A leading medical charity that suffered massive losses when US helicopter gunships mistakenly struck its clinic in the northern Afghan city of Kunduz is criticizing the United States for failing to pay compensation to the wounded and families of the Afghans killed in the assault last October.
Doctors Without Borders says Washington should "urgently address" the issue even as the Afghan government prepares to rebuild the hospital with millions of dollars donated by the US military.
The organization, known by its French initials MSF, has decided at least for now not to resume operations in Kunduz, where it ran the only trauma hospital in an increasingly violent part of the country, said Guilhem Molinie, the MSF representative for Afghanistan.
The Pentagon said the sustained attack was a mistake caused by human error. After a months-long investigation, the United States dismissed allegations by MSF that the incident amounted to a war crime, and exonerated all involved of any criminal action.
President Barack Obama apologized for the attack, which was one of the deadliest assaults on civilians in the 15-year war in Afghanistan.
But while the Pentagon report, released on April 29, said no criminal charges had been leveled against US military personnel for mistakes that resulted in the attack, about 16 American military personnel, including a two-star general, were disciplined.
A dozen survivors interviewed by The Associated Press since the Oct 3 assault on the MSF hospital which treated wounded Taliban and government fighters alike are convinced the bombing was no accident.
