General Stanley McChrystal, commander of NATO forces in Afghanistan, spoke in all honesty on CBS, saying what most of the western media have hidden for years. He said that the spread and strength of resistance to NATO troops (but he used the term "violence") is greater than he expected. He said that coalition forces need at least another 40,000 men. He said that we must stop killing civilians.
"If people see us as occupiers and enemies we will never win, and our casualties will increase". He added that protecting the lives of Afghan civilians must be a priority, much more important than killing Talibans. McChrystal since he took command had the merit of having decreased the number of civilians killed by NATO forces in Afghanistan: 295 this year instead of 1000, which was the average number in previous years. The decrease in civilian casualties has been achieved by limiting the indiscriminate bombing that were the norm during the Bush presidency. The level of censorship on this subject in the Western media is impressive.
Even today most of the news about the words of McChristal talk about the level of violence or of his request for more troops, but are completely silent about civilian casualties. In Europe, this attitude is even more widespread than in the United States, because European governments in all these years have told their voters that in Afghanistan we are on a peace mission. And so you cannot talk about 1000 Afghan civilians killed each year by NATO forces, as an estimate downward. Civilian casualties to be very precise are men, elderly, women and children torn to pieces by NATO bombs in error. Victims who we never see on Western newspapers and tv.
Today the italian President spoke of "very broad public and political support for the commitment of Italian soldiers in peacekeeping missions abroad." It was a response to the umpteenth Berlusconi delirium, who accused the entire italian opposition to celebrate the death of Italian soldiers. In truth, almost all Italian political parties have always supported the mission in Afghanistan, but it's not a peacekeeping mission at all, it's a war. And the public support mentioned by Napolitano doesn't exist, because the majority of the population in the West support the withdrawal from Afghanistan, given the bad results obtained so far.
Even today most of the news about the words of McChristal talk about the level of violence or of his request for more troops, but are completely silent about civilian casualties. In Europe, this attitude is even more widespread than in the United States, because European governments in all these years have told their voters that in Afghanistan we are on a peace mission. And so you cannot talk about 1000 Afghan civilians killed each year by NATO forces, as an estimate downward. Civilian casualties to be very precise are men, elderly, women and children torn to pieces by NATO bombs in error. Victims who we never see on Western newspapers and tv.
Today the italian President spoke of "very broad public and political support for the commitment of Italian soldiers in peacekeeping missions abroad." It was a response to the umpteenth Berlusconi delirium, who accused the entire italian opposition to celebrate the death of Italian soldiers. In truth, almost all Italian political parties have always supported the mission in Afghanistan, but it's not a peacekeeping mission at all, it's a war. And the public support mentioned by Napolitano doesn't exist, because the majority of the population in the West support the withdrawal from Afghanistan, given the bad results obtained so far.
According to McChrystal the war can be won not by increasing firepower but by gaining the confidence of the population. Would not be so difficult. Talibans kill around 1,500 innocent civilians every year and are not very credible as freedom fighters. We must ask ourselves, however, if the armies of NATO are capable of being truly different from them. So far they have completely failed.
Francesco Defferrari
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