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Deutsche Welle November 21, 2009 Relatives of Kunduz airstrike victims seek reparations -New Defense Minister Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg recently defended the actions of Colonel Klein. "We can't have our soldiers hampered by legal doubts, especially when they are forced to make decisions under extreme time pressure," Guttenberg said, calling the airstrike "militarily appropriate." A class-action suit is being brought against the German government. The suit will seek compensation for the families of people killed in a controversial airstrike in Afghanistan. Relatives of those killed in an airstrike near Kunduz, in northern Afghanistan are seeking compensation from the German government. On Saturday, Karim Popal, a lawyer acting on the behalf of 78 family members of the victims, told the Weser-Kurier newspaper that he was preparing a class-action suit against the government. The airstrike had been called in on the location of two fuel tanker trucks that had been hijacked by the Taliban. Up to 142 people were killed in the bombardment, including civilians. The commander who called in the strike, Colonel Georg Klein, has cited the imminent threat of the tankers to the nearby German military base as justification for the bombardment. A later NATO report criticized the German commander for overstepping his authority. Germany has some 4,500 soldiers in Afghanistan, the third-largest number of troops in the NATO contingent. Based near the northern city of Kunduz, soldiers have had to strike back against an increasingly fierce campaign by Taliban insurgents. Seeking damages Popal said he had recently visited Afghanistan to gather and prepare material for his case. He told the Weser Kurier that he hopes to settle with the government out of court with payment to the families. If no settlement is reached, Popal said, he would seek compensation for "the flawed and grossly negligent actions of the German forces." Federal prosecutors in Germany are still trying to ascertain if the airstrike is defendable under the law of war or if Colonel Klein is vulnerable to civilian prosecution. New Defense Minister Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg recently defended the actions of Colonel Klein. "We can't have our soldiers hampered by legal doubts, especially when they are forced to make decisions under extreme time pressure," Guttenberg said, calling the airstrike "militarily appropriate." .... On Friday, zu Guttenberg met with US secretary of defense Robert Gates. "I told him that the German commitment regarding Afghanistan is firm," zu Guttenberg told journalists after talks in Washington. Germany's cabinet has announced plans to extend the mandate for the country's participation in the international military mission ISAF for another year in December. =========================== Stop NATO http://groups.yahoo.com/group/stopnato Blog site: http://rickrozoff.wordpress.com/ To subscribe, send an e-mail to: [email protected] or [email protected] Daily digest option available. ============================== --------------------------- ANTI-NATO INFORMATION LIST --^---------------------------------------------------------------- This email was sent to: [email protected] EASY UNSUBSCRIBE click here: http://topica.com/u/?a84x2u.bNM5nn.YXJjaGl2 Or send an email to: [email protected] For Topica's complete suite of email marketing solutions visit: http://www.topica.com/?p=TEXFOOTER --^----------------------------------------------------------------
