Friday, April 08, 2011

Ooops!

How is that NATO commanded Libyan thing going this week? Apparently, not so well.
The deputy commander of NATO forces in Libya acknowledged Friday that the alliance struck rebel tanks outside the eastern oil town of Brega a day earlier but blamed the deadly incident on a lack of communication from the rebels.

Rear Adm. Russell Harding said "it would appear that two of our strikes yesterday may have resulted in the deaths of a number of TNC forces," referring to the Transitional National Council, the rebels' de facto government.

Doctors said that at least five people were killed in the Thursday morning strike, the second friendly fire incident in less than a week involving NATO forces and the rebels battling Libyan strongman Muammar Gadhafi.

"I'm not apologizing," Harding told reporters in Naples, Italy. "The situation on the ground was extremely fluid and remains extremely fluid. And up until yesterday we had no information that the TNC or the opposition forces were using tanks."

Two things to note. First and foremost, it isn't America taking the heat for this incident. Second, This British general has no problem at all in his unapologetic position on the matter. I venture to say, Petraeus and the rest would look like Gumby trying to bend over backward to apologize.

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