The Pentagon has determined its procedures failed to prevent the drone strike that killed 10 people in Kabul during the chaotic US withdrawal from Afghanistan in August – and called it ‘an honest mistake’.
Air Force Lieutenant General Sami Said, who led the Pentagon’s investigation, described the tragedy as ‘an honest mistake’ that happened despite many measures in place to prevent civilian deaths.
According to Said, no single person was responsible for the decisions that led to the fatal airstrike, USA Today reported.
An independent Pentagon review concluded that the drone strike wasn’t caused by misconduct or negligence.
The review conducted by Said examined the drone strike in the context of what was occurring at the time, as US forces were under extreme stress following threats to troops and civilians at the Kabul airport, just days after a deadly suicide bombing.
At the time, thousands of Afghans were swarming the airport trying to get out of the country following the Taliban takeover.
Said was asked to investigate the August 29 drone strike on a white Toyota Corolla sedan, which killed Zemerai Ahmadi and nine family members, including seven children. Ahmadi, 37, was a longtime employee of an American humanitarian organization.
As inspector general of the Air Force, Said had no direct connection to Afghanistan operations and thus was deemed an independent judge of the matter.
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