A Dutch court has begun hearings in a case filed by Afghan civilian survivors of the 2007 battle of Chora. The engagement between the Taliban and Dutch troops, who allegedly used excessive force, left at least 80 civilians dead.
The case was filed on behalf of four Afghans and relatives of a fifth, who has since died. The plaintiffs are seeking compensation from the Netherlands for its actions in Afghanistan which they described as “war crimes.”
The case stems from a 2007 battle in and around the town of Chora in the southern Afghan province of Uruzgan between the Taliban and the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF). The international force in the area was primarily represented by Dutch troops who had to defend against a Taliban offensive.
Some 250 people, including up to 80 Afghan civilians, were killed in the battle according to estimates by the Dutch military. The town of Chora had some 3,000 residents back at the time.
The troops failed to distinguish between military and civilian targets, subjecting the town to artillery and aerial bombardment, the plaintiffs allege. The Dutch military also allegedly failed to properly warn civilians of the impending attack, bombing Chora at night while residents were sleeping in their homes.
The attack perfectly “fits the picture that the life of an Afghan is not worth much to us,” lawyer Liesbeth Zegveld, representing the plaintiffs, told the court. The lawyer urged the military to release logs of the bombardment, providing more clarity on the timing of the attack that left dozens dead.
The Netherlands, however, denies all the allegations, maintaining the combat was conducted in a proper fashion.
“The serious reproaches plaintiffs make toward the Dutch state are unfounded,” Karlijn Teuben, a lawyer for the Dutch state, told the court.
Dutch troops were stationed in Afghanistan from 2006 to 2010 as part of the ISAF. Together with Australian troops, the Dutch military comprised the so-called Task Force Uruzgan, entrusted with maintaining order in the province.
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