First independent inspector general report identifies over 5,000 casualties in U.S. reconstruction missions in Afghanistan
What's believed to be the first official government report by an independent inspector general to determine the "true cost" of United States reconstruction and stabilization missions in Afghanistan has "conservatively" identified 5,135 casualties, including 2,214 deaths, associated with such projects between April 17, 2002 and Dec. 31, 2018.
Special Inspector General for Afghanistan John F. Sopko sent the results of the report to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Defense Secretary Mark Esper among others last week. The investigation revealed 284 Americans and 1,447 Afghans killed (many more were wounded or kidnapped) in Afghanistan were performing reconstruction or stabilization missions, which involve "all direct or indirect" U.S. assistance in Afghanistan other than combat operations. That includes projects like rebuilding physical infrastructure or helping local political authorities manage conflict.
The data is incomplete and is scattered around many different places, so there's a chance the total number of casualties varies. Sopka's team subsequently left a harsh message for Washington in the report's conclusion. "While considerable effort is made to track the amount of U.S. dollars spent" on reconstruction and stabilization efforts, "this review shows that we do not adequately capture the human cost" of those projects, especially when it comes to third country nationals and Afghans, the report reads. Until the U.S. "considers the human costs," the true toll non-combat efforts have taken on Afghanistan can't be measured accurately. Read the full report here.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Tim is a staff writer at The Week and has contributed to Bedford and Bowery and The New York Transatlantic. He is a graduate of Occidental College and NYU's journalism school. Tim enjoys writing about baseball, Europe, and extinct megafauna. He lives in New York City.
-
'Voters know Biden and Trump all too well'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By Harold Maass, The Week US Published
-
Is the Gaza war tearing US university campuses apart?
Today's Big Question Protests at Columbia University, other institutions, pit free speech against student safety
By Joel Mathis, The Week US Published
-
DOJ settles with Nassar victims for $138M
Speed Read The settlement includes 139 sexual abuse victims of the former USA Gymnastics doctor
By Justin Klawans, The Week US Published
-
Puffed rice and yoga: inside the collapsed tunnel where Indian workers await rescue
Speed Read Workers trapped in collapsed tunnel are suffering from dysentery and anxiety over their rescue
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK Published
-
More than 2,000 dead following massive earthquake in Morocco
Speed Read
By Justin Klawans Published
-
Mexico's next president will almost certainly be its 1st female president
Speed Read
By Peter Weber Published
-
North Korea's Kim to visit Putin in eastern Russia to discuss arms sales for Ukraine war, U.S. says
Speed Read
By Peter Weber Published
-
Gabon's military leader sworn in following coup in latest African uprising
Speed Read
By Justin Klawans Published
-
Nobody seems surprised Wagner's Prigozhin died under suspicious circumstances
Speed Read
By Peter Weber Published
-
Western mountain climbers allegedly left Pakistani porter to die on K2
Speed Read
By Justin Klawans Published
-
'Circular saw blades' divide controversial Rio Grande buoys installed by Texas governor
Speed Read
By Peter Weber Published