By M D Nalapat
Over the past decade , the overwhelming majority of NATO "kills " in Iraq , Afghanistan and
Libya have been unarmed civilians . A large number of Iraqi , Afghan and Libyan civilians have
lost not just their limbs but also their lives , because of "mistakes " made by NATO personnel
in the field .
A look at the diaries kept by alliance troops in the different theaters of war show the casual
way in which human lives are taken , often on just the merest suspicion of hostile intent .
In both Iraq and Afghanistan , running was taken as evidence of hostile intent and troops
would fire on the runner immediately , even in cases where the man shot and killed was
unarmed .The diaries and recollections of hundreds of soldiers , especially those of the US , but also
those of other NATO countries , detail the "mistakes " made by NATO forces , all too often
the "accidental " deaths of women and children furnish substantial evidence of war crimes
and human rights violations .However , so far there has been no serious effort to hold those responsible for deaths
of innocent civilians accountable . Both the International Court of Justice and the UN
Human Rights Council have yet to take action against a single NATO soldier . The lack of
attention given by the UN to the growing number of innocents killed by NATO military action is
a damning indictment of its ineffectiveness and subjugation to the will of the US .
The impunity with which NATO personnel have killed and injured civilians in Iraq ,
Afghanistan and Libya has resulted in a sense among its personnel that they are "superior " to
the people of these countries , all three of which are outside the charmed circle of those
countries NATO considers "civilized ".
As a result NATO soldiers have developed a casual disregard to the killing of civilians
in combat zones . Aware that the chances of being punishment are so remote as to be non-
existent , many are willing to act as both judge and executioner of "hostile " locals .
Since the Libyan operation , civilians also face a further threat , as a dangerous new policy
has emerged , that of giving weapons to those disaffected with the government of a country
that is a NATO target . In Libya , large numbers of civilians have been killed not only by the
NATO bombardment but also by insurgents armed and funded by NATO . Indeed , to this day ,
people are being hunted down , tortured , arrested and killed in Libya in their hundreds , with
no protest from Washington , London , Berlin or Paris .
So long as the companies of these Western countries can secure lucrative contracts from
the medley of authorities that now rule Libya , it seems that these authorities are free to
do whatever they want despite the UN resolution that specifically calls for the prevention of
civilian casualties . Clearly such UN resolutions are interpreted by Western countries to suit
themselves and thrown away once they have served NATO 's political and commercial
objectives .
In Syria as well , armed gangs are being encouraged to kill not just security forces but
elements of the population that favor the recognized regime in Damascus . Such a policy has
the potential to wreak havoc throughout the Middle East . And while NATO may gain from
such unethical actions , the rest of the world is the loser .
But everything done by NATO indicates that it has set itself up not only as the enforcer
of international law , but also the law itself .
The author is vice-chair of Manipal Advanced Research Group , and UNESCO peace chair
and professor of geopolitics at Manipal University , India .
(China Daily 03/07/2012 page10)
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