Page 9 - ATD05October2015
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WORLD NEWS 9
Monday 5 October 2015
Doctors Without Borders leaves Afghan city after airstrike
LYNNE O’DONNELL the AC-130 gunship re- responsible for the early On Sunday, the organiza- tinue as troops attempt to
Associated Press sponded and fired on the Saturday morning bomb- tion announced that three clear remaining pockets of
KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — area, but U.S. Secretary of ing. While NATO maintains injured hospital patients militants.
The U.S. and Afghan gov- Defense Ash Carter said a significant military role in had died, bringing the to- The Taliban’s brief seizure
ernments vowed Sunday it’s not certain yet whether Afghanistan, airstrikes are tal death toll to 22, includ- of Kunduz marked the in-
to jointly investigate the at- that was what destroyed conducted by U.S. forces ing 12 hospital staffers. It surgent group’s biggest
tack on a hospital in Kun- the hospital. Christopher Stokes, the earlier said that three of foray into a major urban
duz that killed 22 people, The officials were not au- charity’s general director, the dead were children in area since the 2001 U.S.-
as street-by street battles thorized to discuss the in- said the organization is de- the intensive care unit. The led invasion ended their
continued between gov- cident publicly. They also manding an independent charity also announced it rule.
ernment forces and Tal- said the senior U.S. military investigation and may not was withdrawing from Kun- Afghan forces have been
iban fighters and officials investigator is in Kunduz be satisfied with an inquiry duz. struggling to combat the
warned of a looming hu- but hasn’t yet been able conducted by the U.S. and Afghan officials said ear- Taliban since the U.S. and
manitarian crisis for civilians to get to the site because Afghan governments. lier that helicopter gun- NATO shifted to a support
trapped in the city it continues to be a con- Using the organization’s ships had returned fire from and training role at the end
Amid accusations that tested area between the French acronym, Stokes Taliban fighters who were of last year, officially end-
U.S. jet fighters were re- Afghans and the Taliban said, “MSF demands that hiding in the hospital. But ing their combat mission in
sponsible for what Doctors militants. a full and transparent in- Kate Stegeman, the char- the war-torn country.
Without Borders said was Carter, speaking to report- vestigation into the event ity’s communications man- A Kunduz resident who
a “sustained bombing” gave his name only as
of their trauma center in The burned Doctors Without Borders hospital is seen after explosions in the northern Afghan city Habibullah said the Afghan
Kunduz, President Barack flag was flying over the
Obama and Afghanistan’s of Kunduz, Saturday, Oct. 3, 2015. Associated Press central square — contrary
President Ashraf Ghani to reports that it had been
promised investigations. ers traveling with him on be conducted by an in- ager, said there were no retaken by the insurgents.
Obama said he expected a trip to Spain, said, “The dependent international insurgents in the facility at Gun battles were being
a full accounting of the situation there is confused body. Relying only on an the time of the bombing. fought in three districts on
circumstances surround- and complicated, so it internal investigation by a Meanwhile the humanitar- the outskirts of town, he
ing the bombing, and that may take some time to get party to the conflict would ian crisis in the city, which said.
he would wait for those the facts, but we will get be wholly insufficient.” briefly fell to the Taliban last Acting provincial Gov.
results before making a the facts.” The charity said that the week before the govern- Hamidullah Danishi said
judgment. He said the U.S. Carter said he believes the main hospital building in ment launched a counter- most of the insurgents had
would continue working U.S. will have better infor- the sprawling compound, offensive, has been grow- fled the city and that those
with Afghanistan’s govern- mation in the coming days, “where medical personnel ing increasingly dire, with still standing their ground
ment and its overseas part- once U.S. and international were caring for patients, shops shuttered because appeared to be what he
ners to promote security in investigators get access to was repeatedly and very of ongoing fighting and called “foreigners,” non-
Afghanistan. the hospital site. precisely hit during each roads made impassable Afghans who have been
Some top U.S. officials said Doctors Without Borders is- aerial raid, while the rest by mines planted by insur- boosting Taliban forces
the circumstances sur- sued a statement Sunday of the compound was left gents. in the north of the coun-
rounding the incident re- expressing its “clear as- mostly untouched.” It ear- The Taliban seized Kun- try for some months. Offi-
main murky, but others in- sumption that a war crime lier said that bombing had duz last Monday but have cials have said that many
dicated the U.S. may have has been committed,” af- lasted an hour, and re- since withdrawn from of them are from Central
been responsible. Army ter earlier saying that “all peated calls to NATO and much of the city after a Asian states, members of
Col. Brian Tribus, a spokes- indications” were that the the U.S. military to call off government counterat- the Islamic Movement of
man for American forces in international coalition was the strikes had failed. tack. Sporadic battles con- Uzbekistan.
Afghanistan, said Saturday Danishi said that 480 Tal-
that a U.S. airstrike “in the iban fighters had been
Kunduz vicinity” around killed as of Friday, and
2:15 a.m. Saturday morn- around 300 wounded. He
ing “may have resulted in put casualties among Af-
collateral damage to a ghan security forces at be-
nearby medical facility.” tween 30 and 35 killed or
U.S. officials speaking on wounded.
condition of anonymity Thousands of civilian resi-
said American special op- dents remain trapped in-
erations forces advising side the disputed city. Lo-
Afghan commandos in cal television showed live
the vicinity of the hospital footage of police officers
requested the air support handing bread to children,
when they came under fire one of whom said he had
in Kunduz. The officials said not eaten for three days.q
