Good Vs. Bad Collateral Damage; American Vs. Russian Killing

Foreign Policy,Middle East,War

            

From Afghanistan comes news of the toll the US’s ongoing, indiscriminate bombing is taking on the long-suffering people of the region: “Possible US airstrike in Afghanistan kills at least 19 at Doctors Without Borders hospital.”

Deranged ex-military men such as Col Ralph Peters, David Hunt or Oliver North will make the case that a good country killing (US) is not the same as a bad country killing (Russia in Syria). Homegrown chicken-hawks like Chucky Krauthammer will concur.

Tell that to those whose lungs are airless, whose hearts are not beating, and whose eyes and limbs are missing. They are not free and will never be free.

Via Target Liberty (where you can also catch “Lady Di of The Papacy,” if you missed it elsewhere):

Médecins Sans Frontières said 37 people were seriously wounded, 19 medical staff among them.
“We are deeply shocked by the attack, the killing of our staff and patients and the heavy toll it has inflicted on healthcare in Kunduz,” said Bart Janssens, director of operations for MSF.

“We do not yet have the final casualty figures but our medical team are providing first aid and treating the injured patients and MSF personnel and accounting for the deceased.”

Is should be noted that this US bombing attackkilled more innocents than Christopher Harper-Mercer did this week at Umpqua Community College in Roseburg, Oregon.

Just hours before the incident, on Friday evening, the US state department issued a joint statement with the government’s of France, Germany, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Turkey and the UK castigating Russia for causing “civilian casualties [which] will only fuel more extremism and radicalisation,” reports FT.