American Excuses Cannot Be Tolerated in Afghan Hospital Bombing Tragedy

In the Northern Afghan city of Kunduz in the early hours of Oct. 3, a hospital set up by Doctors Without Borders sustained a nearly hour-long “extremely precise” bombing attack. The attack, which was conducted by NATO on behalf of the American military, caused the death of at least 22 medical personnel and Afghan civilians, including three children. In addition, 37 others sustained injuries with many still missing. In a statement, Doctors Without Borders called the bombing a war crime. U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon condemned the act, calling for a thorough and impartial investigation.

With these grim facts, excuses cannot be tolerated!

Along with American President Barack Obama, those responsible for the NATO troops stationed in Afghanistan should have, at the first possible moment, issued an apology; first to assume responsibility, then to coordinate follow-up investigations, and finally to confess to the victims, Doctors Without Borders, Afghanistan and the rest of the world. However, Obama only expressed remorse for the deceased and did not issue an apology. Early that day, the Afghan presidential palace did issue a statement of apology from U.S. General John Campbell, the highest commander of NATO forces stationed in Afghanistan; however, this statement was quickly recalled.

The international community has reason to worry. This could just turn into another unsolved case that eventually gets dropped without being looked into. We need to fix our gaze on the U.S. in order to avoid it using “mistaken bombing” as an excuse to escape responsibility.

According to reports, Doctors Without Borders repeatedly circulated a notice to American soldiers stationed in Afghanistan regarding the geographic coordinates of the hospital, in order to avoid it getting mixed up with war-related attacks. At the time the bombing began, the organization made phone calls over and over again to the Americans asking that the bombing stop. However, the American military failed to take notice. In the “Law of War,” public international law stipulates that, even when an armed group is abusing hospital personnel or using weapons, the party launching an attack must first send out warnings requesting that the armed group stop its abuses. They must subsequently allow for a reasonable time limit for the abuses to cease, and only in situations wherein these warnings have not been effective can the offensive party then begin to launch an attack.

In this situation, Afghanistan, Doctors Without Borders and the international community as a whole cannot accept using “mistaken bombing” as an excuse once again.

One thing that can be said for sure is that the American forces stationed in Afghanistan simply did not take Doctors Without Borders or the lives of Afghan civilians into account when handling this situation. In order to achieve American military strategic or tactical objectives, other countries’ innocent masses can all be victims. Just think: If an armed group infiltrated a hospital in Washington, D.C., would the pilots aboard U.S. military airplanes be as quick to pull the trigger? If there was really an explosion on the ground, would the Pentagon still take this as lightly?

United Nations data shows that, from Jan. 1, 2009 to June 30, 2015, close to 20,000 Afghan civilians were killed in military conflicts. In 2012, a U.S. solider shot and killed 16 Afghan civilians for no reason; this included nine women and three children. An Afghan court confirmed that he had absolutely no right to do so. The American military has repeatedly “mistakenly bombed” civilians in Iraq, Pakistan and other countries.

America often emphasizes human rights over state sovereignty. If what this really means is that American people’s human rights are more important than other countries’ state sovereignty, then it begins to make sense; this, in actuality, is quite fitting.

There are a few reasons as to why America remains unchecked. First is its reliance on hard power, especially its military strength. Secondly, the international community lacks effective restrictions on American power. When America commits a crime, who steps up to pass sentence? Who can enforce this sentence? Additionally, America is often the one that investigates itself. Finally, even if the U.S. does bad things, it speaks out with a firm sense of justice and can stand on its strong reputation; this is another example of American power. Although the image of American morality and justice is already riddled with gaping holes, it has, however, still not fallen apart. American logic remains intact, and there are still many around the world who think in this way.

America continually considers itself a world leader, and still wants to lead the world for the next 100 years. As a world leader, America should realize that, each time it selfishly applies violence to other countries, it eats away at its ability to lead. If it wants to continue as a leader, America must be convincing in its response to this tragedy; a responsible party needs to accept its due punishment, and victims need to receive proper compensation. The United Nations should immediately take the lead in setting up a third-party investigation, and China, Russia and other countries should develop better processes for intervention and supervision independent of NATO power.