The fog of war !

Two Australian soldiers who served in Afghanistan are to face a court martial accused of manslaughter.  While leading a patrol to disperse insurgents a sergeant and a lance corporal came under fire.  Their patrol engaged the insurgents and during the course of the fire fight six civilians met their deaths - and the patrol leaders are being held accountable.

This is an impossible situation.  A group of senior officers sitting safely in Australia are going to second guess an event that happened in a hostile land.  The battle decisions of a man in charge of the lives of his soldiers - plus any civilians who may or may not have been part of the enemy force - will be questioned.  What seems to be the issue is whether that sergeant had his priorities right.   Should he have had the safety of the troops under his command as priority - or the lives of the civilians ?

This trial is not going to enhance the confidence of other troops battling insurgents in civilian clothes in Afghanistan.   When bullets are flying decisions are made under stress - and this segeant rightly claims that had he made a different decision and that had resulted in the death of one of his men - he would be facing exactly the same charge.

We upholdthe rules of war and there is no excuse for deliberately targetting civilians, but it is impossible to reactivate the situation that occurs in battle, and to lay charges after the event is to introduce an agent of uncertainty that will lower morale and erode decision making in the field.

Those who lead troops in battle will await the outcome of this court martial with more than passing interest !