Meet the Little Girl Killed by a US Missile: Tracing One Tragic Story in Our Horrific Drone War

Around midnight on May 21, 2010, a girl named Fatima was killed when a succession of U.S.-made Hellfire missiles, each of them five-feet long and traveling at close to 1,000 miles per hour, smashed a compound of houses in a mountain village of Mohammed Khel in North Waziristan along the Afghanistan-Pakistan border. Wounded in the explosions which killed a half dozen men, Fatima and two other children were taken to a nearby hospital where they died a few hours later

[url=http://www.alternet.org/world/155637/meet_the_little_girl_killed_by_a_us_missile%3A_tracing_one_tragic_story_in_our_horrific_drone_war/]Source[/u rl]

Behram Noor, a Pakistani journalist, went to the hospital and took a picture of Fatima shortly before her death, then went back to the scene of the explosions looking for evidence that might show who was responsible for the attack. In the rubble, he found a mechanism from a U.S.-made Hellfire missile, and gave it to Reprieve, a British organization opposed to capital punishment, which shared photographs of the material with Salon. Stafford Smith alluded to the missile fragments in an Op-Ed piece for the New York Times last fall. They have also been displayed in England.

Ok, america.. You can sleep soundly tonight! You are in a much safer world since a hellfire drone strike killed ANOTHER innocent little girl in a country far far away. PHEW!

Ugh... I know i may be going overboard with the drone strike threads, BUT, I really think this needs to gain more attention!
Imagine if it was reversed! Some other country has invaded yours under guise of helping you out, but really they are there to gain your resources. And to keep everyone in check, they have drones flying around above you that could, at any moment, massacre you and your family, just because...

This is wrong! This needs to stop!

Thoughts?!

reply to post by Nspekta


There are many more important matters to worry about instead of drone strikes in the mid east.

Given the current path our government is on, we should applaud the fact the strikes are half a world away instead of them happening here at home, which truly wouldn't surprise me.

reply to post by FreeFromTheHerd


FreeFromTheHerd ?

You're leading the herd.

She was murdered that little girl. You people have learned no humility since September 11th. None whatever.

What??? I thought we were heroes? We parade our legless, armless, eyeless heroes on TV asking to give our fallen soldiers money because they have given so much for our country. We wouldnt kill innocent children? This child MUST have been on Obamas kill list, surely?
Where is the public water so I can wash my hands of this injustice?? Every American that pays taxes hands are dirty with the blood of innocents. What goes around comes around. We Americans will soon be on the other side of these glorious drones and watching our children die for no good reason.
Ever wonder why so many germans sat around and did nothing while they shoved jews in ovens alive?

Originally posted by FreeFromTheHerd
reply to post by Nspekta

 

There are many more important matters to worry about instead of drone strikes in the mid east.

Given the current path our government is on, we should applaud the fact the strikes are half a world away instead of them happening here at home, which truly wouldn't surprise me.

You can't be serious?! Yes, i agree there are many many MANY issues in the world, but if you don;t care about an innocent girl killed with american taxpayer money, then you are a sad sad person. What if this happened to your child? OR your sister? OR anyone you know? That doesn't bother you?

You justifying it cause its half a world away is wrong on sooo many levels... PS, nice first post. You start your ATS life off trolling and showing your true colors right away.. your mom must be proud

“President Obama made clear from the start to his advisers and to the world that we were going to take whatever steps are necessary to protect the American people from harm, and particularly from a terrorist attack,” White House Press Secretary Jay Carney said.

www.foxnews.com...

The U.S. government doesn't care about that little girl.
Their defense? Harping on how drone strikes are more efficient/less collateral damage than conventional bombs.
Red Herring in chief.

"It's a wild oversimplification that lacks context," an aide to the president said of the Times article, which was published Tuesday and claimed that the commander-in-chief has "embraced a disputed method for counting civilian casualties." "This story is debating whether there are zero civilian casualties or eight," the White House official told Fox News -- in effect suggesting that whatever the actual number of civilian casualties caused by the president's use of drones, the incidence of collateral damage is dramatically reduced under the Obama command.

www.foxnews.com...

fox news sources. Less than reputable but w/e

reply to post by Nspekta


Of course it would bother me if that was my daughter, or if I knew her. But on the flip side of that coin, is your life really that problem free that a person dying, whom you do not know, nor would you ever know, bothers you that much?

How many hours of sleep will you lose tonight over this drone strike?

All of this faux outrage over events that do not impact peoples daily life here is simply laughable.

Originally posted by FreeFromTheHerd
reply to post by Nspekta

 

Of course it would bother me if that was my daughter, or if I knew her. But on the flip side of that coin, is your life really that problem free that a person dying, whom you do not know, nor would you ever know, bothers you that much?

How many hours of sleep will you lose tonight over this drone strike?

All of this faux outrage over events that do not impact peoples daily life here is simply laughable.

edit on 30-5-2012 by FreeFromTheHerd because: (no reason given)

Its not about dying its about MURDER. I dont know this girl but it does bother me that my tax $ paid to murder this innocent life. Christians whine about tax $ going for condoms, but gladly give their $ to kill. We look the other way and tell ourself...we dont know her....its callateral damage...it was an accident.....its her parents fault ....its part of war and so on. Your hands may look clean but they are covered in karma.

reply to post by Nspekta


So a Senior AQ commander and a handful of other men get killed in an ambush of a convoy. They know they are at war, why would they have their families with them? Things like this will happen when our foes hide behind their women and children. Maybe AQ and the Taliban will start to fight like men. Not feeling much sympathy, sorry. If I were fighting a war, I sure as #@#@ wouldn't have my family with me.

reply to post by Nspekta


I agree with you. I don't need, nor want this protection. But, Romney just won the Texas primary, and has apparently wrapped up the nomination.

If Ron Paul is not elected, then these drone strikes will not only keep happening in the Middle East, they are liable to start happening here too!

Short of a violent revolution, what are our options as citizens that disagree with these actions?

reply to post by FreeFromTheHerd


so the fact that the POSUS and Co.
are psychopaths that get off on murdering and torturing
people willy nilly doesn't concern you?

sigh, birds of a feather i suppose...

Originally posted by FreeFromTheHerd
reply to post by Nspekta

 

Of course it would bother me if that was my daughter, or if I knew her. But on the flip side of that coin, is your life really that problem free that a person dying, whom you do not know, nor would you ever know, bothers you that much?

How many hours of sleep will you lose tonight over this drone strike?

All of this faux outrage over events that do not impact peoples daily life here is simply laughable.

edit on 30-5-2012 by FreeFromTheHerd because: (no reason given)

When someone dies, the impact is happening. That IS impact. Each person is playing the whole universe within, each person is the center of the universe, 1 and 1 million die the same, one by one, and are = in death experience, individually.

You had better care what your government is funding.

Originally posted by DerepentLEstranger
reply to post by FreeFromTheHerd

 

so the fact that the POSUS and Co.
are psychopaths that get off on murdering and torturing
people willy nilly doesn't concern you?

sigh, birds of a feather i suppose...

Do you actually believe that POTUS sat in a meeting and stated "Well, thats it guys, lets go blow up some kids with our badass missiles"??????

It's a safe assumption I despise the United States government more than just about anyone here on ATS. That being said, you are giving them way too much credit.

I'll even play devils advocate here and accept their version of events as the truth for arguments sake. If a little girl must be blown up in order to also decimate an enemy, than it is an acceptable loss.

Allow me to throw a hypothetical at you involving everyones most hated leader: If you had the chance to blow up a school bus containing 50 kids and Adolf Hitler in 1939, would you?

Any sane, rational, and common sensical person would. I'm not saying you must enjoy it, but the greater good must prevail.

Originally posted by FreeFromTheHerd
reply to post by Nspekta

 

Of course it would bother me if that was my daughter, or if I knew her. But on the flip side of that coin, is your life really that problem free that a person dying, whom you do not know, nor would you ever know, bothers you that much?

How many hours of sleep will you lose tonight over this drone strike?

All of this faux outrage over events that do not impact peoples daily life here is simply laughable.

edit on 30-5-2012 by FreeFromTheHerd because: (no reason given)

Oh man.. where do I start? Without feeding you too much, cause obviously you are a troll with not feelings or compassion or respect for the life of innocent people

From the article:

“Forensically, it is important to show how the crime of murder happened (which is what it is here),” said Reprieve executive director Clive Stafford Smith in an email. “One almost always uses the murder weapon in a case. But perhaps more important I think this physical proof — this missile killed this child — is important to have people take it seriously

It is imporant. A Murder was commited justified for the 'safety' of America.. such BS!
Its not fals outrage.. you don;t know me. I am PISSED about it. And you should be too. What if a drone hit tyour house, killed your wife/kids and then noone cared? Infact, you had some douche from the otherside of the world saying that the life of your kids or your wife didnt matter? IT DOES! I would be just as pissed if this happened to you! Can't you see the hypocracy of the US government? Can't you see the immorailty of justfying the death of some little girl halfway across the world?

You are brainwashed! You are exaclty the type of person the government loves.. too caught up in who's gonna be on dancing with the stars instead of real life issues. AN INNOCENT YOUNG GIRL WAS KILLED! And you couldn;t care less... you are a sick individual

reply to post by pavil


The strike happened at a compund ( AT THEIR HOME).. So where is this little girl supposed to hide? Where is it safe in her country AT ALL?! The whole place is under surveillance and i would guess you could be anywhere there and be killed within 10 minutes as a drone is most likely somewhere near you at any given moment.

The US prides itself on being accurate and precise, yet they are constantly proving otherwise. Do you think its right that innocents should be killed?

You say "if I was fighting the war".. yeah yeah yeah.. You try fighting a war against drones. Basically you could never go anywhere near your family EVER.. OH wait that doesnt matter.. They could easily just kill your family at any given point, and would anyone say anything? Prolly not.. they would just say.. "Oh well, we thought he was home.. but it was only his wife and daughters... meh, at least we blew up any terrorist documents he may have had in his house. GO USA"

You make me sick

Originally posted by getreadyalready
reply to post by Nspekta

 

I agree with you. I don't need, nor want this protection. But, Romney just won the Texas primary, and has apparently wrapped up the nomination.

If Ron Paul is not elected, then these drone strikes will not only keep happening in the Middle East, they are liable to start happening here too!

Short of a violent revolution, what are our options as citizens that disagree with these actions?

Thats the tough part right? Noone in the government seems to care except people like Paul.. They justify it to the average american joe saying its for his protection and the protection of their family. These sheep will never ever see the truth as long as they are being handfed propoganda in the form of 'information'

Here is a link to the pictures of the evidence, the destruction and the poor little girl who was murdered.

To all of you that don't care about her, that say her life was worth less than yours, that say because she lives halfway around the world so it doesn't matter, LOOK at her! Does any child deserve this?



If you look at her and still have no feelings of guilt or regret about her being murdered and robbed of her life for YOUR security, then you are completely heartless and i hope that when they start droning people in the USA, you are the first to get it up the a$$

It is always horrific when a child dies. They lose all the potential they ever had in life, and are in fact the reason many soldiers fight. There is little glory in war and even less pay.

In Iraq I watched men fire mortars at a US base and then run into their house with the mortar tube. In the counter-fire 12 people were killed. Seven adults and five children. These children that were killed were the offspring of the men firing on international forces. These men placed their childrens lives in harms way in an attempt to protect themselves.

Grown men (myself included) wept when we realized that children were in the house. The people living next door did not shed a tear at all. Women and female children are cattle to these people. Sad but true.

I have ranted on too many posts about why soldiers fight and what real soldiers are. I will simply say "who would you rather support, men that use human shields or men that are human shields?"

Flame on,

Originally posted by Texcin

Its not about dying its about MURDER. I dont know this girl but it does bother me that my tax $ paid to murder this innocent life. Christians whine about tax $ going for condoms, but gladly give their $ to kill. We look the other way and tell ourself...we dont know her....its callateral damage...it was an accident.....its her parents fault ....its part of war and so on. Your hands may look clean but they are covered in karma.

how the hell did you manage to crowbar "CHRISTIANS" into this, I'm pretty sure a lot of Christians have issues with a kid being killed there, but hey, why let that get in the way ofa rant.


Her death is disgusting by the way, and sickens me as a father, how dare we lecture Syria for the equally atrocious kiling of kids there

reply to post by Nspekta


I am far from a troll. That being said, I couldn't possibly care any less than I do about some girl dying. I didn't know her, I didnt care about her, and her death doesn't impact my life in any manner at all. I care about the things that do matter to me...my life, my family, and their well being. If you died in your sleep tonight, I wouldn't lose a nanoseconds worth of sleep and your death would be meaningless to me.

I only care about the things that are important to me, and that matter in the lives of my family and I.

That is not cold, heartless, sick, etc etc. That is reality.