Guards shot children dead after Afghan suicide blast, says UN
Many of the children who died in Afghanistan's worst-ever suicide attack were actually shot dead by bodyguards who fired indiscriminately into the crowd after the blast, a UN report said.
The department of safety and security report, which was obtained by the Associated Press, said it was not clear how many people died in the bombing or from the gunfire immediately after the attack on November 6 in Baghlan province.
Sixty-one children, five teachers, six MPs and five bodyguards died in the attack. Ninety-three other children were injured, some critically.
One estimate said up to two-thirds of the 77 people killed and more than 100 wounded were hit by gunfire; other estimates put the numbers shot much lower.
"Regardless of what the exact breakdown of numbers may be, the fact remains that a number of armed men deliberately and indiscriminately fired into a crowd of unarmed civilians that posed no threat to them, causing multiple deaths and injuries," the report said.
"It is believed that at least 100 rounds or more were fired into the crowd with a separate group of school children off to one side of the road bearing the brunt of the onslaught at close range," it added.
Adrian Edwards, the UN spokesman in Afghanistan, said the report was one of several conflicting views inside the UN and that its findings had not been endorsed.
"What you are seeing at the moment represents part of the picture only," he said. "What hasn't been resolved is that there is widely diverging, contrary views on this, and until those have been resolved, there is no complete finding."
The UN report said bodyguards opened fire into the crowd for several minutes.
"It has been confirmed that eight of the teachers in charge of this group of school children suffered multiple gunshot wounds, five of which died," it said.
The report said that further inquiries "are being hampered by restrictions on witnesses and officials, and that despite several arrests, there have not yet been any reports of who is responsible". According to the Afghan authorities, most of the casualties resulted from the suicide attack. The interior ministry spokesman, Zemeri Bashary, had said most of the victims were hit by ball bearings in the bomb, and not by bullets.
The children, all boys aged between eight and 18 from the same school, had gathered to welcome a visiting delegation of MPs to a sugar factory outside the town of Pul-i-Khumri, 90 miles north of the capital, Kabul, in a region which has remained largely peaceful.
Hundreds of children had crowded on to the tree-lined drive leading to the factory. Witnesses and survivors described guards firing into the thick black smoke for up to five minutes after the attack.
Among the MPs was Sayed Mustafa Kazimi, the chief spokesman of Afghanistan's only opposition group, the National Front.
No group has claimed responsibility for the attack. Afghan officials said they do not know who was behind the bombing. The Taliban denied responsibility.
The deadliest previous suicide bombing in Afghanistan took place in June, when 35 people died in a bomb attack on a police bus.
Re: Guards shot children dead after Afghan suicide blast
islamirama
Boy, you wouldn't what to highlight
Adrian Edwards, the UN spokesman in Afghanistan, said the report was one of several conflicting views inside the UN and that its findings had not been endorsed.
"What you are seeing at the moment represents part of the picture only," he said. "What hasn't been resolved is that there is widely diverging, contrary views on this, and until those have been resolved, there is no complete finding."
Let alone
According to the Afghan authorities, most of the casualties resulted from the suicide attack. The interior ministry spokesman, Zemeri Bashary, had said most of the victims were hit by ball bearings in the bomb, and not by bullets.
Less of that talk, please
-Muezzin
Last edited by Muezzin; 11-23-2007 at 10:37 AM.
Reason: Removed personal swipes
Re: Guards shot children dead after Afghan suicide blast
There are some big problems I have with this report.
1. Who are the bodyguards?
2. Who were they supposed to be guarding?
3. Who hired them?
4. What qualified them to be body guards?
From what I can find so far is they were civilians and not part of any government. So where did they come from? Where they mercenaries, professionals, or what?
Re: Guards shot children dead after Afghan suicide blast
format_quote Originally Posted by Woodrow
Now two more questions arise from that news article:
Why is the Afghan Government hindering a full investigation?
Why is the US Dominated UN so interested in this being investigated?
As for why the Afghan government is hindering the investigation, that is anyone's guess I suppose. Knowing that the Afghan political system is still unstable and full of corruption, it wouldn't suprise me if bribes and blackmail were involved in keeping the investigation down.
As for the U.N., while it is dominated by the U.S. to a large degree, the U.N. General Assembly is decidedly anti-American. The Security Council is much different than the General Assembly. That being said, I'm not sure why the U.S. would be against the investigation. Perhaps if the Afghan government can show its ability to be transparent and able to administer justice, it helps the U.S. in its goal of creating stability in the country.
"Imagination was given to man to compensate him for what he is not, and a sense of humor was provided to console him for what he is."
Re: Guards shot children dead after Afghan suicide blast
Guards shot children dead after Afghan suicide blast, says UN
Many of the children who died in Afghanistan's worst-ever suicide attack were actually shot dead by bodyguards who fired indiscriminately into the crowd after the blast, a UN report said.
The department of safety and security report, which was obtained by the Associated Press, said it was not clear how many people died in the bombing or from the gunfire immediately after the attack on November 6 in Baghlan province.
Sixty-one children, five teachers, six MPs and five bodyguards died in the attack. Ninety-three other children were injured, some critically.
One estimate said up to two-thirds of the 77 people killed and more than 100 wounded were hit by gunfire; other estimates put the numbers shot much lower.
"Regardless of what the exact breakdown of numbers may be, the fact remains that a number of armed men deliberately and indiscriminately fired into a crowd of unarmed civilians that posed no threat to them, causing multiple deaths and injuries," the report said.
"It is believed that at least 100 rounds or more were fired into the crowd with a separate group of school children off to one side of the road bearing the brunt of the onslaught at close range," it added.
Adrian Edwards, the UN spokesman in Afghanistan, said the report was one of several conflicting views inside the UN and that its findings had not been endorsed.
"What you are seeing at the moment represents part of the picture only," he said. "What hasn't been resolved is that there is widely diverging, contrary views on this, and until those have been resolved, there is no complete finding."
The UN report said bodyguards opened fire into the crowd for several minutes.
"It has been confirmed that eight of the teachers in charge of this group of school children suffered multiple gunshot wounds, five of which died," it said.
The report said that further inquiries "are being hampered by restrictions on witnesses and officials, and that despite several arrests, there have not yet been any reports of who is responsible". According to the Afghan authorities, most of the casualties resulted from the suicide attack. The interior ministry spokesman, Zemeri Bashary, had said most of the victims were hit by ball bearings in the bomb, and not by bullets.
The children, all boys aged between eight and 18 from the same school, had gathered to welcome a visiting delegation of MPs to a sugar factory outside the town of Pul-i-Khumri, 90 miles north of the capital, Kabul, in a region which has remained largely peaceful.
Hundreds of children had crowded on to the tree-lined drive leading to the factory. Witnesses and survivors described guards firing into the thick black smoke for up to five minutes after the attack.
Among the MPs was Sayed Mustafa Kazimi, the chief spokesman of Afghanistan's only opposition group, the National Front.
No group has claimed responsibility for the attack. Afghan officials said they do not know who was behind the bombing. The Taliban denied responsibility.
The deadliest previous suicide bombing in Afghanistan took place in June, when 35 people died in a bomb attack on a police bus.--islamirama
---And they call us suide bombers who blow up civilians.Pathetic.
Last edited by al-muslimah; 11-28-2007 at 03:29 AM.
Reason: mispelled
Re: Guards shot children dead after Afghan suicide blast
format_quote Originally Posted by al-muslimah
---And they call us suicide bombers who blow up civilians.Pathetic.
Nobody disputes that there was a suicide bomb. Nobody disputes that "hundreds of children had crowded on to the tree-lined drive leading to the factory". Only an idiot would believe those children all had some sort of magic immunity from the explosion - the bombers didn't care if they died or were wounded. So what exactly do you believe 'pathetic' about that description? One ill does not excuse another.
Re: Guards shot children dead after Afghan suicide blast
format_quote Originally Posted by al-muslimah
---And they call us suide bombers who blow up civilians.Pathetic.
Who is us?
Even though you promote "OFFENSIVE Jihad" I don't recall any one calling you a suicide bomber.
But suicide bombing is part of daily life for the people of Pakistan and Afghanistan.
Kabul suicide bombing kills two
KABUL, Nov 27: A suicide car bomber set off a huge blast on Tuesday near two armoured vehicles used by US-led coalition troops in Kabul, killing at least two civilians and wounding four other people including two Pakistani road construction workers.
The insurgent Taliban movement claimed responsibility for the blast in the Wazir Akbar Khan district near the city centre, close to the Pakistan embassy and a World Bank building.
(More) http://dawn.com/2007/11/28/top13.htm
Re: Guards shot children dead after Afghan suicide blast
they are many odd things about the story. I suspect we have not seen the whole thing. The more I hear, the less sense it makes for the Body Guards to have starting shooting. Who shoots at an explosion? It seems that the Body guards were trying to finish what the bomber/bombers did. They did more damage then the bombs did. It is like they were part of the same cause of whatever the bombers were.
I would still like to know who the bodyguards were and where they came from. Also who hired them?
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