‘No armed men’ in Afghan clinic bombed by US

Numerous casualties were the doctors themselves.

It highlighted that the left arm of an MSF nurse was “hanging from a small piece of tissue” after he suffered a “traumatic amputation” in one of the blasts. One MSF staff member and two patients remain missing.

However, the global medical charity insisted there were no armed men or fighting in the area at the time. “There were no armed combatants within the hospital compound”, the MSF investigators find, based on interviews with MSF staff and pre-attack records. Part of his tour of duty in Afghanistan was in Kandahar Province. Mr Stokes said there were no weapons inside the compound, dismissing as “ridiculous” claims that the hospital was overrun by Taliban fighters and heavy fighting was under way in the area.

The attack on our hospital in Kunduz destroyed our ability to treat patients at a time when we were needed the most.

A wounded MSF staff member receives treatment at an Italian aid organisation.

Davis said the military was continuing to work with MSF to identity victims and determine the extent of damage “so that we can conclude our investigations and proceed with follow-on actions, to include condolence payments”.

This photo provided by the U.S. Air Force, taken August 11, 2010, …

That was the first in a long string of communications with multiple US organizations, including the Department of Defense in Washington, informing them of the bombing and the death toll and pleading for it to stop.

Mr Stokes says “a mistake is quite hard to believe and understand”.

Among the 105 patients at the time of the airstrikes, MSF was treating wounded combatants from both sides of the conflict in Kunduz, as well as women and children.

But MSF would like an independent investigation into the event. “I don’t think that happened”, said Solis, who teaches the Law of War at Georgetown University.

Later, offering little detail, the top USA commander in Afghanistan, Gen. John F. Campbell, changed that account.

‘A hospital was mistakenly struck. We need a clear commitment that the act of providing medical care will never make us a target. “So they lose their protected status”.

That would generally mean surrounding a building with troops, not blowing it to bits from the air.

The USA authorities have described the bombing as a “mistake”. “The investigative link is not in the chain of command but in the chain of communication”, Solis said.

As documented in the report, on September 29th, less than a week before the deadly bombing, MSF staff reaffirmed their Global Positioning System coordinates in communications with the U.S. Army, Department of Defense and Afghan government officials, all of whom provided either written or verbal acknowledgement of the location information.

The attacks were carried out before sunrise.

‘There was a pause, and then more bombs hit.

The main hospital building, the most clearly marked in the medical complex, received the brunt of the bombardment on October 3.

‘Those people that could had moved quickly to the building’s two bunkers to seek safety.

The group’s admission that they agreed to a Taliban demand that civilian patients be removed from their beds for wounded Taliban soldiers could mean MSF and the Taliban violated Article 16 of the Geneva Convention which states: “The wounded and sick, as well as the infirm, and expectant mothers, shall be the object of particular protection and respect”.

“This is one of our regular channels that we have”. The charity, also known as Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), is calling for an global inquiry.

‘There are no words for how bad it was.

The center’s Intensive Care Unit was the first building to be hit before the airstrikes moved east to west across the main hospital building in “wave after wave of strikes”, the charity said.

Williamson is a 30-year Special Forces veteran who is the cofounder of a group called Special Operations OPSEC, a non-profit organization of retired military and intelligence officers.

‘It was insane, ‘ she wrote.