Nor am I justifying the act as one which comports with Christian ethics. The State is a subchristian institution whose divinely ordained daily essential actions, by necessity, are fundamentally incompatible with Christian ethics. Necessary, even imperative, actions like capital punishment and waging war contradict the core Christian ethical requirements. There is no Godly blessing to be pronounced over the killing of fellow humans. There is no strand of New Testament teaching or slivers of proof-text verses that put a Christian stamp of approval upon war.
War is hell.
War is of the devil. And anyone who thinks that there are or can be rules for the civilized, organized, lethal infliction of deadly force is delusional. The object of war is the utter annihilation and destruction of the enemy. War crimes and crimes against humanity are what the victors charge against the losers. But I digress.