Russia calls on the Netherlands to bring to justice those responsible for the deaths of Afghan civilians after the bombing by the country's armed forces of the Uruzgan Province in 2007, Russian Foreign Ministry official representative Maria Zakharova said at a briefing on Friday.
"We strongly condemn the crimes against Afghan civilians and call on the Netherlands to conduct an objective, comprehensive investigation of the incident and bring the perpetrators to justice," she said, commenting on the recent decision of residents of Afghanistan's Uruzgan province to sue the International Criminal Court (ICC) in connection with the airstrikes carried out by the Dutch armed forces in summer 2007, which killed 250 civilians. - "We call on all parties involved, including international coalition forces, to take comprehensive measures to prevent civilian deaths in Afghanistan. We are convinced that this would prevent the growth of radical sentiments in Afghan society".
The diplomat recalled that Russia repeatedly claimed high numbers of civilian casualties in Afghanistan due to airstrikes by international coalition troops, but there was no reaction from Western countries. "We have never heard anything about the perpetrators of civilian deaths being duly punished," she stressed.
The Dutch military contingent was present in Afghanistan as part of the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force.
GSV "Russia - Islamic World"
Photo: Creative Commons
Based on materials from TASS