Afghanistan: US offers financial compensation to kin of Kabul drone attack victims

The US government on Friday, 15 October, said that it is committed to offering compensation to the relatives of 10 people mistakenly killed by the American military in a drone strike in Kabul in August. Pentagon spokesperson John Kirby said that the US Defense Department was also working to help surviving members of the family relocate to the United States.

Kirby informed that the matter of compensation was discussed in a meeting between Dr Colin Kahl, undersecretary of defence for policy, and Dr Steven Kwon, founder and president of the nonprofit group Nutrition & Education Internation. 

The Pentagon spokesperson said that Kahl noted that a US aid worker Zamairi Ahmadi and others who were killed in the drone strike were “innocent victims” who bore no blame and were not affiliated with ISIS-K or posed threats to US forces. Kirby added, “Dr Kahl reiterated Secretary of Defence Lloyd Austin's commitment to the families, including offering ex gratia condolence payments.” However, Kirby did not say how much money would be offered to the surviving family. 

US drone strike was a ‘tragic mistake’ 

On 29 August, a US missile struck a car driven by Zemerai Ahmadi, who had just pulled into the driveway of the Ahmadi family compound. Ahmadi, along with nine members of his family, including seven children, died in the strike. Weeks later, US Marine Gen. Frank McKenzie, who is the head of US Central Command, called the strike a “tragic mistake” then and accepted those innocent civilians were indeed killed in the attack. Later, he announced that the US was considering making reparation payments to the family of the drone strike victims. 

It is worth noting that initially, the US military had defended the strike, saying that it had targeted an Islamic State group’s “facilitator” and disrupted the militants’ ability to carry out attacks. However, it was later revealed that the driver of the targeted vehicle was a longtime employee at a US humanitarian organisation. Other victims had also previously worked for international organisations and held visas allowing them entry to the US. 

(Image: AP)