by DAN CALLOWAY
Published September 7, 2009
WEAVERVILLE, NC - The BBC is reporting that the Taliban have called for a UN and human rights investigation into an air strike in Afghanistan on Friday that killed dozens of people.
The independent Afghanistan Rights Monitor group says up to 70 civilians died in the Kunduz province raid. The NATO air strike targeted fuel tankers hijacked by the insurgents.
The BBC’s David Loyn in Kabul says the Taliban call is a change to its usual policy of opposing all foreign involvement in Afghanistan. Meanwhile, US forces are facing new criticism from a Swedish organization which claims US soldiers forced their way into a hospital, searching for insurgents.
The aid group says this was a clear violation of international principles and made its humanitarian task more difficult. The prevention of civilian casualties and protection of the Afghan population forms the centerpiece of a new military strategy for Afghanistan by the commander of US forces, General Stanley McChrystal. After the raid in the far north of the country, Gen McChrystal made an unprecedented TV appeal to the Afghan people saying he took the loss of civilian life very seriously.
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