23 February 2010

Afghan Operation Emphasizes Prevention of Civilian Casualties

 

Afghan police unload food from a U.S. military vehicle for residents of Marjah, a focus of the ongoing military operation.

Afghan police unload food from a U.S. military vehicle for residents of Marjah, a focus of the ongoing military operation.

By Stephen Kaufman
Staff Writer

Washington — The military and civilian operations in Afghanistan’s central Helmand province have placed a priority on protecting the civilian population and delivering stability and services to them, rather than the goal of killing Taliban insurgent forces that have been in control of the area, Obama administration officials say.

Despite ongoing resistance in the Nad Ali district and the town of Marjah, the Defense Department’s undersecretary for policy, Michelle Flournoy, told U.S. senators she is “cautiously optimistic” about the direction of the new Afghan and international effort.

“This is a work in progress. But we are seeing conditions begin to develop that we believe will ultimately be necessary for success,” Flournoy told the Senate Armed Services Committee February 22. “And for the first time, we believe we have the right mission, the right strategy, the right leadership and the right level of resources in support of the mission.”

Operation Moshtarak, a word that means “together” in Dari and Pashto, was planned by Afghan security forces and the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Afghanistan with the goal of clearing areas of Taliban fighters, extending the reach of the local and national Afghan governments, and providing the civilian population with services such as health care and education and reassuring them that the authority of the Afghan government is there to stay.

“This really is the first large-scale effort to fundamentally change how we are doing business,” Flournoy said, emphasizing that the top priority is protecting the civilian population while working closely with Afghan partners to ensure the Afghan government can hold the area as they build civilian services and economic development.

Many Afghans are eager to see development and responsive governance, but need assistance and resources to make that happen. With the beginning of Operation Moshtarak, “I think they see this as an opportunity to move down the road toward achieving that,” she said.

Before the operation began February 13, Afghan and ISAF representatives held multiple shuras, or traditional meetings of elders, in local communities, which Flournoy said allowed civilians to “have real buy-in into the operation.”

The shuras focused on the situation on the ground, “whether they wanted their area to be cleared, whether they wanted to be rid of the Taliban, whether they wanted Afghan and coalition forces to come in,” as well as what the outcome might look like and determining if they were “prepared for the risk that would be involved.”

As a result, “I think the vast majority of them became very supportive,” she said, “but they were also very clear that they wanted not just a clearing; they wanted the hold and the build, and they wanted legitimate and responsive governance at the end of the day when it was all over.”

MILITARY APOLOGIZES FOR CIVILIAN CASUALTIES

Flournoy said with the emphasis on avoiding civilian casualties, the percentage caused by coalition actions “has dropped substantially,” which has improved both optimism and confidence that the Afghan and international forces will prevail over the Taliban.

However, a mistaken February 22 attack on a civilian convoy killed 27 people, and prompted a February 23 video apology by ISAF commander General Stanley McChrystal to the Afghan people in Dari and Pashto.

“I have instituted a thorough investigation to prevent this from happening again,” McChrystal said. “I pledge to strengthen our efforts to regain your trust to build a brighter future for all Afghans. Most importantly, I express my deepest, heartfelt condolences to the victims and their families. We all share in their grief and will keep them in our thoughts and prayers.”

In his remarks to the Senate committee, Marine Corps Lieutenant General John Paxton Jr., who directs operations for the U.S. military’s Joint Staff, said there have been “isolated incidents of regrettable civilian casualties,” and he said that in some cases “we have seen the Taliban use the civilians as human shields.”

The coalition troops have been operating under rules of engagement that are designed to prevent civilian casualties, and McChrystal has given his subordinate commanders in the field the authority to exercise their judgment in the delicate balance between protecting civilians while also protecting their troops from undue risk, Paxton said.

“Right now, our two largest points are to separate the insurgents from the population, and then to demonstrate our resolve and our commitment to stay … so that we can gain credibility with the people of Afghanistan,” he said.

With the delivery of the goods and services they seek, the population will not feel that “they owe allegiance to a shadow government who provides something that the local government cannot,” he said.

Already, he said, in some areas that have been cleared of Taliban forces, markets and bazaars have reopened, and civilians have cooperated with coalition forces by identifying the location of improvised explosive devices (IEDs), which the Taliban have used as their primary weapon against the security forces.

Civilian cooperation can play a role in persuading some Taliban fighters to participate in rehabilitation efforts led by the Afghan government, he said.

“If the population can demonstrate a resilience and an agreement to work with the Afghan security forces, then those who have thrown down their arms and left may be faced with two opportunities of either retreating further or starting to think about reconciliation, which is where we want to go,” Paxton said.