Top general in Afghanistan: US strike on hospital a mistake
The deadly American attack on a hospital in northern Afghanistan occurred despite "rigorous" US military procedures designed to avoid such mistakes, the top commander of US and allied forces in Afghanistan said Tuesday.
Testifying three days after the medical clinic strike that killed at least 22 people, Campbell said Afghan forces requested air support Saturday while engaged in combat with Taliban fighters in the city of Kunduz, communicating with US special operations troops at the scene. Those US forces were in contact with the AC-130 gunship that fired on the medical clinic run by Doctors Without Borders, he added.
"To be clear, the decision to provide (airstrikes) was a US decision, made within the US chain of command," Campbell said. "The hospital was mistakenly struck. We would never intentionally target a protected medical facility."
Campbell said he could not provide more details about what happened, including who may have failed to follow procedures for avoiding attacks on hospitals. He said he must await the outcome of multiple investigations.
