Taliban cowardice

CNN:

Afghan President Hamid Karzai said Monday that the Taliban still endanger innocent people, but they pose no significant threat either to his government or to its institutions.

"It's a force that is defeated, frustrated, acting in cowardice by killing children going to school," Karzai told reporters during a joint news conference with President Bush. Karzai said he is working to root the Taliban out from their mountain hideouts.

For his part, Bush described the Taliban, who ruled Afghanistan and harbored al Qaeda before the September 11, 2001, attacks, as "brutal coldblooded killers" with "a vision of darkness."

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Karzai, who has been critical of U.S. attacks that have killed innocent civilians, appeared mollified with the discussion the two men had about the issue. Watch Bush explain that he understands 'the angst, the agony' »

"He is as concerned as the Afghan people are," Karzai said. "I was very happy with that conversation."

Bush said he regrets the loss of innocent life, but he put the blame on the Taliban. "It is the Taliban who surround themselves with innocent life as human shields," he said. "The Taliban are the coldblooded killers; the Taliban are the murderers; the Taliban have no regard for human life."

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we need more of this in the media battle space. We know that as soon as we attack the Taliban they will run to the media claiming we are killing civilians. We should make the media aware that the Taliban will make bogus claims about civilian casualties as a part of a victim strategy. We should also make the point that the Taliban camouflage their forces as civilians in violation of the Geneva Conventions and the rules of war.

It is another one of their cowardly operating procedures that endangers all civilians, as does their use of human shields. One of the ways you can tell they are a losing force is that more and more they are using the very young in their operations. One reason is to advance their victim strategy.