KABUL, (Reuters) – Medical aid group Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) yesterday demanded an independent international inquiry into a suspected U.S. air strike that killed 22 people in an Afghan hospital it runs, branding the attack a “war crime”.
U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter promised a full investigation into whether the American military was connected to the destruction of the hospital, but cautioned it would take time to gather information.
“We do know that American air assets … were engaged in the Kunduz vicinity, and we do know that the structures that – you see in the news – were destroyed,” Carter told reporters travelling with him shortly before landing in Spain yesterday. “I just can’t tell you what the connection is at this time.”
The Pentagon chief would not speculate on what occurred but said Washington would hold accountable “anybody responsible for doing something they shouldn’t have done.”
MSF said a U.S. military probe into the incident, which occurred during a push by Afghan security forces to retake the key northern city of Kunduz from Taliban insurgents, was not enough.
“Relying only on an internal investigation by a party to the conflict would be wholly insufficient,” MSF General Director Christopher Stokes said in a statement.
“Under the clear presumption that a war crime has been committed, MSF demands that a full and transparent investigation into the event be conducted by an independent international body,” Stokes said.
Battles were still raging yesterday around Kunduz, a city of 300,000, as government forces backed by U.S. air power sought to drive out the Taliban militants who seized the city almost a week ago in one of their biggest victories in the 14-year war.
Decomposing bodies littered the streets and trapped residents said food was becoming scarce.
“This city is no longer fit for living,” said the province’s public health director, Sayed Mukhtar.
Any confirmation of U.S. responsibility for the hospital deaths would deal a blow to Afghan President Ashraf Ghani’s policy of forging closer ties with the United States. His predecessor, Hamid Karzai, fell out with his backers in Washington in part over the number of civilians killed by U.S. strikes.
But the Afghan leader will be torn between distancing himself from Washington and the need for American firepower to help his forces drive insurgents out of Kunduz.
The U.S. military said it conducted an air strike “in the vicinity” of the MSF hospital as it targeted Taliban insurgents who were directly firing on U.S. military personnel. It has not acknowledged hitting the hospital.
U.S. officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said a U.S. military AC-130 gunship had been operating in the area, firing at Taliban targets after receiving a request for support from U.S. special operations forces advising Afghan troops.
President Barack Obama offered condolences on Saturday to the victims of what he called “the tragic incident”. The U.N. human rights chief called the hospital assault “inexcusable” and also said it could amount to a war crime.
The U.S.-led coalition force in Afghanistan said it expected to complete its preliminary multinational investigation within days.
