AFP says Taliban manipulates rules of engagement; US media slow to report

Commentary by Kay B. Day

War memorial at Billard Park in Jacksonville, Fla. [photo by Kay B. Day]Imagine the frustration of having to abide by stringent rules of engagement while the enemy can get away with murder and human rights groups turn a blind eye. Agence France-Presse reported on battlefield conditions in Southern Afghanistan after a unit of Marines was ambushed in Helmand Province.Two men were killed; three were wounded.

A platoon commander, after acknowledging the “rules are there for a reason,” said the Taliban manipulates “rules of engagement by using women and children as shields and shooting from hidden positions before dropping their weapons and standing out in the open.”

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