Afghanistan War
The following email was sent to me by United for Peace and Justice. Can anyone substantiate their claims?
The U.S. occupation of Afghanistan passed a sobering milestone last week. The 1,000th U.S. soldier to die in Operation Enduring Freedom lost his life in the Marja offensive, even as 27 Afghan civilians were killed Sunday by a NATO airstrike in nearby Uruzgan province.
In a campaign initiated by American Friends Service Committee, UFPJ member groups throughout the country staged vigils, rallies and ceremonies calling for an end to the bloodshed. Reading the names of dead U.S. soldiers and Afghan civilians, they expressed sorrow, anger and frustration at the rising violence. They signed postcards calling on Congress to immediately end funding for the Afghanistan war.
In the ninth year of war, violence is escalating in Afghanistan, making life less safe both for the occupied and occupier. Almost one-third of the 1,000 U.S. deaths, 317, took place last year, and 2,412 Afghan civilians lost their lives.
The U.S. is sending additional troops, doubling the number of U.S. forces to 100,000. Each U.S. soldier in Afghanistan costs $1 million per year – making our investment there $100 billion per year. Meanwhile, people in the U.S. lack health care, jobs, and housing, teachers are being laid off, and nothing is being done about the climate crisis.
Call on Congress to stop funding the war. The U.S. must announce an immediate cease-fire, stop sending additional troops, withdraw all U.S. troops, and end U.S. control of bases in Afghanistan.
In peace,
United for Peace and Justice
