http://nypost.com/2015/11/25/us-soldiers-suspended-for-deadly-airstrike-on-hospital/US soldiers suspended for deadly airstrike on hospital
By Associated Press
November 25, 2015 | 3:46pm
WASHINGTON — American soldiers and airmen who killed and wounded dozens of civilians in a strike on an Afghanistan hospital violated US rules of engagement and have been suspended as they await disciplinary action that could include criminal charges, military officials said Wednesday.
Briefing reporters on the results of two investigations, Gen. John Campbell, the US commander in Afghanistan, described an egregious series of human and technical failures that led a US warplane to destroy a medical charity’s hospital in northern Afghanistan last month. Campbell and other officials would not say how many people had been removed from their jobs or whether anyone higher in the chain of command would be subject to discipline.
“This was a tragic but avoidable accident caused primarily by human error,” Campbell said. He left open the possibility that disciplinary action, which has yet to be determined, could include courts-martial.
Christopher Stokes, general director of Doctors Without Borders, whose hospital was attacked, said the US military’s statements Wednesday left his organization with more questions than answers.
“The frightening catalog of errors outlined today illustrates gross negligence on the part of US forces and violations of the rules of war,” Stokes said.
Officials said the crew of an AC-130 gunship had been dispatched to hit a Taliban command center in a different building, 450 yards away. However, hampered by problems with their targeting sensors, the crew relied on a physical description that led them to begin firing at a hospital run by Doctors Without Borders, a medical charity, even though they saw no hostile activity there.
Many chances to avert the error were missed, officials said.
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