Afghan baby died in digger combat

Published 12 May 2008 11:27
Updated 12 May 2008 13:57

| By Peter Veness

Grenade concussion may have killed a baby found dead after a battle between Australian soldiers and Taliban insurgents in Afghanistan, says a defence department inquiry.

No cause of death was established because the baby, no older than six months, was buried quickly in accordance with Afghan custom.

Australian Private Luke Worsley and a teenage girl were also among those who died in the battle last November.

An inquiry into the deaths says the baby could have been killed by the concussion of exploding grenades.

"Having regard to the lack of apparent external injuries one could speculate that concussion from grenades may have caused internal injuries that led to death," inquiry head Colonel Peter Short wrote.

"While obviously extremely regrettable that a baby should die in combat I find that the actions of those people engaging the Australian forces ... were deliberate with the almost certain knowledge that the baby was in that area."

Col Short says the use of grenades by Australians was "justified".

He did not suggest the possible concussion-related death of the baby was caused by Australian grenades.

The baby appeared to have been in a room of a mud hut from which a male and a female combatant, firing AK-47s, engaged Australian troops.

Acting defence chief Ken Gillespie on Monday defended the Diggers' actions.

"Our troops take all reasonable steps to ensure that its engagement with Taliban extremists does not put the lives of civilians or non-combatants in jeopardy," Lieutenant General Gillespie told reporters.

The infant was moved "out of the road" by an Australian soldier, he said.

"When soldiers started to clear the village they discovered the baby in one of the rooms where there had been combat.

"At that time the baby was crying, the soldiers who cleared the room picked the child up.

"There was no evidence of a wound or blood or any of that sort of thing in the clothing that the child was wrapped in.

"The soldiers placed the baby out of the road, in the room, so it was out of harm's way, but when they came back to do the final clearance of the building before they left it was clear the baby had died."

The second civilian killed was a teenage girl, who was inside a room from which a machine gun had fired on Australian troops.

Lt Gen Gillespie praised Private Worsley, saying his actions during the battle prevented further casualties.

"Private Worsley's actions in identifying a significant threat, informing his team mates and engaging the threat are assessed as playing a major role in preventing further Australian casualties during the incident," Lt Gen Gillespie said.

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