US apologizes for attack on Pakistani soldiers

[TechLahore]

And there you have it... yesterday there was a news item that suggested Pakistan and the US were stuck on the use of the word "apology" (Pakistan wanted this) vs. "regret". It would appear Pakistan's position was "accepted".

Folks that have opined on whether or not Pakistan has real, meaningful leverage, or whether Pakistan is willing and tough enough to defend its own interests and sovereignty, should take a long, hard look at this:

DAWN.COM | Pakistan | US apologizes for attack on Pakistani soldiers

US apologizes for attack on Pakistani soldiers

Wednesday, 06 Oct, 2010

Anne Patterson said US helicopters mistook the Pakistani soldiers for insurgents they had been pursuing. -File Photo

ISLAMABAD: The US apologized Wednesday for a recent helicopter attack that killed two Pakistani soldiers at an outpost near the Afghan border, saying American pilots mistook the soldiers for insurgents they were pursuing.

The apology, which came after the conclusion of a joint investigation, could pave the way for Pakistan to reopen a key border crossing that Nato uses to ship goods into landlocked Afghanistan. Pakistan closed the crossing in apparent reaction to the Sept. 30 incident.

''We extend our deepest apology to Pakistan and the families of the Frontier Scouts who were killed and injured,'' said the US ambassador to Pakistan, Anne Patterson.

Pakistan initially reported that three soldiers were killed and three injured in the attack, but one of the soldiers who was critically injured and initially reported dead ended up surviving, said Maj. Fazlur Rehman, the spokesman for the Frontier Corps.

Pakistani soldiers fired at the two US helicopters prior to the attack, a move the investigation team said was likely meant to notify the aircraft of their presence after they passed into Pakistani airspace several times.

''We believe the Pakistani border guard was simply firing warning shots after hearing the nearby engagement and hearing the helicopters flying nearby,'' said US Air Force Brig. Gen. Tim Zadalis, who led the investigation.

''This tragic event could have been avoided with better coalition force coordination with the Pakistan military.''

The head of US and Nato forces in Afghanistan, Gen. David Petraeus, also expressed his condolences ''to the families of those killed and wounded, to the Pakistan military, and the people of Pakistan.''

''We deeply regret this tragic loss of life and will continue to work with the Pakistan military and government to ensure this doesn't happen again,'' he said. -AP

 

[SMC]

And there you have it. Some were suggesting this was a new pattern and will continue. Counting their eggs before they hatch, and in this case WAYYYYYYY before they should be counted. And no, I am not doing that either. I am saying just wait a while and see if this continues or was just one-off.

 

[SekrutYakhni]

The attacks were the beginning.

I will remind you in couple of months or perhaps sooner--I will post this article again at that time.

 

[jahangeer yousaf]

here you goes ............ well now see what will be the kiyani's step

 

[roach]

Good to see the Pakistani establishment grow a pair and take on the US. I would argue that this should have happened a while ago- much earlier in the WOT.

Does not seem like Zardari's work, though.

 

[TechLahore]

Last time there was a serious incursion from NATO, Pakistani troops fired back at NATO positions. On the subject of manned incursions, the Pakistani Establishment has always taken a very hard line.

As for the drone attacks, I think it is crystal clear now that these are done only in collaboration with the PA.

Finally, as for Zardari, this is not about one man's opinion. It is about the collective position of the establishment, which includes many political players also.

 

[H2O3C4Nitrogen]

U.S. Apologizes as Attacks in Pakistan Continue

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — Dozens of tanker trucks carrying fuel to Afghanistan for NATO troops were torched near Quetta in western Pakistan on Wednesday, the third major attack on supplies since Pakistan closed a border crossing to Afghanistan a week ago and the first at the only checkpoint that remained open.
The latest sabotage came as American officials for the first time offered an explicit apology to Pakistan over a shooting that led to the closing of the other border crossing, possibly laying the ground work for its reopening.

At least one person was killed in the Quetta torchings after three carloads of gunmen fired at the tankers and then burned them, the police said.

“According to eyewitnesses and initial reports some terrorists came on vehicles a few minutes before morning prayer and started firing and then burned some of the tankers,” said Hamid Shakeel, the deputy inspector general of the Quetta police.

About 40 tanker trucks were at the terminal, and about half were saved from the attack, Inspector Shakeel said.

Firefighters struggled to contain the blaze. Live television showed the fire raging hours after the attack.

“We don’t have foam to put out the fire,” the police official said.

Hours after the attack on the trucks at Quetta, Taliban militants claimed responsibility, according to reports on Pakistani television channels.

In a sign that the government was continuing to distance itself from the attacks, the police chief in Quetta, Malik Muhammad Iqbal said it was not the responsibility of the government to provide security for the convoys. In the past few days, senior police officers have said the safety of the trucks lay with the fleet owners who had signed contracts with NATO.

The standoff between the government and NATO continued on Wednesday with no definitive word from Pakistan about when the border at Torkham in the Khyber region would be reopened.

That crossing was closed last week in protest over NATO helicopter strikes against a mountainous border post at Khurram manned by Pakistani paramilitary soldiers.

But in a sign of possible movement, NATO’s International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan said a joint assessment with Pakistan showed that NATO helicopter crews had shot at Pakistani border forces in the Sept. 30 strikes, thinking that they were responding to enemy fire.

The statement was notable in that Gen. David H. Petraeus, the top commander, said, “We deeply regret this tragic loss of life and will continue to work with the Pakistan military and government to ensure this doesn’t happen again.”

An even more explicit apology was offered by

the United States ambassador to Pakistan, Anne W. Patterson. “We extend our deepest apology to Pakistan and the families of the Frontier scouts who were killed and injured” Ms. Patterson said. “Pakistan’s brave security forces are our allies in a war that threatens both Pakistan and the U.S.”

It was not immediately unclear if the statements would appease Pakistan. An escalated campaign of drone attacks by the United States has also stirred anger there. On Wednesday, news reports from northwest Pakistan said that that six militants had been killed after two missiles thought to be fired from a drone struck a house in North Waziristan. Unknown assailants, never identified or captured by the police, have attacked and torched NATO oil tankers three times since the border closure and there have been several other, less severe attacks against the convoys. The route is a vital supply line for NATO to carry nonlethal equipment such as food, clothing and vehicles.

A second crossing at Chaman, near Quetta, where the tankers were attacked Wednesday morning, has remained open in the past week. The closure of the Torkham crossing has been used by Pakistan to demonstrate its leverage over the NATO supply route that courses from the port of Karachi to the Khyber region.

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/07/world/asia/07pstan.html?src=me

 

[arun]

Well, now that the joint investigation has established that the NATO troops were indeed the ones who made a mistake, it is only appropriate that the US should apologize. I hope they will follow it up with a substantial compensation.

It will be interesting to see what happens next regarding the supply routes.

 

[jahangeer yousaf]

its getting interesting and interesting ........... routes are closed......americans are appologizing ...... trucking are being burned ......... nato is talking about for other routes ........ army is taking stand ....... lots of myths..............

 

[Gene]

why should not usa apologise??? they are not the terrorists, that they have killed,they are pakistani troops...

 

[jahangeer yousaf]

i wonder if someone explains me what Gene tried to say

 

[JonAsad]

The way i see it civilian government dont care for civilians as long as few top alqaida leaders are dying with mass of them, but when it comes to army personal, no compromise from the army.
Hope the army takes steps like these to stop drones strikes aswell. Just asking them to give us the drones technology not gona do anything.

 

[arun]

i wonder if someone explains me what Gene tried to say

He is saying that this time the US/NATO has killed Pakistani troops and not terrorists, therefore it is logical for them to say sorry.

The way i see it civilian government dont care for civilians as long as few top alqaida leaders are dying with mass of them, but when it comes to army personal, no compromise from the army.

This is an interesting point. Seems quite true to me.

 

[jahangeer yousaf]

thank GOD somebody explained ............... i was so confused...

 

[arun]

thank GOD somebody explained ............... i was so confused...

Instead, you can thank me



Sorry for being OT