§ Lynne JonesTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment he has made of the number of(a) civilians and (b) members of military organisations killed in Afghanistan in the last two months; [22130]
§ Mr. Jim CunninghamTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many bombing raids in Afghanistan did not hit their intended targets; and how many civilians he estimates have been(a) killed and (b) wounded by these raids. [21880]
§ Mr. HoonThe coalition has from the outset of the campaign gone to very great lengths to minimise the risks to civilians from air strikes, which have been conducted against exclusively military targets. Although extensive battle damage assessment is routinely conducted after each strike, we cannot know for sure how many bombing raids may not have hit their intended targets, nor how many civilian casualties may have been caused as a result. While we investigate all such claims carefully, most cannot be verified.