Russia chides Australia over Afghan war crimes

KABUL (Pajhwok): Allegations of war crimes in Afghanistan have bruised Australia’s international image, believes Moscow.

At least 39 Afghan civilians were killed by Australian soldiers in Afghanistan, found an inquiry into the allegations. The soldiers may be dismissed.

A spokeswoman for the foreign ministry in Moscow claimed the Australian soldiers accused of murdering civilians might not be brought to justice.

The Australian Associated Press quoted Maria Zakharova as saying the incident raised questions about Australia’s commitment to protecting a rules-based world order.

Earlier in the week, China’s foreign ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian shared an image of alleged Australian war crimes in Afghanistan.

The image, purporting to show a special forces soldier slitting the throat of an Afghan child, was captioned: “Don’t be afraid, we are coming to bring you peace.”

Angered by what was called a doctored image, Australian Prime Minister Morrison denounced the image as utterly outrageous.

PAN Monitor/mud