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AFGHANISTAN UPDATE9 August 2007 No. 13: 2 - 8 August 2007 If you would like to receive this update, please email basic-wash at basicint.org with the phrase "subscribe to Afghanistan Update" in the subject line. Feedback on format and content is also gladly received. In particular we are keen to hear feedback of how useful you find this update. Please contact James Wilson by email at jwilson at basicint.org with comments or suggestions. Previous editions of BASIC's Afghanistan Update are available here. Summary:
The Daily Telegraph reported that NATO commanders in Afghanistan have had access to a bomb specifically designed to limit collateral damage. The bomb has been available for the past six months but "only 15" have been used in hundreds of bombing raids. This revelation comes in a week when local officials claimed that U.S. airstrikes in Helmand province left at least 18 civilians wounded. Intelligence reports have suggested that three militant leaders, including Taliban commander Mullah Rahim, were among those killed Thursday. The U.S. led coalition is yet to confirm this account. But a coalition statement said it conducted a precision airstrike against Taliban commanders in the Baghran district. The increasing number of non-combatant casualties has led one senior British commander to call for the withdrawal of U.S. military Special Forces from his area of operation in Helmand. The senior British commander, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said "The phrase is: 'It may be legal but is it appropriate?' No one is saying it is illegal to use air power, but is there any other way of doing it if there is a risk of collateral damage?" The issue of civilian casualties was one of many major talking points that heightened political tensions as President Karzai met with President Bush at Camp David on Sunday and Monday. President Karzai asserted that Afghanistan security has worsened and that the United States and its allies are not any closer to catching Osama bin Laden than they were a few years ago. Adding to the bleak security backdrop of the meeting, the Associated Press reported that the United Nations will release figures in September which will show that Afghan poppy production has risen 15 percent since 2006. Following their meeting, however, both Presidents Karzai and Bush committed to finish their battle against the Taliban. Karzai claimed the Taliban are no longer a threat to his government but acknowledged that they remain a threat to regular civilians. Although President Karzai seemed to recognize the gravity of the security situation in Afghanistan, President Bush seemed more optimistic that with "actionable intelligence" the United States could track down Al-Qaida leaders. In a visit that was intended to show solidarity in the battle against the Taliban and Al-Qaida, a rare point of divergence between the two leaders came over Iran. President Bush warned his counterpart to be more suspicious, saying the Islamic Republic was a "destabilizing force" that needed to be isolated until it abandons nuclear aspirations and becomes a "positive" influence on the region. Mr. Karzai seemed to disagree in a CNN interview broadcast Sunday when he characterized Iran as "a helper." Whilst Iran has sent workers into Afghanistan and provided aid, American officials contend that Tehran is also responsible for the increased sophistication of weapons available to insurgents in Afghanistan. On a related note, Colonel Rahmatullah Safi, head of border police for western Afghanistan, has led claims that Iranian weapons are fueling Taliban insurgency efforts in Afghanistan. Hostage crises continued as the Afghan government looked to pressure Taliban militants holding 21 South Koreans following the killing of a second hostage last Monday. The South Koreans were kidnapped on 19 July in Ghazni province, and the United States has not ruled out a possible military operation to free the hostages. However a resolution to the situation looks further away than ever. In South Korea the kidnapping situation has provoked a mixture of anger and sympathy. As the crisis enters its third week, South Korean aid missions have come under intense criticism in the Korean media for their decision to send missionaries to such a volatile region. Their captor's insistence on the release of Taliban prisoners is a demand that the Government of President Karzai is unlikely to meet, particularly following the controversial release of inmates in March in exchange for an Italian journalist. Talks between South Korean officials and the Taliban militants remain ongoing as the Taliban seek guarantees of safety from the U.N. mission in Afghanistan. The Taliban militants had claimed earlier this week that some of the 18 women in the group were seriously ill. Reports suggest that in response to rebel demands, Afghan doctors have dropped $1,200 worth of antibiotics, painkillers, vitamin tablets and heart pills in a desert area in Ghazni province. Meanwhile the bodies of four kidnapped judges abducted in July have been discovered south of Kabul, raising further concerns for the South Korean hostages. A second engineer and four Afghans also remain missing after their kidnapping in Wardak Province. In other news, two civilians have been killed following a suicide car bomb attack west of Kandahar city Friday. The blast destroyed three shops and left four others wounded. In another incident, a group of 75 Taliban militants attempted to overrun a U.S. led coalition base in Uruzgan province. Direct attacks on U.S. or NATO bases have been relatively few and the attack left more than 20 militants dead. James Wilson
Stories and Links: Cameron sees Afghanistan forces, The Guardian, 02/08
Taken Hostage, The Times, 02/08 Pakistan urges UK to pull out of Afghanistan, The Daily
Telegraph, 03/08 A clash of faiths; Korean Christians and the Taliban, The
Economist, 04/08 10 militants, 4 Pakistani soldiers killed in shootout near Afghan
border, International Herald Tribune, 04/08 Afghan doctors deliver medicine for Korean hostages, Reuters,
05/08 Afghan victory 'could take 38 years', The Observer,
05/08 British Make Initial Gains Against Taliban, The New York
Times, 05/08 Britain presses US on top Afghan role, The Guardian,
06/08 Afghan-Pakistani Parley Seeks Unity Against Extremism, The
Washington Post, 08/08
Editorials, Transcripts and Reports: Bolstering the Gains in Afghan Health Care, The Washington
Post, 04/08 Running Out of Time, Patience in Afghanistan, The Boston Globe, 08/08 http://www.boston.com/news/world/asia/articles/2007/08/08/running_out_of_time_patience_in_afghanistan |
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