General: German troops acted ‘appropriately’ in seeking air strike on 2 hijacked trucks

German troops were OK in calling for air strike

BERLIN — A top general with the German army says the decision to call in an air strike on a pair of hijacked tanker trucks in Afghanistan was appropriate and that the final death toll in the incident has not been confirmed.

Gen. Wolfgang Scheniderhan, who is the general inspector of the Bundeswehr, or German army, told reporters Thursday he had read the report that was prepared on the Sept. 4 incident. A German colonel called in an air strike against the tanker trucks, fearful that insurgents would use them to mount a suicide attack on his troops near Kunduz.

Schneiderhan said the report, prepared by NATO, was classified but “according to my evaluation, the air strike was appropriate.”