Army Gen. Stanley A. McChrystal, the commander of NATO forces in Afghanistan, has appointed a Canadian flag officer to probe the Sept. 3 airstrike that killed civilians in Kunduz, Afghanistan. Maj. Gen. C.S. Sullivan will oversee a board that will include a U.S. Air Force officer, a German officer, and a legal advisor. During the incident in question, U.S. Air Force aircraft responded to a report on the ground from a German contingent that insurgents had stolen two fuel trucks. The planes likely killed civilians as well when they dropped 500-pound bombs on the stolen trucks. When word of the civilian casualties surfaced, numerous media reports noted disagreement between the U.S. and German units involved with the attack. McChrystal wants the panel to research and document all relevant facts during the next several weeks.
