US commander to tighten Afghan night raid rules

[NJmaverick]

Source: Associated Press

KABUL – A senior U.S. officer says the top U.S. and NATO commander in Afghanistan plans to tighten the rules on night raids in a new step to curb public anger over perceived violations against civilians.

Such raids have emerged as the No. 1 complaint among Afghans after Gen. Stanley McChrystal curbed the use of airstrikes and other weaponry last year.

Command spokesman Navy Rear Adm. Gregory Smith tells The Associated Press that a directive on night raids will be issued soon.

He says "it addresses the issue that's probably the most socially irritating thing that we do and that is entering people's homes at night."


Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100121/ap_on_re_as/as_afghanistan

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This is a very good idea. While the NATO's forces night vision goggles do give them an edge in night operations, the safety of civilians trump the military advantage.

[Lasher]

1. No it's not a good idea.

If we're going to fight a war in Afghanistan then let's fight it. If we're not then let's get out. Giving up tactical advantages is not a winning strategy.

[NJmaverick]

2. I have to disagree. We are dealing with an insurgency

which means that winning of hearts and minds is equally important to winning of battles.

[Lasher]

4. You have a point.

As we saw in Iraq, however, a better way to win their hearts and minds is to bribe them. Regardless, we are never going to win over all of them. And thanks to Cheney's war, the conflict in Afghanistan has dragged on due to neglect, making our presence there less popular over time.

[NJmaverick]

5. I would agree with all those points

although I would call it Bush/Cheney's war as they both wanted it (be it for different reasons).

[Lasher]

6. Here's an interesting writeup about that.

http://zfacts.com/p/775.html

[PacerLJ35]

8. Bribing them...I guess it depends on a point of view

In Iraq, the people that switched sides and became part of the Sons of Iraq (SOI) weren't necessarily bribed...they were simply trying to make ends meet. Al Qaeda paid many of them off, and when the US noticed this trend they figured out that most of these "insurgents" were primarily unemployed young men with nothing else to do...and al Qaeda handing out wads of cash sweetened the deal. So creating the SOI and making them part of the overall allied security arrangement was among the factors causing them to switch. Al Qaeda murdering their tribal sheiks and other prominent leaders for not cooperating certainly pushed the Sunni men over the line and they ultimately turned on al Qaeda.

It's hard to make these calls, like the ones they are making in Afghanistan. Every military commander feels it's their duty to put iron on targets if their guys are caught in a firefight, but in this situation it only makes things worse in the long run. Insurgencies are tough, primarily because it takes time and patience, two things US citizens DON'T have when it comes to fighting conflicts.

[Lasher]

9. That's exactly what I meant by bribing them and it was a good move.

To put that in perspective, here's something I posted a couple of years ago:

We could have just bought the whole country.

Average income fell from $3,600 per person in 1980 to about $530 by the end of 2003. But let's say we made them an offer in 2001 when the average was about $900.

There's about 28.5 million Iraqis. $500 billion amounts to $18,182 for each one of them. That's equivalent to their 2001 income for twenty years.

We could have doubled our offer because we'll end up spending at least $1 trillion before we're through. So make it what they could expect to have earned working for 40 years. The equivalent of all their income for having worked their entire adult lives. For every single man, woman, and child.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x3041042#3041138

Per capita income in Iraq was about $4,000 in 2008. That year it was $800 in Afghanistan.

[Jumping John]

3. The mightiest military power on earth is at war with civilians, right? I thought

Vietnam showed us what an exercise in futility that was,

[Alamuti Lotus]

7. This is public relations spin control, not actual concern for the dead