There are disagreements regarding the number of civilian casualties in
the US-led NATO bombing of Kosovo from March 24th through June 10th,
1999. Below I've posted excerpts from articles that provide several
sets of figures for you to consider.
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"The report from the Human Rights Watch organisation claims that at
least 500 civilians died during the bombing of Kosovo, a figure far
higher than NATO has admitted. The report has also criticised the use
of so-called cluster bombs...
NATO maintains that only 20 to 30 incidents resulted in civilian
deaths. The Yugoslav government's own unreliable figure is 5,000
civilian casualties. But now Human Rights Watch has come down with an
entirely more believable estimation that about 500 civilians died in
90 separate incidents during the 11 week campaign."
Australian Broadcasting Corporation: NATO rejects claims Kosovo
bombing campaign was inhuman
http://www.abc.net.au/am/s98217.htm
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"There is uncertainty about the final number of people that NATO
killed. NATO officials have said that Human Rights Watch?s (and the
Yugoslavian government?s) estimates of around 500 civilians killed by
NATO were reasonable. However General Joseph W. Ralston, Vice Chairman
of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff has said that the estimate of
civilians dead was 'less than 1,500.' The FRY government estimates a
total of 1,002 army and police killed or missing and the UN says that
another 10-15,000 civilians were wounded."
Variant: Degraded Capability
http://www.variant.randomstate.org/11texts/England.html
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"The BBC study says an estimated 11,000 ethnic Albanians were killed
by Serbs, who say Nato bombs killed 600 military personnel and more
than 2,000 civilians."
The Guardian: Bill for Kosovo war goes over £30bn
http://www.guardian.co.uk/Kosovo/Story/0,2763,203212,00.html
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"More than 2,000 civilians have been killed and more than 5,000
wounded in 11 weeks of NATO air raids, Tanjug [Yugoslavia's state-run
news agency] reported today."
Online Athens: Key talks over Yugoslav withdrawal drag on
http://www.onlineathens.com/stories/060999/new_yugo.shtml
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This last quote comes from a website which accuses the American and
NATO forces of terrorism. WARNING: There is a disturbing graphic image
of a horribly mangled dead body on the page where this text appears.
"This Yugoslavian woman was murdered by cowardly American/NATO pilots.
This is the true face of NATO's 'humanitarian intervention.' There
were over 3000 other murdered women, men and children like her.
Most were far more horribly mutilated. Many people were decapitated or
had arms, legs, hands and feet severed by American cluster bombs. Many
people were burned alive by napalm and fuel-air bombs. At least 9000
more human beings were injured or severely maimed by these American
weapons of mass destruction dropped by American/NATO pilots. Many of
the victims are children, now crippled for life."
American/NATO State Terrorism of the Yugoslavian Peoples, 1999
http://www.intellnet.org/resources/american_terrorism/Yugoslavvictims.html
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Google Web Search: "civilian casualties" + "bombing of kosovo"
://www.google.com/search?hl=en&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&q=%22civilian+casualties%22+%22bombing+of+kosovo
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I hope this information is useful. Please request clarification, if
needed; I'll be glad to offer further assistance before you rate my
answer.
Best regards,
pinkfreud |
Clarification of Answer by
pinkfreud-ga
on
10 Dec 2003 17:00 PST
This is such a hot-button issue that I don't think it's possible to
find a reference source without bias. Both support and condemnation of
the bombing are found all along the political spectrum. There are
extremes at both ends, but even in the mid-range of expression, one's
view of history is colored by opinion.
Here are some articles discussing the issue of whether or not the
bombing of Kosovo was justified:
Northwestern University School of Law: Bombing the United Nations Charter in Kosovo
http://www.law.northwestern.edu/depts/clinic/ihr/display_details.cfm?ID=221&document_type=commentary
Guardian Unlimited: Amnesty accuses Nato of war crimes
http://www.guardian.co.uk/Kosovo/Story/0,2763,329232,00.html
Slate: Bombing Kosovo To Save It
http://slate.msn.com/id/22456/
Two opinions about the legality of the bombing:
On the Issues: Was the NATO bombing of Kosovo legal?
http://www.issues2000.org/askme/kosovo.htm
Some background history:
Friends of Bosnia: History of the war in Kosovo
http://www.friendsofbosnia.org/edu_kos.html
Colorado State University: Albanians and Serbs in Kosovo, An Abbreviated History
http://lamar.colostate.edu/~grjan/kosovohistory.html
Links to a wealth of information about the Kosovo situation may be
found on these pages:
Nikos Sarantakos' Homepage: Alternative information about the NATO war and Kosovo
http://members.tripod.com/~sarant_2/kstexts.html
Global Policy Forum: Kosovo Articles dated March 1998 - April 1999
http://www.globalpolicy.org/security/issues/ksvindx2.htm
On April 29, 1999, Vaclav Havel, President of the Czech Republic, said
this in defense of the actions of NATO in Kosovo:
"The Alliance of which both Canada and the Czech Republic are now
members is waging a struggle against the genocidal regime of Slobodan
Milosevic. It is neither an easy struggle nor a popular one, and there
can be different opinions on its strategy and tactics. But no person
of sound judgement can deny one thing: This is probably the first war
ever fought that is not being fought in the name of interests, but in
the name of certain principles and values. If it is possible to say
about a war that it is ethical, or that it is fought for ethical
reasons, it is true of this war. Kosovo has no oil fields whose output
might perhaps attract somebody's interest; no member country of the
Alliance has any territorial claims there; and, Milosevic is not
threatening either the territorial integrity, or any other integrity,
of any NATO member. Nevertheless, the Alliance is fighting. It is
fighting in the name of human interest for the fate of other human
beings. It is fighting because decent people cannot sit back and watch
systematic, state-directed massacres of other people. Decent people
simply cannot tolerate this, and cannot fail to come to the rescue if
a rescue action is within their power.
This war gives human rights precedence over the rights of states. The
Federal Republic of Yugoslavia has been attacked without a direct UN
mandate for the Alliance's action. But the Alliance has not acted out
of licence, aggressiveness or disrespect for international law. On the
contrary: It has acted out of respect for the law - for the law that
ranks higher than the protection of the sovereignty of states. It has
acted out of respect for the rights of humanity, as they are
articulated by our conscience as well as by other instruments of
international law."
Prague Castle: Address by Vaclav Havel President of the Czech Republic
to the Senate and the House of Commons of the Parliament of Canada
http://old.hrad.cz/president/Havel/speeches/1999/2904_uk.html
I hope this helps. This has gone far beyond the scope of the initial
question; if you are seeking in-depth analysis, it might be a good
idea to post a new question detailing your exact needs.
Best regards,
pinkfreud
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