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26 Aug 2008 07:50 pm

60 Children

That's the death toll from a US air-strike in Afghanistan. It was obviously a tragic accident, although the details of this horrifying mass casualty have yet to be determined:

How the military came to call in air strikes on a civilian gathering still remains unclear. Two parliamentarians, Mr. Safi and Maulavi Gul Ahmad, who is from the area, said the villagers blamed tribal enemies for giving the military false intelligence.

“According to the villagers their enemies give false report to Americans that foreign fighters were gathering in the village,” Mr. Safi said.

But sometimes, it seems to me the US needs to better understand the psychological impact of an event like this on populations Americans are trying to win over. Imagine if an airstrike from a foreign power killed 60 American children - even in an accident. It would be an historic event that would be seared into the Western consciousness for ever. And yet, US bombs just killed exactly that number and the odds are: this is the first time you heard about it. Oh, and one more thing:

Russia, at odds with the United States and much of the West over its recognition of two breakaway regions in the Central Asian country of Georgia, said it would raise the issue on Tuesday afternoon at the Security Council.

Yes, they're back.

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