Afghan Newspaper:
 

"The Taliban Systematically Commit Crimes, And Do Not Care Who Is Killed"
"When Civilians Are Killed In The Operations Of The International Forces, It Is Caused By An Error Or The Taliban Who Use Civilians As A Shield"

"The Problem Is Mine, But I Complain About Foreigners"

 

Hasht-e-Sobh Daily
November 29, 2008

"On last Thursday, hundreds of people held a demonstration in front of the U.N. office to protest civilian casualties caused by foreign forces' operations. The demonstrators maintained that the international forces are 'indifferent' to the lives of civilians, and do not exercise the necessary precision in their operations.

This is not the first instance of protests, but it is interesting to note that the demonstrations coincided with the arrival of a U.N. fact finding mission.

While we should appreciate demonstrations to stop the killing of civilians, it is appropriate to ask why these esteemed demonstrators did not make any reference to the Taliban's crimes against civilians. Why the Taliban's crimes have not once moved their conscience to take to the streets, if we refer to the popular saying why is there no sand in the shoes of these gentlemen? Why after the acid attacks on the faces of schoolgirls in Kandahar, the burning of hundreds of schools, the beheadings of thousands of innocent people and suicide attacks that blindly kill anyone, all of which [are] committed by the Taliban or affiliates of Hezb-i-Islami (Hekmatyar), why did these things not bring gentlemen to the streets to express their indignation over these crimes?

It is correct that foreigners commit mistakes in their operations and kill civilians, but it would be cruel and unjust to ignore the crimes of the Taliban and other criminals and criticize those who have come to our land from distant places to bring freedom and democracy to us."

"If we seek to oppose civilian casualties, we should be just in our approach. This does not mean that we should close our eyes to the errors of the international forces, but it requires a distinction between what is a crime and what is an error."
"The Taliban systematically commit crimes, and do not care who is killed. To the contrary, the international forces are here in the country to restore security, expand government in Afghanistan and suppress terrorists. They have no enmity with any citizen of Afghanistan. When civilians are killed in the operations of the international forces, it is caused by an error or the Taliban who use civilians as a shield. This naturally results in the killing of civilians."

*As translated from Hasht-e-Sobh Daily