UN reports 364 civilian deaths in Ukraine as of March 6. There were 7,206 civilians killed in Afghanistan between 2018 and 2019, according to the UN, while the US was a warring party. Let's not pretend there isn't extreme selectivity in the official outrage over civilian deaths
There could've been 10x or 20x that many civilian deaths in Afghanistan -- where the US was waging an intense aerial bombardment campaign and propping up the corrupt Afghan military -- and it still wouldn't have received even a fraction of the outrage now being devoted to Ukraine
Main reason: the usual distortions of US hegemony. And I don't play this card often, but I do think straight-up racism is a significant factor. There has never been anything close to this level of outrage over the 7-year civilian catastrophe in Yemen aided and abetted by the US
Granted -- if it serves the interests of US hegemony, civilian suffering among non-white populations can certainly attract a fair degree of attention. So I wouldn't overstate the case. But it would be delusional to deny that race plays a role in whose suffering is prioritized
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