At least 22 people were killed in the airstrike that occurred this past Saturday, October 3. The U.S. said it was a mistake made during fighting between Afghan forces and the Taliban.
Obama told the organization that an ongoing Pentagon investigation would "provide a transparent, thorough and objective accounting of the facts and circumstances of the incident." Joanne Liu, the international president of Doctors Without Borders stated that the apology had been received but wanted to establish "what happened in Kunduz, how it happened and why it happened." Liu stated the organizations goal is to establish facts about the incident and the chain of command.
Liu is upset as thousands of people in Kunduz can no longer receive medical care now when they need it most!
Direct presidential apologies to victims of American actions abroad are rare, but not unheard of. In 2012, Obama wrote a letter of apology to the Afghanistan President after several copies of the Quran were burned by the American military personnel, which lead to violent protests across their country. In 2004, President George W. Bush apologized for the treatment of Iraqi prisoned at the Abu Gharib military prison, stating he was "sorry for the humiliation."
In addition to the presidential apology, how should the United States react to this situation? What is a probable solution?
Should the United States help the Doctors Without Borders organization rebuild another hospital?
If you were Joanne Liu, the international president of Doctors Without Borders, how would you want the United States to take action?
Sources:
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/08/world/asia/obama-apologizes-for-bombing-of-afghanistan-hospital.html?ref=politics&_r=0
http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2015/10/07/doctors-without-border-seeks-international-probe-us-air-strike/73503106/
7 comments:
I think that President Obama's apology was completely necessary and appropriate, but i personally do not believe that it is enough. Not only did 22 people die in the bombing, but without proper medical care it is possible that thousands more are at risk. The United States should answer the questions that the President of Doctors Without Borders has, as the U.S. owes that at least that much for whatever mistake they made in bombing an undesired territory. Once investigations determine how this mistake occurred,persuasions should be put in place so that issues like these do not arise again and this situation can be avoided in the future. The United States should help Doctors Without Borders in any way that they can considering how essential this organization is for the people living in this area, and the fact that the United States's bombings are the reason that they need help in the first place. The United States cannot take back their actions, which is why it is important for President Obama to do right by these people moving forwards. If this means donating in order to rebuild the hospital, donating equipment, or helping in other ways, i believe that the president should move forward and help Liu however she sees fit (within reasonable request).
In addition to the apology, I believe that the United States is doing the right thing by assisting the Afghan government in its investigations, which displays much more respect and responsibility on America’s part. In addition, according the WSJ, Mr. Earnest said “If it is necessary to hold individuals accountable that will be done. And certainly, we’re going to be looking for reforms that we can put in place that make it less likely that these kinds of things happen in the future.” Obama’s apology to Doctors Without Borders is said to have been was more private and underscored the sensitivities of the investigations into the incident, which was necessary as well. I think that we are doing all the right things, but I agree with Morgan and believe that we should definitely help the construction of another hospital or reimburse Doctors Without Borders for their losses. The investigations could make America less responsible, as it is unknown if the US gunships knew they were bombing a hospital, if the Taliban had ever used the compound as a base to stage attacks, or what Afghan forces told the US forces before calling them to strike, but it ultimately is our fault since, even if we were misinformed, we followed through with it. If we ant to maintain our reputation of integrity, funding the hospital will not make or break our bank, and will have a better pay off in the future.
http://www.wsj.com/articles/obama-apologizes-to-doctors-without-borders-for-airstrike-that-hit-hospital-1444245760
In addition to the presidential apology, I also agree that the United States needs to conduct a transparent investigation into the incident. However the United States has continually changed the status of the attack. At first, U.S. officials reported the airstrike had been called in to protect U.S. forces. Then they changed their statement, saying that Afghan forces had called for the airstrike because Afghans were taking fire. Due to the changing story, Dr. Joanne Liu, the president of Doctors Without Borders, has called for an independent international investigation. I think that this investigation, along with the one done by the United States government would be best. Since 1991 The International Humanitarian Fact-Finding Commission has been in existence, although it has never been used. It's job is to investigate whether international humanitarian law has been violated and it requires the request of one of 76 nations in order to start an investigation. Since hospitals are protected under international humanitarian law, even in times of conflict I believe that this commission would play a perfect role in the investigation into why this airstrike happened and whether or not it is a true war crime.
I also think that the United States should help rebuild a new hospital. The hospital that was struck was the only source of healthcare in Kunduz. Now about 300,000 people have no access to healthcare; especially needed in this time of destruction and carnage.
http://www.cnn.com/2015/10/07/asia/doctors-without-borders-afghanistan-airstrike/
I have to agree with Morgan. Doctors Without Borders is an organization which has done a tremendous amount of good throughout its years of operation and, upon hearing of this bombing, I was shocked. Mistaken as this bombing was, it is still totally unacceptable. This kind of rash action, justified as it may have seemed in the moment, was not thoroughly contemplated before it was executed. When almost two dozen lives are lost without reason, it takes a little more than an apology to restore normalcy for both the citizens of Afghanistan and America. I side fully with Dr. Joanne Liu, international President of DWB, on the matter; she is demanding that the International Humanitarian Fact-Finding Commission "establish what happened in Kunduz, how it happened, and why it happened" (Shear/Sengupta). Though I hate to merely restate my classmates' viewpoints, I must say that I agree with the course of action going forward proposed by Claire. If the United States does not 100% fund the building of a new hospital for Doctors Without Borders, a presumed mistake will become an unforgivable travesty.
While I was shocked to hear the news of this tragedy, I commend the US government for apologizing in a sincere way.
Lastly, White House Spokesman John Earnest also claimed that President Obama would take the necessary precautions to make certain that tragedies like this do not happen anymore. However, his intended methods were not disclosed. If you were president, what preventative course of action would you take?
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/08/world/asia/obama-apologizes-for-bombing-of-afghanistan-hospital.html
There is no doubt the airstrike of Kunduz Hospital is indeed a tragedy. I believe Obama was just in his apology and relayed a genuine dismay. However, as bad as it sounds though, such occurrences are the unfortunate consequences of warfare. As of January 2015, Brown University estimated that, more than 26,000 Afghani civilians have been the victim of 'violent deaths' at the hands of war. A monumental number compared to the 22 unfortunate souls that perished in the Kunduz Hospital bombing. The current situation for President Obama, Ash Carter and the Pentagon is certainly not that of comfortable one, especially with the ever volatile press. Ash Carter, as well as the Afghan government, have claimed that the damage to the hospital came as a result of collateral damage; an apparently unsatisfying claim. Yet, at least an attempt at appeasing the public has been made, regardless of the actual reason the hospital was bombed. There is absolutely no doubt that a fully transparent investigation should take place and that punishment shall be dealt accordingly. However, despite the distress Doctors Without Borders may be facing, the United States is not a particularly easy nation to negotiate or taunt for that matter. Liu would not be out of line to expect 100% cooperation from the United States and Afghanistan. As of now, she holds support from much of the global community on the matter and use it to her advantage in the proliferation of Doctors Without Borders. Nevertheless she needs to be equally as cooperative if she wishes to have constructive negotiations.
If I were the President, I would ultimately try to move on the situation, while giving DWB the attention they need to recover from the bombing. Tragedies occur, yet we must continue to push forward.
http://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/unraveling-deadly-u-s-attack-kunduz-afghanistan-hospital-n440356
http://watson.brown.edu/costsofwar/costs/human/civilians/afghan
I think that the U.S. and President Obama should do everything they can to rectify what happened at Kunduz. They can't undo it, but they can use the influence of the most powerful nation of the world to possibly rebuild the hospital and painstakingly investigate why the bombing happened at the worst possible place it could have. Joanne Liu will want at least that much. As for a possible solution, there is none. This should not have happened, but it did happen. It has happened too many times to count. It has happened a countless number of times in U.S. history alone. Look at Zürich, or Dresden. CNN wrote an article here: http://www.cnn.com/2015/10/06/middleeast/us-collateral-damage-history/ with the headline "Collateral damage: A brief history of U.S. mistakes at war" that doesn't even mention Zürich or Dresden, and those were just the first two that came to mind. The U.S. bombs a lot of people. They have historically whiffed on many of these and killed innocents. It might be cynical to believe this will never change but the weaponry has only become more sophisticated and it still happens. "Collateral damage" will never stop the U.S. from bombing whoever it deems a threat.
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