US commander vows to cut Afghan casualties
LONDON — The commander of U.S. and allied forces in Afghanistan has said he will review military strategy in an effort to reduce civilian casualties.
U.S. Gen. Stanley McChrystal said in an interview broadcast Friday that troops had a duty to protect Afghan civilians.
He told the BBC that he would review troops’ rules of engagement and instructions, “with the emphasis that we are fighting for the population, and that involves protecting them both from the enemy and from unintended consequences of our operation.”
“Because we know that although an operation may be conducted for the right reason, if it has negative effects it can have a negative outcome for everyone,” he said.
“Sometimes there’s winning a tactical fight and losing a strategic event.”
Civilian deaths, particularly in U.S. airstrikes, have angered many Afghans and undermined support for foreign intervention in the country. The U.S. is currently investigating airstrikes in western Afghanistan’s Farah province that killed at least 30 civilians last month.
There are about 70,000 U.S. and allied troops in Afghanistan. President Barack Obama is sending 21,000 more American troops there to fight a resurgent Taliban, and has shaken up the U.S. military command in a bid to break the stalemate there.
McChrystal, a former special forces officer, was confirmed by the U.S. Senate this week as commander of the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan. He replaces Gen. David McKiernan, who was forced out by U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates.
Taliban insurgents are ramping up attacks on foreign forces. On Thursday, the head of U.S. Central Command, David Petraeus, said the number of insurgent attacks had hit the highest level since the December 2001 fall of the Taliban.
McChrystal said U.S. troops would be in Afghanistan for a long time to come.
“I think it will go on until we achieve the kind of progress we want to achieve,” he said. “It won’t be short.”
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