least 20 people, including three children. While this particular scenario is rare, civilian

deaths are an almost guaranteed side effect of war. In fact, some have estimated that

90% of wartime casualties are civilian and not military, although this ratio has been

disputed. This most recent bombing has many, including the UN, asking if the United States

has committed a war crime. So, did the US commit a war crime by killing civilians?

Well, international agreements concerning civilian casualties really only came into

effect after World War Two. During the war, civilian populations were intentionally targeted

in order to demoralize and weaken opposing countries. The infamous Blitz saw 40,000 British

civilian deaths, and the UK’s similar bombing of Hamburg killed about 42,000 Germans. Of

course, dropping nuclear bombs on Japan wiped out entire civilian populations, as did Hitler’s

Holocaust.

The first international agreement about civilians came through the Geneva convention, which

codified a number of humanitarian rules of war. The Fourth Geneva Convention provided

protection to civilians in occupied territory, and banned things like torture and scientific

experimentation. However, until 1977, this did not include civilians in countries which

had not been occupied. That year, an addendum was added to the convention, saying that attacking

forces had to specifically avoid civilian casualties. Notably, the United States, Israel,

Iran, Pakistan, India, and Turkey have not ratified this addendum.

Still, not having signed doesn’t mean that those countries are exempt from prosecution

for killing civilians. The International Criminal Court has established a certain metric for

determining if civilian casualties constitute a war crime. First and foremost, civilian

deaths alone are not enough. And even if an attacking force knows there will be civilian

casualties, they are still allowed to attack.

What is considered a war crime is when civilians are intentionally targeted, known as the principle

of distinction. Even if the attack is intended to destroy a military target, the loss of

civilian life must be outweighed by the potential life-saving military benefit. This is known

as the principle of proportionality. The basic question is, “Is the attack clearly excessive

in terms of civilian deaths, compared to the military advantage gained?.”

In order to limit or avoid civilian deaths, the United States uses a computer program

called the “Fast Assessment Strike Tool - Collateral Damage”. It analyses the target,

the terrain, the angle of attack, and the ammunition used, and generates an image of

the potential damage. This helps assess whether nearby civilians will be affected.

In the case of the Afghan hospital bombing, preliminary reports say that it was unintentional.

While all of the factors we mentioned will be considered in the ongoing investigation,

if it turns out to have been an accident, it will be difficult to prosecute. This is

further confusing as it is a huge violation of international law to attack a medical center.

Whether or not the US committed a war crime will be left up to international courts.

War crimes happen all over the world. To get a better understanding of what they are, watch

the video up top. To find out about the court that prosecutes these war crimes, check out,

the video below. Thanks for watching TestTube! Don’t forget to like and subscribe for new

videos.