Krigen.
One in particular: Afghanistan. Only this time from the perspective of another country. The soldiers here are from Denmark. And since my own reaction to the “war on terror” has always revolved by and large around the political narrative I embrace regarding “the military industrial complex”, I’m not at all certain the extent to which that is applicable to a nation like Denmark.
After all, profit is certainly not the only motivation for taking a nation to war. And I am always generally enthusiastic about ousting any and all religious fanatics from power.
Besides, soldiers, much like the rest of us, can be more or less idealistic, more or less cynical.
Still, in other respects a war is a war is a war. And in today’s world that often involves questions of “collateral damage”. The killing of non-combatants. And then in deciding whether or not in any particular context this constitutes a war crime. Or, as one reviewer at IMDb noted:
Why decide so-and-so? Why did such-and-such happen in this or that way? Could it have been altered? Could lives have been saved? Did I do the job I signed up for, or more, or less? The ways in which such issues haunt soldiers, their commanders, their families and even the Afghan locals, form the basis of this important film.
In other words, how can “the fog of war” not be but exacerbated when two entirely different cultures with two entirely different languages collide?
Here is one take on Denmark’s involvement in the war: theguardian.com/film/2010/j … fghanistan
In war, there is always going to be the part about doing the right thing versus suffering the consequences of doing the right thing. And it’s not like the commander here intended to kill those 8 children.
As for the ending, well, what’s one more lie in one more war?
IMDb
Four of the cast members are real Danish soldiers who have been stationed in Afghanistan.
at wiki: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_War
trailer: youtu.be/qil14JEoPzU
A War [Krigen] 2015
Written and directed by Tobias Lindholm
[b]Pederson [commander]: How are the guys feeling?
Soldier: They’re awful. Especially my second rifleman, Lasse.
Pederson: What about you?
Soldier: None of the guys feel good. We feel like walking targets. The guys are powerless. They can’t do anything. The guys don’t see the purpose of patrolling …
Soldier: Hold on a sec. Let’s see this from their perspective. The guys just lost a friend. They’re frustrated. I’m just saying the assignments make no sense.
Soldier: I’ve just lost one of my 21-year-olds, who bled out right in front of me. THAT makes no sense!
…
Pederson [to his men]: Do any of you have any doubts about why you are here? It’s to secure and help the civil population, so they can have a decent life and rebuild their land. I know you walk on patrol a lot, and that you use a lot of energy. But that’s because we have momentum. We’re getting the civilians on our side. That’s why it’s so important that we show our presence in the area.
…
Perderson: Lasse? What’s going on?
Lasse: I want to go home. Since that morning with Anders …He wasn’t even supposed to be there. He took my spot. And he was blown to pieces. I can’t leave through these gates again. I’m not worth two shits.
Perderson: I can’t send you home. What I can do is give you assignments inside the camp for the next two weeks. That way you won’t have to leave these gates for a while. And you can calm down. If you still feel down after a couple of weeks, we’ll talk again.
…
Villager: There aren’t any Taliban here. They’re regular civilians. The Taliban comes sometimes. When we leave, they’ll be here right away.
Pederson: When were they here last?
Villager: As soon as you get here, they run away.
Pederson: If we help you with the well and the water, could you help us with the mines?
…
Pederson [after his sniper killed a Taliban soldier]: Marius, how will you explain to your son that you have shot a bad Guy?
Marius: I don’t know. B for Bang?
Soldier: D for Dead?
…
Interpreter: Although you patrol at day, the Taliban comes at night. He says that the Taliban know we helped his daughter. Now they want him to be a warrior for them, otherwise they’ll kill his family.
Perderson: Tell him that we’ll come tomorrow and force the Taliban away from the area.
Villager: I can’t go home. We have to stay here tonight.
Pederson: I’m sorry, but I have to …I’m sorry. You have to go home now. I myself have three children. I understand your situation. But in order for us to help you, you will have to go home.
Villager: Your children live in safety though.
Interpreter: He says that if they go back, they will be killed.
Villager: Take care of the children, and I’ll leave.
Interpreter: His children will be killed. We have to go to the village in the morning anyway…
Pederson: Stop that right now.
Villager: What should I do?
Perderson: We will be there tomorrow. We’ll secure the area, and force the Taliban out. We’ll protect you and your family. You have my word.[/b]
Next day…
[b]Soldier [on the radio]: We’re here. The family we helped, we located them. They’ve all been killed. The boy was shot in the head. The girl was shot two three times in the chest and neck. The mother was hit in the face.
…
Soldier: We’re not getting air support, unless we have PID.
Pederson: We need to get Lasse out of here!
Soldier: 7-5 wants to know who’s in there.
Pederson: I don’t give a shit who’s in there!
Soldier: I know, but it’s 7-5 asking!
Pederson: Then tell them, I know who’s in there! We have to get out of here!
Soldier: We have PID on Compound 6. Repeat: PID on Compound 6.
…
Pederson: What’s going on?
Soldier: The commander is in your office. Got two guys from the Judge Advocate Corps with him.
Pederson: What’s it about?
Soldier: I don’t know.
…
JAG officer: Can you confirm that you and your men were present in Adam Khan Kalay on September 21 at 9:30?
Pederson: I can confirm that.
JAG officer: We have been told that you gave orders to attack Compound 6. Is that correct?
Pederson: Yes. We were in close contact with the enemy.
JAG officer: And the enemy, that you refer to, was located in Compound 6?
Pederson: Yes. That’s why, we called for air support on it.
JAG officer: You are charged with bombing a civilian target and thus caused the deaths of 11 civilians.
Pederson: What does that mean?
JAG officer: It means you are going home, Claus.
…
Maria: Tell me why you’ve come home.
…
Maria: What is PID?
Pederson: It means I saw the enemy there.
…
Lawyer: You are accused of violating the Military Criminal Code, 36.2.
Pederson: And what does that mean exactly?
Lawyer: It means that you have been accused of killing civilians.
Maria: What is the penalty for that?
Lawyer: It probably won’t be a jury trial, in which the maximum penalty is four years.
…
Pederson: What do we do now?
Lawyer: The most important question is, if Compound 6 was a military or a civilian target. That’s the whole case. Did you have PID, Claus?
Pederson: I had a strong assumption that the Taliban were…
Lawyer: I’ll have to stop you right there. Did you have PID?
Pederson: I had a strong …
Lawyer: I gotta stop you again.
…
Maria: Does that matter? He says, his men are wounded and bleeding. It’s his duty to save them.
Lawyer: I understand that very well. But you have to understand, that to everyone else, Claus is a soldier who killed 11 civilians. Alright. Let me be completely honest with you. In this store I sell acquittals. Morality and ethics is not my department.[/b]
Or 15 if you count the family he sent home?
[b]Pederson: I can’t just lie. I didn’t know who was in that house, Maria. It was my responsibility, and I have to suffer the consequences.
Maria: You must suffer the consequences? What about the children? What about me? We need you at home…It’s not about what you were supposed to do then, but what you do right now. Would it help you to go to prison for four years? Would you get better? Would the children get better? We need you at home! The children need you!
Pederson: I dropped that bomb. It was my decision. I can’t just blame my men.
Maria: Alright, but then do what he says. Say you had the fucking PID. Say, you can’t remember who confirmed it. Maybe you did kill eight children, but you have three living ones at home!
…
JAG prosecutor: Alright. I would like to quote from exhibit 27a: "I don’t care who’s in there. We need to get Lasse out. " And shortly thereafter: “Tell them I know who’s in there. We have to get out of here.” This is contrary to what you said.
Pederson: No, it’s not.
JAG prosecutor: Would you elaborate on that?
Pederson: You need to understand something. When I get a report that they won’t grant air support, but it’s the only thing that can save me and my men, I see it as my duty to get it granted.
JAG prosecutor: Who told you, where the enemy was located?
Pederson: I don’t remember. Because we were under heavy fire!
…
Daughter: Daddy, is it true that you killed children?
…
JAG prosecutor: Did you consider, as next-in-command, that something went terriblywrong out there?
Najib: That is a difficult question because you can’t imagine what it means to be out there. Claus is the most capable soldier I know. And ultimately it is our responsibility to get our men back home in one piece. That is what we are there for. But he shouldn’t have been out there with them. He should have been in the camp overseeing the operation.
…
JAG prosecutor: Your company commander is in difficulties and has been indicted for half a year. The information you’re bringing forward now, would have been of significant importance to both the man and his case. Do you want me to believe, that at no point did it occur to you to share any of this information? It’s been six months.
Najib: Yes, it has. Sorry.[/b]
The proscecutor sums up the case:
JAG prosecutor: The law is clear: The prohibition against arbitrary attacks is of central importance in the protection of the civilian population. At no point has the defendant been able to justify why he decided to attack. He says someone in the unit identified Compound 6 as a hostile target, but he hasn’t indicated who or specified further circumstances. The court has heard me question every single soldier in the vicinity of the defendant, who would have been able to identify Compound 6. And one soldier, Kenneth ‘Butcher’ Jensen, waited until court to inform us that he observed the muzzle flashes and conveyed it to the defendant. I have no trust in the witness, because in the sound recording we can clearly hear the exchange of words between the defendant and Butcher up until the order: “I don’t give a shit who’s in there.” And when next-in-command in TOC insists on PID: “Tell them, I know who’s in there.” I see a man who disregards the need of a civilian population to save his own guy, Lasse. Is that understandable from a human perspective? Yes. We can probably all understand the difficult dilemma. But although we have sympathy for the defendant, who appears to be a competent soldier and leader and although we must provide Danish soldiers room for manoeuvreability in extreme circumstances, no one is above the law. Otherwise, a judicial system is rendered superfluous. If we in a case like this let such a serious violation of humanitarian rights slide, we will end somewhere, where we do not want to be. Claus Michael Pedersen must be sentenced because there is no doubt that he intentionally disregarded the elementary rules of engagement. Basically, the penalty in section 36.2 is prison for life. Now, however, this is not a jury trial, because the defendant did not have the intention to kill civilians. But their deaths are a direct consequence of his decision. The maximum penalty is four years. It is my contention, that we should be close to that maximum. With these remarks, I rest my case.