A Real War Crime

I get so very tired of reading how U.S. forces in Iraq and Afghanistan commit one alleged war crime after another. It seems as though the anti-war groups spend endless hours watching and waiting for anything that even remotely resembles an “atrocity” by our forces so they can start screaming about murder, abuse and war crimes. However, what really gets me mad is when I see a real “War Crime” and a real “atrocity” being committed by our enemies and no none even takes notice. Here is a story about an incident that recently took place in Afghanistan, which I consider the gravest form of war crime. It only received the slightest mention in the media.

Twisted Taliban militants took terror to a new low by accusing a 7-year-old boy of spying - and hanging him high. That outrage drew immediate condemnation from the Afghan president, who called the execution a "crime against humanity."

"I don't think there's a crime bigger than that, that even the most inhuman forces on earth can commit," Hamid Karzai said Thursday. "A 7-year-old boy cannot be a spy. A 7-year-old boy cannot be anything but a 7-year-old boy.” The execution happened Tuesday in the embattled Helmand province. "The innocent boy was not a spy, but he may have informed the police or soldiers about planted explosives," Central Asia Today was told.

"If this is true, it is an absolutely horrific crime," added British Prime Minister David Cameron, while on a stop in Kabul. "I think it says more about the Taliban than any book, than any article, than any speech could ever say."

The victim was reportedly the grandson of a tribal elder. The Taliban has targeted tribal leaders who have supported the Karzai government or took part in U.S. directed reconstruction programs. Hanging is a favorite Taliban terror method for getting rid of enemies - and sending a message to other would-be opponents. Nor is this the first time the Taliban has killed kids. Three years ago, they strung up a 70-year-old woman and a child in the Musa Qala district on trumped up spying charges.

As news of the hanging unfolded, the war-torn country was hit with further tragedy as a suicide bomber hit a wedding party, killing at least 40 and severely wounding more than 70 people. Several children were among the dead and wounded. Bits of flesh and severed limbs covered the site. A Taliban spokesman initially denied responsibility for the deadly attack, but other Taliban sources later claimed responsibility.

"The Taliban are doing two things at once," Gov. Tooryalai Wesa said. "On one side they target people who are in favor of the government, then at the same time they don't want people to know their real face."

If these acts had been committed by NATO or US forces it would have been on the front page of the Washington Post. I guess the hanging of a 7 year old boy and the murder of 40 people attending a wedding is just not news worthy enough for the liberals.