Posted on 07/13/2002 8:09:00 AM PDT by Pharmboy
BAGRAM AIR BASE, Afghanistan (Reuters) - A U.S. commander has arrived in Afghanistan ( news - web sites) to head an investigation into the bombing of a wedding party, a deadly raid that has strained ties between Washington and Kabul.
Brigadier General Anthony F. Przybyslawski of the U.S. Air Force will preside over the so-called Des Rawud Investigation Board, a team of 11 experts specializing in aviation, medicine, law and public affairs.
The Afghan government says 48 people were killed and 117 wounded when U.S. aircraft fired on a wedding party in Des Rawud, in central Uruzgan province on July 1.
Local residents say revelers were attacked when they started firing into the air to celebrate the nuptials -- a traditional occurrence at many Afghan weddings.
But U.S. forces, who are in Afghanistan hunting fighters from Osama bin Laden ( news - web sites)'s al Qaeda network and their ousted Taliban protectors, say they launched an attack in retaliation after they were fired on, and they question the number of casualties.
"The Afghans can come up with any number that they want to. We're saying we won't have a number until we conclude the investigation," said Roger King, a U.S. spokesman at Bagram base, north of Kabul.
"I'm not saying we're agreeing or disagreeing...we have no proof of what was reported. The only proof that we have is that we know we have seen 32 people who were wounded. That's it."
Afghan officials have named Major General Sher Mohammed Kareemi as an observer to the board. The remainder of the U.S. team was expected to arrive by Monday.
King said the board had a mandate broader than just verifying numbers of dead and wounded.
"I wouldn't want to characterize this investigation board as having a single goal other than to shed light on what happened, and then draw conclusions and make recommendations," he added.
An initial U.S.-led fact-finding mission returned from Des Rawud on July 6, and said an in-depth investigation was needed.
Przybyslawski is assistant director of aerospace operations at the Air Combat Command at Langley Air Force base in Virginia.
He is a pilot with more than 3,800 flying hours, primarily in bomber aircraft.
The United States launched its Afghan offensive in October to flush out bin Laden, prime suspect in the September 11 attacks on the United States, and to punish the Taliban.
There have been several incidents in which civilians were mistakenly attacked since the campaign began.
A noteworthy string of nouns, beyond question.
Agreed, what is missing is an appropriate adjective.
I was thinking *exactly* the same thing when I saw this title...Wedding Bomb Probe Head Arrives in Afghanistan...it almost sounds a little nasty. Maybe I've just got a dirty mind.
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