Stick with Understanding Government on the underreported issue of whether five or 90 civilians died from an Aug. 22 U.S. airstrike in western Afghanistan. The latest is that Zalmay Khalilzad, the U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, said death figures are hard to determine in "the fog of war." The Washington Post’s Colum Lynch reports that Khalilzad urged an investigative coalition between the U.S., U.N. and Afghanistan government.

U.S. military officials contend five civilians died from an errant airstrike. But the U.N. and Afghanistan government maintain the number is 90 — including 60 children. It’s good that Khalilzad has finally spoken up about the problem. But it may also lead to further estrangement with Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai, who has called for a U.S. military code of conduct in Afghanistan. There have long been rumors that Khalilzad, born in Afghanistan, is gunning for Karzai’s job.-MB

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