The war in Afghanistan, and make no mistake about this being a peacekeeping mission, is not a traditional war. It would be a different case if the ‘enemy’ in this war wore easily distinguishable uniforms, fought battles on the battlefield (not a crowded marketplace with innocent civilians) and followed what could only be described as ‘the soldiers code’, that being not purposely targeting civilians.
In the war in Afghanistan, much like in Iraq (and all the countries that have been attacked by terrorist organizations), the combatants purposely dress like ordinary civilians in order to blend in with the crowd. The combatants use guerilla tactics and suicide bombers to launch their attacks. The combatants are men, women and even children. In other words ‘ ANYBODY.
Although in traditional wars, innocent civilians sometimes become ‘collateral damage’; terrorists target military AND civilian targets with little care other that causing as much damage as possible. It is a different case if a uniformed soldier walks or drives up to a military convoy or establishment, even if he is approaching under a white flag of surrender, and then attacks without warning. Terrorists use surprise and deception to effect their attacks.
