The general commanding the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan said Tuesday the military took a calculated risk when it warned people in the Afghan city of Marjah of a major offensive designed to clear the area of insurgents.
Army Gen. David Petraeus (peh-TRAY”-us) said the main reason was to reduce civilian casualties.
“We have to do everything possible to limit the loss of innocent life, and that they know that we are doing that as well,” he said.
He said that some extremists may have escaped with the advanced warning, but that they would be “hunted down.”
“We”ve killed boatloads of bad guys in Afghanistan,” Petraeus told several hundred people at a luncheon sponsored by the World Affairs Council of Charlotte, a nonpartisan group that educates members about international issues.
