 60 minutes - the fabled ‘golden hour’ - after which a patient’s chances of survival diminish rapidly.
Under the Geneva Convention, Medevac helicopters cannot be armed, so they are always followed by another Black Hawk carrying heavy machine-guns.
Despite their humanitarian role, the lack of guns makes the Medevac helicopters - identifiable by their red-cross insignia - a favoured target. As a result, flight plans change constantly: sometimes they fly high; sometimes low, zig-zagging at 175mph, before descending in a billowing cloud of dust.
The U.S. Army has around 30 flight medic crews on duty in Afghanistan at any one time and medics, like other troops, serve there on 12-month deployments. Major Davis says only one flight medic has been killed since they were deployed to Afghanistan in 2001. He died after his hoist cable broke. In August alone, flight medics evacuated more than 350 patients to hospitals, half of them Afghan civilians or enemy insurgents.
Many see this service as a crucial plank in the coalition forces’ attempt to win Afghan ‘hearts and minds’. Major Davis says: ‘The insurgents don’t care what happens to them, but we will give them the best care we can and return them home. Once they’re in the helicopter, it doesn’t matter whether they’re one of ours, an enemy or a civilian. They’re just a patient.’
This insurgent did survive and on recovery will be treated as another prisoner of war.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1318346/Soldier-battles-save-Taliban-fighters-life-helicopter-Afghanistan.html
-------------
------------
(CNN) -- The International Committee of the Red Cross is defending its practice of providing medical training and basic medical supplies to the Taliban in Afghanistan -- saying it is in line with the ICRC's mandate not to discriminate between different sides in a conflict.
In the latest situation report issued Tuesday, the Red Cross disclosed that in April its workers "reached over 100 Afghan security personnel, over 70 members of the armed opposition, taxi drivers involved in the transport of wounded people, first-aiders and its own staff."
That prompted plenty of quizzical and some critical comments in the international media and among bloggers -- and some grumbling among Afghan officials.
But an ICRC spokesman in Geneva said the practice is consistent with its obligation of neutrality and its mandate to provide assistance to all sides in conflict.
The ICRC says it provides a three-day course that includes lessons in international humanitarian law, practical work with bandages and other basic medical techniques.
It says the course is also a chance to remind all sides about respect for civilians and proper treatment of detainees.
Some critics have drawn a distinction between providing medical care to the wounded and training insurgents to do so. But the ICRC says it has provided similar training in Darfur, Sudan and to Hamas members in Gaza.
ICRC spokesman Christian Cardon says it has been providing such training in Afghanistan for about four years to the Taliban as well as to Afghan police and civilian first-aiders. He added that the ICRC was not training the Taliban in surgical skills; the focus was on stabilizing those injured.
The ICRC says that roadblocks, fighting and mines have made access to hospitals very difficult -- especially in provinces like Helmand and Kandahar in the south of Afghanistan.
The International Security Assistance Force says it has no issues with Red Cross workers training insurgents in medical care.
"We recognize the need for their work to be executed impartially -- and it's precisely for this reason that they are able to gain the access that they do," Lt. Col. Joseph T Breasseale told CNN. "One of the litany of things that separates the international coalition from the Taliban is that we have frequently provided first aid to injured Taliban fighters and we will continue to do so."
The ICRC says the three-day first-aid courses are a small part of its program in Afghanistan. In April it conducted a war surgery workshop for dozens of doctors, and supported the regional hospital in Kandahar in performing almost 1,000 operations.
Get us outta here! Explained, how medic battles to save the life of a captured Taliban on board a Black Hawk helicopter
Shot through his side, the enemy Afghan lies in agony on the floor of the helicopter, his life in the hands of the very soldiers he has sworn to kill.Whether he is in a state to comprehend the irony of his situation is not clear, but the strained expression on Sgt Tyrone Jordan’s face shows it doesn’t matter who the patient is as he tries to put a drip into the Afghan’s arm.
He shouts over the din of the engines to the crew to turn on the medical monitor equipment behind him.
Beside him, a Marine from the unit that shot the Afghan during a firefight near Marja in Helmand province sits stony-faced, masking the adrenaline coursing through his veins as he guards the Black Hawk helicopter as it prepares for take-off.
The Medevac team are never far from their helicopter - they have to sleep within 50 yards of it. Equipment, body armour and helmets are always left on board
The medics operate under conditions of enormous physical and mental pressure, their days spent rushing from one blood-soaked casualty to the next.
Every emergency starts with a radio call that provides what is known as a nine-line report, which gives nine crucial details about the incident including its location, the number of wounded and the extent of the injuries - plus the threat from the enemy.
A Sikorsky Black Hawk: Millions are spent adapting them for Medevac use
The crew - a medic, a mechanic and two pilots - and that of their escort helicopter must be in the air within 15 minutes of the call, although Major Jason Davis, the Medevac commander in southern Afghanistan, told the Daily Mail they usually manage it in eight. The team must then get any casualties to hospital within 60 minutes - the fabled ‘golden hour’ - after which a patient’s chances of survival diminish rapidly.
Under the Geneva Convention, Medevac helicopters cannot be armed, so they are always followed by another Black Hawk carrying heavy machine-guns.
Despite their humanitarian role, the lack of guns makes the Medevac helicopters - identifiable by their red-cross insignia - a favoured target. As a result, flight plans change constantly: sometimes they fly high; sometimes low, zig-zagging at 175mph, before descending in a billowing cloud of dust.
The U.S. Army has around 30 flight medic crews on duty in Afghanistan at any one time and medics, like other troops, serve there on 12-month deployments. Major Davis says only one flight medic has been killed since they were deployed to Afghanistan in 2001. He died after his hoist cable broke. In August alone, flight medics evacuated more than 350 patients to hospitals, half of them Afghan civilians or enemy insurgents.
Many see this service as a crucial plank in the coalition forces’ attempt to win Afghan ‘hearts and minds’. Major Davis says: ‘The insurgents don’t care what happens to them, but we will give them the best care we can and return them home. Once they’re in the helicopter, it doesn’t matter whether they’re one of ours, an enemy or a civilian. They’re just a patient.’
This insurgent did survive and on recovery will be treated as another prisoner of war.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1318346/Soldier-battles-save-Taliban-fighters-life-helicopter-Afghanistan.html
-------------
BLOGGED:
CANADA MILITARY NEWS- Hey Canadians lets hug our troops close and just make Canada great- USA CHINA IMF OWN WORLD ECONOMY… so let’s just make our Nature’s last home on this planet, our Canada, totally self-sufficient like our forefathers/mothers did/VOTE/ April 6/15
------------
BLOGGED:
Canada Military News: WHEN MAINSTREAM MEDIA HIJACKS HUMANITY -for politicalization and commercialistic reasons- and victims are steamrolled by 'monsters matter more'- (Rwanda mainstream media gets nailed and jailed for pure hate inciting war Rwanda) we need to look at Quality Standards and Codes of Ethics Canada and globally in 2015/Less Polarizing party on party tactics and 'MORE SUBSTANCE IN CANADA PARTY LEADERS PLS'- whilst USA has turned in2 it's own reality nightmare...imho /VOTERS r becoming seriously turned off/ Afghan Women face the worst evil April 5, 2014 and vote in millions 4 freedom and we fritter ours like troops lives don't matter...imho /Kim Campbell -Hillary Clinton strong women hijacked by their parties /Oct 7th- Trevor Noah (Jon's Stewart's Protege) is BRILLIANT AND GLOBAL
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Red Cross defends helping Taliban treat casualties
Men load foodstuffs during ICRC food distribution in Kunar province, east of Kabul on October 8, 2008.
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
- Red Cross says it provided medical training to 70 members of 'armed opposition'
- Agency says its mandate is to provide unbiased assistance
- NATO has no issues with the practice Red Cross defends helping Taliban treat casualties
In the latest situation report issued Tuesday, the Red Cross disclosed that in April its workers "reached over 100 Afghan security personnel, over 70 members of the armed opposition, taxi drivers involved in the transport of wounded people, first-aiders and its own staff."
That prompted plenty of quizzical and some critical comments in the international media and among bloggers -- and some grumbling among Afghan officials.
But an ICRC spokesman in Geneva said the practice is consistent with its obligation of neutrality and its mandate to provide assistance to all sides in conflict.
The ICRC says it provides a three-day course that includes lessons in international humanitarian law, practical work with bandages and other basic medical techniques.
It says the course is also a chance to remind all sides about respect for civilians and proper treatment of detainees.
Some critics have drawn a distinction between providing medical care to the wounded and training insurgents to do so. But the ICRC says it has provided similar training in Darfur, Sudan and to Hamas members in Gaza.
ICRC spokesman Christian Cardon says it has been providing such training in Afghanistan for about four years to the Taliban as well as to Afghan police and civilian first-aiders. He added that the ICRC was not training the Taliban in surgical skills; the focus was on stabilizing those injured.
The ICRC says that roadblocks, fighting and mines have made access to hospitals very difficult -- especially in provinces like Helmand and Kandahar in the south of Afghanistan.
The International Security Assistance Force says it has no issues with Red Cross workers training insurgents in medical care.
"We recognize the need for their work to be executed impartially -- and it's precisely for this reason that they are able to gain the access that they do," Lt. Col. Joseph T Breasseale told CNN. "One of the litany of things that separates the international coalition from the Taliban is that we have frequently provided first aid to injured Taliban fighters and we will continue to do so."
The ICRC says the three-day first-aid courses are a small part of its program in Afghanistan. In April it conducted a war surgery workshop for dozens of doctors, and supported the regional hospital in Kandahar in performing almost 1,000 operations.
The ICRC says it has 1,500 national and 140 international staff in Afghanistan.
http://www.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/asiapcf/05/27/afghanistan.red.cross.taliban/
-----------
Afghan Civilians Continue to be Primary Victims of Taliban Attacks
Bagram Media Support Center
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
2010-08-RCE-CC-125
BAGRAM AIRFIELD, Afghanistan (Aug. 26, 2010) – Insurgent-related attacks have been responsible for the deaths of two Afghan civilians and serious injuries to 35 more within the last seven days, despite the holy month of Ramadan.
Click to view image: 'b48a4a51ea17-newnotarepostnato.png'
Below are highlights of some of these attacks that occurred within six of the 14 provinces in Regional Command-East.
On Aug. 21, an improvised explosive device exploded in Paktika Province, killing an Afghan child and wounding four civilians and two Afghan Border Patrol personnel. Coalition forces reported six wounded Afghans showed up at Forward Operating Base Orgun E for medical treatment. Coalition Forces investigated the site of the attack and found one Afghan child had died of wounds. The insurgents were targeting the ABP.
On Aug. 23 in Logar Province, one Afghan child was killed and another wounded by Taliban insurgents. During a patrol, Coalition forces came under attack, receiving small-arms and rocket-propelled grenades. Coalition forces noticed three local children were watching from a bridge nearby when the attack occurred. The unit did not return fire but instead moved one of their vehicles to position it between the insurgent gunfire and the children. Two of the children had already been shot by insurgents. The unit medically evacuated the children along with their father to Forward Operating Base Shank where one child later died of his wounds.
On Aug. 24 in Paktika Province, seven Afghan citizens were wounded by an IED. Three of the wounded were treated by a Coalition forces medic, while the other four were treated at a local clinic.
The latest attacks continue to underscore the steady increase in the number of Afghan civilians being killed and injured daily since Mullah Omar attempted to gain control of the Taliban by issuing a ‘code of conduct.’
In addition to the deaths and injuries inflicted from daily attacks, Taliban fighters have employed threats and intimidation in an attempt to derail the Sept. 18, 2010 Parliamentary elections that are designed to improve the representation of Afghan civilians and make the region safer.
To find a practical example of these tactics, you need look no further than the Nerkh district in Wardak province. Taliban fighters have allegedly issued a warning to the local civilians that if they catch anyone voting in the elections they will cut off that person’s fingers. Taliban fighters have said they will “inspect the fingers of individuals returning to their villages to see if there is ink still on their fingers.” They plan on conducting these inspections on the day of, and days following, the elections since it (ink) takes a couple of days to wear off. Taliban fighters have vowed to use a bayonet from an AK-47 to “chop the fingers off onto the ground.”
While such threats have failed to derail elections in the past, it is important to note that the potential mutilation of anyone is a direct violation of the established guidelines that Mullah Omar’s Taliban fighters are obliged to obey.
In Chapter Nine ‘Official Forbiddance’ of The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan’s guidance titled: A Book of Rules released on Sept. 10, 2009, it is clearly written that “Mutilation is strictly forbidden in sacred Islamic Sharia. Therefore, Mujahideen are instructed to strictly stay away from such Practices.”
Furthermore, according to Mullah Omar’s own recently-issued addendum to the code of conduct, Article 78 clearly directs that “The mujahidin are duty-bound to show good character and Islamic behavior to the nation. They should win the hearts of Muslims at large. As mujahidin, they should be such a representative of the Islamic Emirate that all the countrymen welcome them and the countrymen provide them with cooperation and support.”
“Frankly, it’s really not surprising that we see examples of the Taliban threatening to engage in such barbaric actions against their own people,” said Maj. Patrick Seiber, Combined Joint Task Force – 101 and Regional Command – East spokesperson. “We see over and over how they will typically say one thing and do another. There is no command authority that has any control over them present on the ground in Afghanistan. Somewhere there is a disconnect. The Taliban we interdict every day, killing and injuring their fellow Afghan civilians, are definitely not interested in following any ‘code of conduct’,” added Seiber.
One way that Afghan citizens can take charge and increase their own security is by anonymously notifying International Security Assistance Forces (ISAF) of the presence of explosives and munitions in their neighbourhoods that are used by Taliban fighters to injure and kill them.
The Rewards Program enables local Afghans to save lives throughout eastern Afghanistan by providing information leading to the collection of dangerous weapons, explosives and insurgents. Since the beginning of August, Regional Command East has paid out more than $70,000 in reward money to local citizens who provided information on weapons storage facilities, IEDs, and key insurgent leaders. This information led to the discovery of items typically used to harm Afghan civilians, Afghan National Security Forces and Coalition Forces, including 25 IEDs and 33 weapons caches.
One of the largest caches reported this month revealed more than 240 82mm mortar shells, 133 107mm rockets and 97 other munitions of varying types. Once complete, this action could earn the Afghans who called up to $30,000.
Since last October, RC-E has actively promoted the Rewards program and encouraged local members of the community to call in to their Community Safety Lines to provide information. Afghan civilians interested in cleaning up their communities should call their individual district phone numbers that are available at the local governance centers.
“We have collected what would be extremely valuable to the insurgents in IEDs, IED making materials, and unexploded ordinance. Since the program began, we have prevented thousands of deaths or injuries to innocent civilians, Afghan National Security Forces, and Coalition Forces,” said Chief Warrant Officer Steve Mehl, Rewards Program chief, Regional Command East.
“We will continue to actively promote this program because it is saving lives and making the local communities safer for Afghan families,” Mehl said.
http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=c47_1282831003
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
2010-08-RCE-CC-125
BAGRAM AIRFIELD, Afghanistan (Aug. 26, 2010) – Insurgent-related attacks have been responsible for the deaths of two Afghan civilians and serious injuries to 35 more within the last seven days, despite the holy month of Ramadan.
Click to view image: 'b48a4a51ea17-newnotarepostnato.png'
Below are highlights of some of these attacks that occurred within six of the 14 provinces in Regional Command-East.
On Aug. 21, an improvised explosive device exploded in Paktika Province, killing an Afghan child and wounding four civilians and two Afghan Border Patrol personnel. Coalition forces reported six wounded Afghans showed up at Forward Operating Base Orgun E for medical treatment. Coalition Forces investigated the site of the attack and found one Afghan child had died of wounds. The insurgents were targeting the ABP.
On Aug. 23 in Logar Province, one Afghan child was killed and another wounded by Taliban insurgents. During a patrol, Coalition forces came under attack, receiving small-arms and rocket-propelled grenades. Coalition forces noticed three local children were watching from a bridge nearby when the attack occurred. The unit did not return fire but instead moved one of their vehicles to position it between the insurgent gunfire and the children. Two of the children had already been shot by insurgents. The unit medically evacuated the children along with their father to Forward Operating Base Shank where one child later died of his wounds.
On Aug. 24 in Paktika Province, seven Afghan citizens were wounded by an IED. Three of the wounded were treated by a Coalition forces medic, while the other four were treated at a local clinic.
The latest attacks continue to underscore the steady increase in the number of Afghan civilians being killed and injured daily since Mullah Omar attempted to gain control of the Taliban by issuing a ‘code of conduct.’
In addition to the deaths and injuries inflicted from daily attacks, Taliban fighters have employed threats and intimidation in an attempt to derail the Sept. 18, 2010 Parliamentary elections that are designed to improve the representation of Afghan civilians and make the region safer.
To find a practical example of these tactics, you need look no further than the Nerkh district in Wardak province. Taliban fighters have allegedly issued a warning to the local civilians that if they catch anyone voting in the elections they will cut off that person’s fingers. Taliban fighters have said they will “inspect the fingers of individuals returning to their villages to see if there is ink still on their fingers.” They plan on conducting these inspections on the day of, and days following, the elections since it (ink) takes a couple of days to wear off. Taliban fighters have vowed to use a bayonet from an AK-47 to “chop the fingers off onto the ground.”
While such threats have failed to derail elections in the past, it is important to note that the potential mutilation of anyone is a direct violation of the established guidelines that Mullah Omar’s Taliban fighters are obliged to obey.
In Chapter Nine ‘Official Forbiddance’ of The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan’s guidance titled: A Book of Rules released on Sept. 10, 2009, it is clearly written that “Mutilation is strictly forbidden in sacred Islamic Sharia. Therefore, Mujahideen are instructed to strictly stay away from such Practices.”
Furthermore, according to Mullah Omar’s own recently-issued addendum to the code of conduct, Article 78 clearly directs that “The mujahidin are duty-bound to show good character and Islamic behavior to the nation. They should win the hearts of Muslims at large. As mujahidin, they should be such a representative of the Islamic Emirate that all the countrymen welcome them and the countrymen provide them with cooperation and support.”
“Frankly, it’s really not surprising that we see examples of the Taliban threatening to engage in such barbaric actions against their own people,” said Maj. Patrick Seiber, Combined Joint Task Force – 101 and Regional Command – East spokesperson. “We see over and over how they will typically say one thing and do another. There is no command authority that has any control over them present on the ground in Afghanistan. Somewhere there is a disconnect. The Taliban we interdict every day, killing and injuring their fellow Afghan civilians, are definitely not interested in following any ‘code of conduct’,” added Seiber.
One way that Afghan citizens can take charge and increase their own security is by anonymously notifying International Security Assistance Forces (ISAF) of the presence of explosives and munitions in their neighbourhoods that are used by Taliban fighters to injure and kill them.
The Rewards Program enables local Afghans to save lives throughout eastern Afghanistan by providing information leading to the collection of dangerous weapons, explosives and insurgents. Since the beginning of August, Regional Command East has paid out more than $70,000 in reward money to local citizens who provided information on weapons storage facilities, IEDs, and key insurgent leaders. This information led to the discovery of items typically used to harm Afghan civilians, Afghan National Security Forces and Coalition Forces, including 25 IEDs and 33 weapons caches.
One of the largest caches reported this month revealed more than 240 82mm mortar shells, 133 107mm rockets and 97 other munitions of varying types. Once complete, this action could earn the Afghans who called up to $30,000.
Since last October, RC-E has actively promoted the Rewards program and encouraged local members of the community to call in to their Community Safety Lines to provide information. Afghan civilians interested in cleaning up their communities should call their individual district phone numbers that are available at the local governance centers.
“We have collected what would be extremely valuable to the insurgents in IEDs, IED making materials, and unexploded ordinance. Since the program began, we have prevented thousands of deaths or injuries to innocent civilians, Afghan National Security Forces, and Coalition Forces,” said Chief Warrant Officer Steve Mehl, Rewards Program chief, Regional Command East.
“We will continue to actively promote this program because it is saving lives and making the local communities safer for Afghan families,” Mehl said.
http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=c47_1282831003
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