I wrote this post in 2009.
It's a common story.
But to understand it you need to know something about Calipari.
The italian version of this article is available here
_________
Perhaps we have come to a turning point in the perception of our imperialism.
Do you remember the outrage at Calipari’s death?
For weeks the front page headlines have ladled out a large amount of information about
rules of engagement and the presumed war instincts of American soldiers. Do you remember it?
And how can we forget the photos of the car in which Calipari was killed?
Whole episodes of “Porta a Porta” were dedicated to the reconstructions of what had happened.
On Sunday 3rd May at 11.00 am (8.30 in Italy) an Afghan child was killed in Herat by Italian soldiers.
Three days later the online versions of “Il Corriere”, “La Repubblica” and “Il Giornale” have banished this news out of sight of Internet users, even if we are always so supportive when the victims are homegrown.
Does it mean everything is right?
Is the soldiers’ rapport of the accident true?
This is the version of soldiers.
“According to the reconstruction provided by General Castellano Rosario – commander of the contingent – the Italian patrol with three vehicles has seen a white Toyota Corolla turning up at high speed from the opposite direction along the road four miles away from the field Arena – the headquarters of Regional Command West. The suspicious military have ordered them to stop, following the appropriate procedures: firstly the warning with the hand, then a cry and headlight flashing and finally warning shots into the air. The car, however, has continued at high speed and when the car was at about ten meters from the convoy, the soldiers firstly fired on the ground and then on the hood of the car. Just later they have known that the young girl was killed, whereas the three others inside the vehicle were slightly injured.”
If we go deeper into the situation we find that they had any objective fault: firstly they were Afghan and, moreover, they were in a Corolla.
“The suspect of militaries has probably born from the speed of the car and overall from the model of car, because it is included in the list of the most reported car used as car bombs by the attackers.”
http://agenziami.it/articolo/3587/Afghanistan fuoco italiano su un auto muore una bambina
The Westerner don’t break away from those versions.
“The little girl rode in a Toyota Corolla which was moving closer to the three vehicles of the Italian convoy at high speed. The militaries ordered them to stop, then they flashed headlights and finally fired a warning shot in the air, but the car has continued to run toward them. When they were at about ten meters from the convoy, one of our gunners shot.”
In practice, all major newspapers such as “La repubblica”, “Il corriere” e “Il giornale” adhere to this version.
At the same time I’m rummaging in every article, BUT I CANNOT FIND THE NAME OF THE CHILD.
We know everything about Mario Lozano.
And everything of Calipari as well.
This news was on front pages two days ago, but it has disappeared nowadays and there isn’t any process of identification of the victim.
Anyway, we all know that the situation is very difficult for “ours over there”
Fortunately we are Italian and this helps us, we don’t take risks.
“Everything became clear. They were also very impressed by the event, but, thanking God, there are still good and well-established relations: I have perceived that they are close to us. Yesterday, after the death of Afghan children, the general Rosario Castellano – commander of the Italian contingent in Afghanistan – met the governor of Herat and the regional police commander; they confirmed that the relationship remains good, despite the tragic murder.” The general claimed that “yesterday there were no protests in Herat, I felt no resentment.” The meeting with the girl’s family has been postponed until today: “I have called them twice by phone and I’ll meet them tomorrow. We are sorry for what happened and we’ll try to be very close to the family” Castellano said.
http://www.ilgiornale.it/a.pic1?ID=348622
A general meets the governor of a province and the commander of regional police and he reassures us about our relationship with the population, confirming that there isn’t malice in Afghans.
It could be right if it was confirmed even for ordinary citizens.
We could seek advices to owners of Toyota Corolla.
Fortunately the opposition works strongly and is on the lookout for what has happened.
“The opposition seems to be determined about the necessity of the Italian mission in Afghanistan. In the opinion of Piero Fassino (Democratic Party), we should increase in size our troops. On the other hand, the leader of the Democratic Party in the Defense commission in the Senate Rosa Calipari has asked to verify “the respect of regulations”. She has also asked to “redefine the missions Enduring Freedom and ISAF – depending on U.S. and on the United Nations respectively – because they seem to be equal, even if the orders are completely different, at least in theory.” The widow of Nicola Calipari also said that we should remain in Afghanistan.”
http://www.loccidentale.it/articolo/afghanistan, con la morte della 13enne si riapre il problema delle %E2%80%9Cregole d%E2%80%99ingaggio%E2%80%9D.0070793
Frattini reminds us with regret that “when the security conditions are so difficult, our soldiers have to follow precise rules. And if one of us die because of the misapplication of the rules of safety and prevention, there are troubles anyway.” If the dead is an Afghan, it is better.
He also knows that “The whole strategy requires a rethink and an expansion.
We cannot mind just to the security component.”
http://www.rainews24.rai.it/notizia.asp?newsid=117157
“Deep sorrow'' has been expressed by Defense Minister Ignazio La Russa.
http://www.dazebao.org/news/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=4511:afghanistan-bambina-di-13-anni-uccisa-per-errore-dai-soldati-italiani&catid=82:asia&Itemid=197
This dissonant comment is very interesting (a comment of an extra-parliamentary opposition):
“The communist left wing is very critic, in particular the Communist Party (PRC).” The secretary of party Paolo Ferrero said that “We must immediately make our soldiers return home in order to avoid this kind of tragic accidents” and he also added: ”The military mission in Afghanistan is a total failure, just a war mission which hadn’t resolve any country problem.“ The national officer of the Peace Department of PRC Alfio Nicotra has also highlighted: “The mission in Afghanistan is a total failure. Our priority is the exit from the Afghan problems.”
This last comment is very important, thinking about his behavior at the vote of the funding of broad missions few time ago (including the mission in Afghanistan)
http://www.dazebao.org/news/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=4511:afghanistan-bambina-di-13-anni-uccisa-per-errore-dai-soldati-italiani&catid=82:asia&Itemid=197
Therefore, what do we have at this point?
The situation is tragic, it has been a very sad mistake, but the mission goes on and the Afghans keep loving us as we were Afghan as well.
The most part of the parliamentary opposition is silent or regrets and nothing else.
The last thing would be that the girl's family thanked us publicly!
It’s a pity that everything doesn’t works as it should.
Without being an expert in ballistics, we find out that the photos, which are not published by the most of newspapers, show the Corolla with its hit in the back.
“Photos distributed by agencies raise many questions. They show us the bloody back seat, the broken car's rear window and an hole on rear tailgate; everything seems to suggest that the blast had been exploded when the car was passing next and surpassing the armored vehicle. The military said they had fired on the hood of the vehicle when it was in front of them, but the front windshield of the car seems to be undamaged, as we can see from the pictures.”
http://www.dazebao.org/news/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=4527:afghanistan-molte-ombre-sulla-morte-della-bambina-uccisa-dagli-italiani&catid=82:asia&Itemid=199
Reuters has published a movie of the Toyota that shows the rear and side destroyed windows.
It shows also its body hit by bullets.
Moreover, the driver’s version is quite the opposite.
The victim's father said: “Suddenly I heard a loud explosion, I couldn’t understand what has happened, but I saw my daughter was dead and my family was seriously injured”; the father is Ahmad, he hasn’t furnished his last name and he comes from the nearby province of Farah.
He said that the Italian patrol has shot in the back of the car and he added that he hadn’t heard or seen any signs before shots. He said also that the convoy has gone away after firing without stopping to relieve.”
To sum, the man says the opposite compared to the statement of the Italian army.
http://it.reuters.com/article/topNews/idITMIE54205520090503
All this is very interesting, because the only true available evidence seems to agree with his version and to contrast our glorious military’s story.
But we prefer not to talk about it.
We prefer to ignore the last two days events in order to be able to freely express sympathy without investigating too much.
In this moment the parliamentary opposition has completely abandon any role of opposition and serious comparison and the media have stopped to have any role in control and surveillance.
Now I would know the name of that child at least.
I would be able to conclude this speech with her name.
But I haven’t succeeded.
I have checked over 70 online articles and I haven’t succeeded.
Therefore, don’t the Afghans give a name to their children?
Or, when we kill them, don’t we want to know it?
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