Afghan survivors describe NATO helicopter assault

Source McClatchy Newspapers

The military helicopters swooped in from behind the three-vehicle convoy as it wound through a remote road in southern Afghanistan , and survivors of last week's deadly attack said they had no idea they were in danger until the lead four-wheel drive exploded. After seeing the gruesome aftermath of that rocket strike, survivors of the NATO attack told McClatchy , women jumped from the second car and frantically waved their head scarves to try to stop the attack. A two-star American general is in southern Afghanistan investigating the Feb. 21 strike, which killed 21 Afghans in Daykundi province and quickly prompted U.S. Army Gen. Stanley McChrystal to deliver a videotaped apology. Survivors said they want more than that, however. "What do we do with his apology?" said Hussain Dilbarian , a 20-year-old survivor of the strike. "It doesn't make any difference. The killers should be handed over to us. We don't want anything else." The attack was a frustrating setback for McChrystal in his campaign to win Afghans' confidence by minimizing the number of innocent civilians who are killed by coalition forces fighting Taliban insurgents.