People Still Dieing

McChrystal Apologizes for Afghan Civilian Casualties; US Death Toll Reaches 1,000

The commander of US and NATO forces in Afghanistan has apologized to the Afghan people for Sunday’s air strike that killed at least twenty-seven civilians riding in a convoy of minibuses. Gen. Stanley McChrystal took the unusual step of recording a videotaped message that was then then translated into the Afghan languages of Dari and Pashto. The air strike was reportedly ordered by US Special Operations Forces who believed the minibuses carried Taliban fighters. Abdul Qadir Noorzai, a human rights official in Afghanistan, condemned the US air strike.

Abdul Qadir Noorzai: “This kind of incident by NATO is really shocking and disappointing news. We hope the international forces, who are well aware of international law and human rights law, take this incident very seriously, and launch an investigation into how twenty-seven innocent civilians were martyred and all those wounded.”

The US death toll in Afghanistan has reached 1,000. We’ll have more on Afghanistan after headlines.

US Commander: Withdrawal from Iraq May Be Delayed

The top US commander in Iraq, General Ray Odierno, said Monday the US is preparing contingency plans to delay the withdrawal of all combat forces in Iraq if violence or political instability increases after next month’s election. Under President Obama’s current plan, the US has vowed to cut the number of troops in Iraq in half to 50,000 by August. A full withdrawal is scheduled to occur by the end of 2011