Figures based on reported number of US airstrikes highlight the human cost of the 20-year ‘war on terror’
People gathered around the incinerated husk of a vehicle targeted by a US drone strike, which killed 10 people including children, in Kabul, Afghanistan, 30 August 2021. Photograph: Marcus Yam/REX/Shutterstock
On the 20th anniversary of the 9/11 attack, a new study claims US drone and airstrikes have killed at least 22,000 civilians – and perhaps as many as 48,000 – since the 9/11 terrorist attacks in 2001. This is according to new analysis published by the civilian harm monitoring group Airwars.
The analysis, based on the US military’s own assertion that it has conducted almost 100,000 airstrikes since 2001, represents an attempt to estimate the number of civilian deaths across the multiple conflicts that have comprised aspects of the “war on terror”.
Afghan villagers sit near the bodies of children who were reported to have been killed during a NATO airstrike in Kunar province on April 7, 2013. (Photo: Reuters)
The death toll from US airstrikes – which the group admits is imprecise – compares with an estimated 387,000 civilians who are believed to have been killed by all parties during the war on terror, according to work done by Brown University’s Costs of War Programme.
Since taking office Biden has reduced US reliance on airstrikes amid a formal review of US drone policy, and has withdrawn from many of the foreign interventions that marked the time in office of his three predecessors George W Bush, Barack Obama and Donald Trump, since the 2001 attacks on the US by al-Qaida.
Encompassing attacks on Islamic State in Syria, the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as strikes against militant and terror groups in Yemen, Somalia, Pakistan and Libya, the US has said it had conducted at least 91,340 strikes in 20 years – including 9,000 against the Islamic State, the Airwars report said.
Based on that total, Airwars has calculated that “US actions likely killed at least 22,679 civilians, with that number potentially as high as 48,308”.
According to the group’s research, the deadliest year in the past two decades for civilian victims of US airstrikes was 2003 when a minimum of 5,529 civilians were reported to have been killed, almost all during the invasion of Iraq that year.
The next deadliest year was 2017 when at least 4,931 civilians were likely killed, the vast majority in coalition bombing of Iraq and Syria.
However, going by the maximum estimates, 2017 emerges as the worst year for civilians, with up to 19,623 killed, almost all in the bombing campaign against IS.
The issue of civilian casualties of western airstrikes and other military activities during the war on terror has always been highly contested territory, with the US and its allies insisting that strenuous efforts have been made to minimise civilian death and injury.
And despite the wide-ranging umbrella of operations that have encompassed the war on terror, the US – according to a statement issued by the Pentagon – has never sought to calculate a total of civilian deaths ascribed to actions under its aegis.
An email reply to Airwars from the Pentagon’s Central Command (Centcom) said that it did not have information available on the total number of civilian deaths from airstrikes.
“The information you request is not immediately on hand in our office as it spans between multiple operations/campaigns within a span of between 18 and 20 years,” Centcom said.
NIA CHARLESTOWN NEVIS (September 08, 2021) — The Hon. Spencer Brand, Minister of Physical Planning on Nevis, gave contractors on the island an opportunity to discuss the Building Contractors Registration and Regulation Bill, 2021 which had its first reading in the Nevis Island Assembly on July 13, 2021.
Addressing a number of local contractors at a consultation–hosted by the Department of Physical Planning and the Nevis Island Administration’s (NIA) Legal Department at the St. Paul’s Anglican Church Hall on September 07, 2021–the minister underscored the importance of the bill which is designed to ultimately provide a better quality of service to consumers.
“I have…no intention of depriving anyone from earning a living but I feel that there must be a systematic approach for anyone who wants to ply their trade in this very important industry. I believe that it would offer protection for you as a contractor, as an electrician, as a plumber but it would also offer for you the opportunity to expand, to grow and to find yourselves, as it were, taking on larger and much more meaningful projects.
“At the end of this consultation, I hope that we can go to parliament with this legislation and have unanimous support for it, for the benefit and the development of our island because from where I sit, that is what I am all about, to see this develop, to see Nevis progress, to see Nevis advance, and I have a feeling that you who are in this construction sector have and will have a critical role to play,” he said.
Mr. Brand who has a background in architecture, said he had always seen the need for improving the sector, and the time had come for the contractors to contribute to the Bill.
“I believe that the construction sector on the island of Nevis must be taken to a different level, and when I became in that position to give some direction to the sector, I felt that the time was right to bring this piece of legislation for the island of Nevis… I want to say to the contractors, I want you basically to take ownership of this legislation…
“I felt that if we were to pass a piece of legislation that will have far-reaching and wide-ranging impact on such an important sector that there must be consultation. I believe that we are at that stage where we will have that consultation…and we want to have that honest conversation because at the end of the day it is for your benefit,” he said.
The Physical Planning Minister also explained that with new technologies and new methods of construction, and a sector which continues to be dynamic and innovative he does not want to see the local contractors left behind. He urged them to be open and honest during the session.
He expressed hope that in the end there would be a piece of legislation that can work seamlessly with the Department of Physical Planning, the banking sector and the ministry for the benefit of contractors and for the development of Nevis.
Among those present at the consultation were Mr. Denzil Stanley, Principal Assistant Secretary in the Ministry of Communication and Works, who chaired the consultation; Mr. De-Jono Liburd, Legal Counsel at the Legal Department; Mrs. Rhonda Nisbett-Brown, Senior Legal Counsel at the Legal Department; Mrs. Hélène Anne Lewis, Legal Advisor in the Nevis Island Administration; Mr. Raoul Pemberton, Director of the Department of Physical Planning; and Mr. Jevon Williams, Director of the Public Works Department.
Anthony Gajor, an aspiring Nevisian and the Head of Marketing and Corporate Finance at Hamilton Reserve Bank (https://hrbank.com/)was approved by Malaysian regulators to serve as a board member of Fintech Bank Ltd (www.fibank.com), a leading Malaysia-licensed commercial bank based in Labuan and Kuala Lumpur in Southeast Asia.
According to the World Bank, Malaysia is a British Commonwealth nation and the world’s 36th largest economy with a population of 32 million and USD400 billion in annual GDP (Gross Domestic Product). Malaysia is widely recognized and broadly respected as a highly sophisticated, forward-looking financial hub that embraces diversity, entrepreneurship, efficiency, and innovation.
Anthony Gajor, A Rising Star in Nevis
Anthony Gajor is the first and only Nevisian in recent St. Kitts and Nevis history who has been approved of such a prominent international position. At age 27, many in the Federation’s business circles view the well-spoken Mr. Gajor as a rising star in business and perhaps someday in politics.
Mr. Gajor grew up in Nevis and graduated from the University of New Haven in Connecticut, USA. Armed with a bachelor’s degree in Business Management with a minor in accounting, he joined Hamilton Reserve Bank as a private banking executive. A year later, through hard work and exceptional job performance, Mr. Gajor was promoted to lead the bank’s marketing and corporate finance departments in Nevis, rising to the position of Managing Director overseeing the relevant departments. He was also named a member of Hamilton Reserve Bank’s Government Policy Group, which advises the bank’s worldwide leadership on local cultures and business practices in Nevis. Giving back to the Nevis community, Mr. Gajor serves on the board of Nevis Historical & Conservation Society (NHCS), a non-profit, non-governmental organization that strives to protect the cultural heritage of Nevis, including operating the world-renowned Alexander Hamilton Museum in Charlestown.
Excels in the International Markets
“The banking regulators’ approval of Anthony Gajor as a board member of the fully licensed Fintech Bank is a general endorsement of Mr. Gajor’s character and capabilities,” said Prabhakar Kaza, CEO of Hamilton Reserve Bank. “With his experience, deep roots, and upbringing in Nevis, Mr. Gajor meets the high regulatory review standards in Malaysia for ethics and professional qualifications to function effectively as a ‘fit and proper’ person to lead a bank.”
“Fintech Bank anticipates onboarding at least one million new customers in the next twelve months through collaboration with Hamilton Reserve Bank,” said Gavin Lim, a fellow Fintech Bank board member who is based in Malaysia. “Mr. Gajor will serve as a natural ‘bridge of knowledge’ to advise both of our institutions.”
“We are proud of Anthony Gajor’s success as one of the most promising banking executives in St. Kitts and Nevis. It is a great accomplishment to be approved by a well-informed, well-respected, large financial jurisdiction such as Malaysia,” said Sir Tony Baldry, a member of the UK’s Privy Council and Chairman of Hamilton Reserve Bank. “We believe Anthony Gajor is among the most talented executives that Nevis has to offer. As a matter of bank policy, Hamilton Reserve Bank welcomes all ambitious Kittitians and Nevisians to join the bank’s executive bench.”
Currently More than 30 Job Openings at Hamilton Reserve Bank
As the largest global bank in the entire region, Hamilton Reserve Bank employs more than 100 people worldwide, and the bank is rapidly expanding. To support its growth, the bank is on a hiring spree for its sprawling 13-acre Nevis headquarters in Jessups.
“Our goal is to hire more than 30 new staff to join our marketing and operations team here in Nevis,” said Howard Anthony Lewis, Hamilton Reserve Bank’s country leader and Senior Risk Officer. “Hamilton Reserve Bank serves customers around the globe. We would love to see more Kittitians and Nevisians joining the bank regardless of a person’s age or educational background. The bank offers many benefits such as competitive salaries, free health insurance, and daily free lunch prepared by the bank’s gourmet chef.”
With his latest success, Anthony Gajor’s world will likely get a lot bigger than the borders of St. Kitts and Nevis.
“Anthony Gajor will travel around the world to meet with Hamilton Reserve Bank’s global clientele,” said Antonio Kenyatta, Hamilton Reserve Bank’s Chief Financial Officer, who isa former investment banking executive at Goldman Sachs and JP Morgan on Wall Street. “Hamilton Reserve Bank has many job openings here in Nevis. It is our policy to help advance the careers of Kittitian and Nevisians. We would love to develop more executives from the Federation.”
Anthony Gajor’s success is felt closely at home. The Gajor family name is well-known among many Nevisians. Mr. Gajor is a Nevis Sixth Form College alum and a Charlestown Secondary High School graduate. His mother Sherry Gajor is a successful cosmetologist and hairstylist in Nevis. His beloved grandfather Joseph Gajor is a serial entrepreneur who has founded several companies.
“I am so happy for Anthony’s achievement. From a very young age, he has had a determined mind to succeed,” Ms. Gajor said. “Anthony wants to pursue a career in Nevis rather than the U.S. where he has declined several job offers because he felt greater opportunities exist in Nevis. I am sure his late grandmother Sylvia Parris would have been very proud of him. We are grateful he is growing with Hamilton Reserve Bank to see a big world out there. Nevis can do a lot more for our young people. They all just need to be given a chance to try their wings.”
With his beloved mother by his side, Anthony Gajor is excited about taking on a new world of opportunities.
“No matter where I travel to in the world, and no matter what I will do with my life, whether in business or perhaps running for public office someday, Nevis is where my heart is. Nevis is home, and I am always a proud Nevisian.”
About Anthony Gajor
Mr. Anthony Gajor was raised in Nevis. He has extensive experience in marketing, banking, business development, and corporate finance. He started his career as a Benefits Consultant and Licensed Health Insurance Agent at Aflac, one of the largest insurance companies in the United States. He was the former Business Development Manager of a leading St. Kitts & Nevis fintech firm, where he oversaw client relationships, business development, and executive management. While in banking, Mr. Gajor provides direct leadership in marketing, corporate finance, and private banking, advising strategic discussions with global partners while serving a sizeable ultra-high-net-worth clientele. As an executive member of the Government Policy Group at Hamilton Reserve Bank, Mr. Gajor advises the Bank on government policies. Mr. Gajor is a Nevis Historical and Conservation Society board member, the Trustee of the world-renowned Alexander Hamilton Museum. He is also a board member of Fintech Bank Ltd, a duly licensed commercial bank headquartered in Malaysia. The Malaysian banking regulators fully approved Mr. Gajor’s board position. Mr. Gajor graduated from the University of New Haven with a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Management and a minor in Accounting.
Learn more about Hamilton Reserve Bank at: https://hrbank.com/
Police Officers of The Royal St. Christopher and Nevis Police Force have been able to remove several illegal firearms and ammunition from communities around the Federation as a result of the operations they execute regularly.
For the year so far, they have conducted hundreds of searches on derelict vehicles and empty lots of land, in addition to over 1,000 searches on abandoned houses. Such exercises are just a few of the overall operations conducted by the Officers at the various Police Stations and units throughout the Federation. They also routinely carry out vehicle check points (VCPs), execute warrants and make arrests, among other things.
On September 03, 2021, while conducting a VCP at the South East Peninsula, Police Officers stopped and searched a motor car and its occupants. One (1) Taurus G2C 9mm pistol, two (2) magazines and ten (10) 9mm rounds were found in the bag of one of the persons in the vehicle. The items were taken into police custody along with the occupants of the vehicle.
On August 20, 2021, a search on an empty lot of land at Ponds Pasture resulted in one (1) High Point C9 9mm pistol with eight (8) 9mm rounds and one (1) magazine containing nine (9) 9mm rounds being taken into custody. Prior to that, a search on an abandoned building at East Park Range resulted in one (1) pistol magazine containing two (2) .40 rounds of ammunition being taken into custody.
To date, these finds have brought the total number of illegal firearms seized by the Police to eight (8).
Notwithstanding the additional duties brought on by the response to the COVID-19 pandemic and the support they provide to the Ministry of Health when requested, the Officers have been able to continue playing their part to keep illegal firearms and ammunition off the streets of St. Kitts and Nevis.
The Guyana government is rejecting the agreement signed by the Heads of Delegation of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela and the Unity Platform of Venezuela, uniting the country’s claim to Guyana’s Essequibo.
In a terse statement on Wednesday morning, the Government of Guyana through its Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that the agreement which was reportedly signed in Mexico on September 6, 2021, is “an overt threat to the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Guyana.”
“Guyana cannot be used as an altar of sacrifice for settlement of Venezuela’s internal political differences,” the Ministry of Foreign Affairs statement said as it added that while the Government of Guyana welcomes domestic accord within Venezuela, “an agreement defying international law and process is not a basis for mediating harmony.”
The border controversy between Guyana and Venezuela is “properly before the International Court of Justice and will remain there for a peaceful resolution,” Guyana has maintained.
Venezuela in its agreement rejects the International Court of Justice’s declaration of jurisdiction over the issue, and its urging of Guyana to engage in direct negotiations.
Under this agreement, the two sides unite on the decades-old claim to “Guyana’s Essequibo.”
This territory includes several oil exploration rigs which are currently producing some 120,000 (barrels a day) of crude from the Stabroek block.
In Guyana, President Mohamed Irfaan Ali is yet to meet with Opposition Leader Joseph Harmon on this and many other issues of national interests.
The President has called on the Opposition Leader to recognise him and his government has legitimately elected.
The US, which leads the world in COVID cases and deaths, is warning its citizens not to travel to Jamaica because of the current Virus wave there.
The third wave of COVID-19 causing a breakdown of Jamaica’s healthcare sector, and the United States’ top public health agency, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has warned Americans not to travel to the island.
Jamaica is now among the highest-risk COVID-19 destinations in the world for travelers, according to the CDC’s travel advisories list, which was updated on September 7th. Also on the high-risk list is Sri Lanka and the nation of Brunei on the island of Borneo.
With the new “Level 4: Covid-19 Very High” notice, the CDC stated, “avoid travel to Jamaica. If you must travel to Jamaica, make sure you are fully vaccinated before travel.” Level 4 is the highest COVID-19 ranking.
The CDC categorizes countries on the Level 4 list of they have had more than 500 cases per 100,000 residents in the past 28 days.
Jamaica, which has a population of roughly 3 million people, had over 20,000 cases for the month of August – close to 700 cases per 100,000 residents. In the first five days of September, the country had over 3,500 new cases compared to 3,081 for the entire month of July.
But despite the warning, the Ministry of Tourism said they are not panicking.
“We are joining roughly 80 other countries including many of our Caribbean neighbors. We have been here before and Americans still come. Our Resilient Corridor remains very safe. Hopefully, once we get a hold of our [COVID-19] numbers, we will be better categorized like before,” said Delano Seiveright, senior advisor in Jamaica’s Ministry of Tourism.
The United States isn’t the only country that has advised against travel to Jamaica.
Last week, the Foreign Office (FCDO) warned travelers in the United Kingdom not to travel to Jamaica due to a rise in COVID-19 cases. The FCDO updated its guidance last Saturday to advise against all non-essential travel to Jamaica. As a result, TUI, one of UK’s largest tour operators, canceled all flights to the island until September 11.
How much?: The White House is asking for $6.4 billion through a continuing resolution to fund ongoing efforts to get allies and other vulnerable Afghans out of the country.
What would it do?: A senior administration official said those funds would be used to help bring 65,000 Afghans to the U.S. by the end of September as well as another 30,000 who may come over the course of the next year.
“The majority of the funds requested are for DOD and State to support overseas sites, like Ramstein in Germany, and sites in the United States as well as transportation for allies and partners between those overseas sites and the United States,” the official said on the call, referring to the departments of Defense and State.
The senior administration official said the funding would also be used to continue to house Afghans who arrive in the U.S. — often at military bases — before they are connected with various resettlement agencies.
In for the long haul: The funding indicates that so-called lily pad sites, overseas bases used to house evacuated Afghans as they await vetting to enter the U.S., will be operational for months on end.
The official said the funding for the overseas sites “shows the commitment to continue that work to ensure that we have the facilities that will be necessary so that individuals who do continue to depart from Afghanistan have certain locations to which to go for the same process that those already evacuated have gone through, including the critical step of security screening and vetting.”
The details: The funding request includes $2.4 billion for Defense Department bases and personnel while $1.3 billion would go to the State Department for its resettlement efforts.
Also included in the request is $815 million for the U.S. Agency for International Development to provide humanitarian assistance funding and $1.7 billion for the Department of Health and Human Services to provide refugee services.
As of last week, there were nearly 40,000 evacuated Afghans waiting abroad to enter the U.S. Those in Qatar have complained about the extreme heat, as well as a limited number of bathroom facilities.
Emergency funding appeal nearly tripled to reach people affected by the earthquake and violence in Haiti.
PORT-AU-PRINCE / PANAMA CITY, 7 September 2021 – UNICEF is urgently seeking US$122.2 million to meet the humanitarian needs of 1.6 million people including 800,000 children in Haiti. This new appeal is nearly three times higher than the original emergency funding requested for Haiti at the start of the year.
“Haiti is facing one of its most complex humanitarian crises in recent years,” said UNICEF Haiti Representative Bruno Maes. “Before the earthquake, children were already suffering from high rates of malnutrition, displacement caused by gang-related violence and the secondary impacts of COVID-19. But right now, the humanitarian needs of Haitian children are more acute than ever as entire families have lost everything, including houses, schools, access to water and health facilities. Many human lives depend on how much humanitarian aid we will be able to provide – and how quickly.”
On 14 August 2021, a 7.2 magnitude earthquake hit the southwestern departments of Sud, Grand’ Anse, and Nippes, compounded on 16 August by heavy rains from tropical depression Grace. Over 2,200 people died, 12,200 people were injured, and 130,000 homes destroyed, putting thousands of people in urgent need of assistance. These disasters struck Haiti as the country was reeling from the assassination on 7 July of President Jovenel Moïse and an escalation of gang violence that displaced 19,000 people and affected 1.5 million people.
The Humanitarian Needs Overview (HNO) released in March 2021 estimated that 4.4 million people were food insecure, 217,000 children suffered from global acute malnutrition, and 2.95 million people, including 1.2 million children and 400,000 pregnant women and adolescent girls, required emergency health care. The effects of the recent earthquake are expected to further exacerbate these vulnerabilities.
UNICEF’s priority is to respond to urgent needs:
The health systems in the three departments affected by the earthquake face challenges in meeting growing health needs, while maintaining access to life-saving health and nutrition services, including maternal and child health care.
With thousands of displaced people sleeping in the open and water and sanitation infrastructure suffering extensive damage, vulnerable populations are increasingly exposed to the risks of waterborne diseases and acute respiratory infections, including COVID-19.
Over the past two years, more than 3 million children could not attend school for months at a time, due to political and security challenges, as well as COVID-19 related lockdowns. In earthquake affected areas, preliminary assessments led by the Ministry of Education indicate hundreds of schools had either been destroyed or heavily damaged, affecting an estimated 100,000 children. “As schools open this September in Haiti, it will be a big challenge for thousands of children to resume their education in the earthquake-struck regions. Along with the Ministry of Education, our teams on the ground are working against the clock to install temporary learning spaces. Children and teachers need equipment, materials and psychosocial support to overcome the traumatic experiences they have been through,” Maes said.
At the onset of the earthquake, UNICEF delivered essential medical supplies to the main hospitals in the south to reach 30,000 people over two months. UNICEF has also already provided clean water and hygiene and sanitation items to over 108,000 affected women and children.
In response to the earthquake, UNICEF is requesting a total of US$122.2 million to scale up its emergency interventions in Haiti this year. So far, less than 32 per cent of this required funding has been received
Alongside its partners and the Government of Haiti, UNICEF is planning to provide humanitarian assistance to communities affected by the recent earthquake and other vulnerable populations across the country, including:
114,000 children with severe or moderate acute malnutrition treated and 62,000 primary caregivers receiving infant and young child feeding counselling
251,000 children and women accessing primary healthcare in UNICEF-supported facilities, 35,000 children under the age of 1 vaccinated against measles, 37,000 pregnant women attending at least two prenatal visits, and 3,000 health workers trained in infection prevention and control (IPC)and provided with personal protective equipment (PPE).
692,000 people accessing safe water for drinking, cooking and personal hygiene and following handwashing behaviour change programmes, 278,000 people using adequate sanitation facilities and 690,000 people being able to face shocks through disaster preparedness activities
1.5 million people accessing safe channels to report sexual exploitation and abuse, 58,000 children and caregivers accessing mental health and psychosocial support, 40,000 women, girls and boys accessing gender-based violence risk mitigation, prevention or response interventions, and 2,650 unaccompanied and separated children being reunified with their families or provided with family-based care services
580,000 children accessing formal or non-formal education and receiving individual learning materials and earthquake-affected vulnerable households of 100,000 children receiving cash transfers for education
20,000 households being reached with humanitarian cash transfers and 95 per cent of cholera suspected cases (including ‘other acute diarrhoea’ cases) being identified and responded to within 48 hours with a complete water, sanitation, and hygiene package
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COVID-19 cases, deaths and hospitalizations skyrocketed this Labor Day in comparison to Labor Day 2020.
The Washington Post COVID-19 tracker found that hospitalizations on Labor Day in 2021 reached 99,270 individuals, up from 38,192 people in 2020.
That is a 160-percent increase in hospitalization over the past year, despite the U.S. having more than half of the country vaccinated.
Johns Hopkins University data showed there was a 316-percent increase in COVID-19 cases between the two Labor Days, USA Today reported. COVID-19 deaths were also twice as high on the federal holiday compared to last year.
What’s different: Millions of Americans have received the vaccine this year, which offers them protection. But at the same time, the delta variant has become the dominant strain in recent months, spreading more easily than previous versions of the virus.
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