Afghan survivors of errant US drone strike seek probe

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KABUL – A subsister of an errant U.S. drone onslaught that killed 10 members of his household demanded Saturday that those liable beryllium punished and said Washington's apology was not enough.

The household besides seeks fiscal compensation and relocation to the United States oregon different state deemed safe, said Emal Ahmadi, whose 3-year-old girl Malika was among those killed successful the Aug. 29 strike.

On that day, a U.S. hellfire rocket struck the car that Ahmadi's member Zemerai had conscionable pulled into the driveway of the Ahmadi household compound arsenic children ran to greet him. In all, 10 members of the family, including 7 children, were killed successful the strike.

On Friday, U.S. Marine Gen. Frank McKenzie, caput of U.S. Central Command, called the onslaught a “tragic mistake” and said that guiltless civilians were so killed successful the attack.

The U.S. subject initially defended the strike, saying it had targeted an Islamic State group's “facilitator" and disrupted the militants' quality to transportation retired attacks during the chaotic last signifier of the withdrawal of U.S. and NATO troops from Afghanistan precocious past month.

Discrepancies betwixt the military's portrayal of the onslaught and findings connected the crushed rapidly emerged. The Associated Press and different quality organizations reported that the operator of the targeted conveyance was a longtime worker astatine a U.S. humanitarian organization. There were nary signs of a ample secondary blast, contempt the Pentagon's assertion that the conveyance contained explosives.

The drone onslaught followed a devastating termination bombing by IS — a rival of the Taliban — that killed 169 Afghans and 13 U.S. subject unit astatine 1 of the gates to the Kabul airdrome successful precocious August. At that time, ample numbers of Afghans, hopeless to fly the Taliban, had crowded the airdrome gates successful hopes of getting connected to evacuation flights.

McKenzie apologized for the mistake and said the United States is considering making reparation payments to the household of the victims.

Emal Ahmadi told the AP connected Saturday that helium wants the U.S. to analyse who fired the drone and punish those responsible.

“That is not capable for america to accidental sorry,” said Ahmadi who heard of the U.S. apology from friends successful America. “The U.S.A. should find the idiosyncratic who did this."

Ahmadi said helium was relieved that an apology was offered and the household members helium mislaid were recognized arsenic guiltless victims, but that this won't bring them back. He said that helium was frustrated that the household ne'er received a telephone from U.S. officials, contempt repeated requests.

He looked exhausted arsenic helium sat successful beforehand of the charred ruins of his brother's car.

In the days earlier the Pentagon's apology, accounts from the family, documents from colleagues seen by the AP and the country astatine the household location — wherever Zemerai’s car was struck by the rocket — all sharply contradicted the accounts by the U.S. military.

Instead, they painted the representation of a household that had worked for Americans and were trying to summation visas to the U.S., fearing for their lives nether the Taliban.

Zemerai Ahmadi was the family's breadwinner and had looked aft his 3 brothers, including Emal, and their children.

“Now I americium past 1 who is liable for each my household and I americium jobless,” said Emal Ahmadi. The concern “is not good,” said Ahmadi of beingness nether the Taliban.

International assistance groups and the United Nations person warned of a looming humanitarian situation that could thrust astir Afghans beneath the poorness level.

McKenzie said the determination to onslaught a achromatic Toyota Corolla sedan, aft having tracked it for astir 8 hours, was made successful an “earnest belief” — based connected a modular of “reasonable certainty” — that it posed an imminent menace to American forces astatine the Kabul airport. The car was believed to person been carrying explosives successful its trunk, helium said.

But Ahmadi wondered however the family's location could person been mistaken for an Islamic State hideout.

“The U.S.A. tin spot from everywhere," helium said of U.S. drone capabilities. “They tin spot that determination were guiltless children adjacent the car and successful the car. Whoever did this should beryllium punished.”

“It isn't right,” helium added.

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