WASHINGTON — Civilian casualties are a tragic and unavoidable part of war.
The Department of Defense (DoD) issued a plan last December to improve how it protects civilians from harm during U.S. military operations.
But a government watchdog says it's not enough, and more needs to be done.
At Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin's direction, the Pentagon last December established new procedures for preventing civilian harm during U.S. combat operations — spelling out responsibilities across the defense department and its military commands around the world, requiring that possible risks to civilians are considered in combat planning and operations.
The changes came in the wake of a Pulitzer Prize-winning series of reports by the New York Times which revealed hidden casualties in thousands of American military airstrikes — including missed targets, disproportionate destruction, and civilian deaths.
"When you're using deadly force in a military environment, there could well be harm to civilians, but at the same time it's important for service members to minimize that harm," said Government Accountability Office (GAO) Defense Capabilities and Management Team Director Diana Maurer, in an interview with 13 News Now.
A new GAO report, authored by Maurer, praises the DOD for actions taken to date, but she says that the Department needs to do more.
"We're going to hold DoD accountable for the two areas where we think some improvements are still called for."
The report recommended that the DoD set performance goals so officials can understand what constitutes improvement, and that the department clarifies how the plan applies to certain "non-kinetic operations," such as cyber and space ops.