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| Afghanistan/South Asia |
| Australian SAS Triggered Afghan Carnage |
| 2005-05-31 |
| AN Australian SAS patrol leader claims his men were part of a bungled operation in Afghanistan that triggered a bloody tribal firefight and ended in 11 civilians being killed. The SAS sergeant, a 12-year veteran of the elite special forces regiment who has since quit the army, accused his superiors of a "cover-up" over the May 2002 incident. The SAS patrol, known as Redback Kilo Three, was part of a US-led mission in eastern Afghanistan to flush out Taliban and al-Qaeda forces after the terrorist attacks on the US of September 11, 2001. The extraordinary claims, to be published in Time magazine today, also include allegations that one of the SAS troopers souvenired the turban and gun of one of the dead Afghan villagers that he had allegedly paraded after the incident. He had been asked to show cause why he should not be discharged from the army, the report says. Two other Australian soldiers were also issued show-cause notices. There were also claims that the Diggers - relying on poor intelligence - thought they were flushing out al-Qaeda and Taliban fighters. But instead they reignited a shooting war between rival Afghan tribesmen over rights to the area's forests that ended with deadly coalition air strikes. The magazine also publishes for the first time the rules of engagement for the SAS during Operation Slipper, the code name for the Afghanistan mission. The rules stated that "incidental- collateral damage" - including death or injury to civilians - was acceptable as long as it was not "excessive in relation to direct military advantage anticipated to be gained". The Defence Department released a statement last night saying special forces operated under strict rules of engagement, which included the specific and discriminatory use of force. The statement confirmed the SAS patrol had engaged in contact in May 2002, with a larger SAS force coming to its aid after it was fired on. "The actions were reviewed and determined to be in accordance with the rules of engagement," the statement said. It also said some internal aspects of patrol RK3 had been investigated and appropriate disciplinary action taken. Time magazine located and interviewed relatives of the dead civilians, who left behind nearly 50 children now reliant on handouts to survive. Village elders say an Australian officer later apologised and promised compensation, but they have received nothing. When the turban was confiscated, the accused trooper and three other SAS men on the patrol complained to senior officers that the leader had made poor decisions under fire and put men at risk. The patrol leader denied the claims, but the major in command of Three Squadron, Vance Khan, segregated the patrol and took its members off operational duties. The patrol leader later applied for a discharge. |
| Posted by:Spavirt Pheng6042 |
| #2 This is just a war aint perfect story. Unlike, say MSM journalism, which never makes mistakes. |
| Posted by: phil_b 2005-05-31 21:37 |
| #1 Three year old news. Did the Ozzies fix the problem, punish the guilty, make good their mistake? If the article doesn't answer these questions, it is simple anti-war hatefulness, not productive journalism. I'm feeling too lazy to actually check the link, but I know which way I'd place my bet. |
| Posted by: trailing wife 2005-05-31 20:27 |