UK troops in Afghanistan 'to come under US command'

[dipsydoodle]

Source: BBC News

About 8,000 British troops based in Helmand Province in Afghanistan are to come under the operational command of the US, the Ministry of Defence says.

The move is part of a restructuring of Nato forces, with command and control in southern Afghanistan split into two.

UK forces currently take orders from British Major General Nick Carter, in charge of operations in the south.

Gen Carter will now oversee Kandahar while the US will take on Helmand.

Read more: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/8697371.stm

[Bragi]

1. Geneva convention alert!

Since the UK (and other U.S allies in Iraq) are under pressure not to violate the Geneva Convention in the handling of Afghan "detainees" (AKA, prisoners of war) then I'm not sure how they can be put under U.S authority, what with the U.S being, ah, less than robust in its commitment to the Convention and to humane treatment of war prisoners.

[dipsydoodle]

2. Betcha life

that some breaches will be grassed on at a later by our UK troops who would be beyond the reach of the USA to shut them up.

[Soylent Brice]

3. i'd like to hope there would be no more instances in the first place,

but i hope you're right, and i hope some more thruth sees light.

[Robb]

4. UK's hands are pretty dirty at the moment.

Glass houses and what-not.

[Bragi]

5. Quite so

I know the detainee abuse issue is a hot topic in the UK, as it is in my country (Canada.) I'm just wondering how it is that UK soldiers can be under US command and still stay clear from war crimes implications.

If I'm not mistaken, most countries implicated in the Afghan war won't even hand prisoners over to the U.S military because of concerns about war crimes allegations. So I'm not sure how these countries can consider putting their troops under U.S military authority, given the record of the US on torture.

[No Elephants]

7. No matter whose command anyone there is under, they are complicit to one degree or another.

Few people in the UK or any other country are unaware of what's going on. Indeed, many have participated, not only the U.S. Distinctions about whose command you were under have more form than substance, IMO. If you are part of it, you are part of it. (I mean "you" generically, as referring to anyone, not to the poster or any specific individual.)

IMO, even those of us at home who do nothing to change it are part of it, to a degree. I'm not saying each of us has the same degree of fault as, say, Bush and Blair, but it's been no secret for a long time that a bunch of illegal and immoral things have been going on and have not ended. Yet, what have most of us done?

[No Elephants]

6. Doesn't seem to matter. Members of our own military have spoken out, albeit perhaps

anonymously sometimes.

Even though they are within "the reach of the USA," they don't get arrested.

Sorry, but there's no moral high ground to be claimed in this mess, except maybe by a Spanish judge somewhere.


Edited for spelling.