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Pakistan warns Afghanistan to show restraint
By MIRWAIS KHAN and PATRICK QUINN | Associated Press
KANDAHAR, Afghanistan (AP) — Pakistan warned Afghanistan on Tuesday that it would not be responsible for the consequences if a border spat between the two countries escalated further, even as hundreds of Afghans rallied in a southern city to protest the latest incidents along their country's frontier.
The Pakistani warning came one day after Afghanistan lodged a similar protest with Islamabad, blaming its neighbor for a spate of shootouts near the boundary.
Afghanistan had claimed Monday that its forces were fired on in the Goshta district of Afghanistan's eastern Nangarhar province, the same place where a firefight between Afghan and Pakistani forces left an Afghan border policeman dead and two Pakistani soldiers wounded last week.
Relations between the two neighbors have been severely strained in recent months, and the mountainous region in eastern Afghanistan where the shootings occurred has seen acrimonious exchanges between the two sides over the demarcation of their border.
The Pakistani protest, made to Afghanistan's charge d'affairs in Islamabad, described Monday's incident as an "unprovoked fire incident" that resulted in the wounding of five Pakistani soldiers.
A Pakistani statement said the Afghan diplomat was told that "in case of any further escalation as a result of this situation, the responsibility would be on the Afghan government."
It added that in Monday's incident "Pakistan security forces exercised maximum restraint."
"Pakistan feels that repetition of unprovoked firing incidents are adversely affecting the friendly relations between the two brotherly countries which have covered a long distance in building trust and understanding in the recent years," the statement said.
Although Afghanistan's national security forces have swelled to nearly 352,000 in recent years, their size is tiny compared to a Pakistani military that is one of the 10 biggest in the world.
Earlier, hundreds of men marched through downtown Kandahar chanting "Death to Pakistan" and "Death to the ISI," a reference to Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence, the country's spy agency.
The demonstrators, who dispersed peacefully after the march, were protesting the two shooting incidents along the frontier.
In the first incident last week, a border gate built by Pakistan was damaged in the fighting. Afghan officials say the second exchange started Monday when Afghan border police told Pakistani forces to stop repairing the gate, sparking a firefight that ended two hours later with a cease-fire.
Pakistan claims the facility is on its territory. But Afghanistan does not recognize the disputed Durand Line, the 19th century demarcation between present-day Afghanistan and Pakistan as its border. Pakistan accepts the line as the boundary between the two sides.
Insurgencies in both nations have also contributed to deteriorating relations.
Both countries have accused each other of providing shelter for militants fighting on the other side of the border, and Afghan officials have claimed Pakistan has tried to torpedo peace talks with the Taliban.
In domestic violence, insurgents placed a bomb on a police vehicle in the Khan Abad district of eastern Kunar province, killing two police officers and wounding five — including two civilians. District chief Hayatullha Amiri said the bomb was attached to the police pickup truck using a magnet.
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Amir Shah and Patrick Quinn contributed from Kabul.
Afghans hold anti-Pakistan demonstration to protest border incidents
Associated Press May 7, 2013
Kandahar, Afghanistan - Hundreds of Afghans rallied in a southern city on Tuesday to protest the latest incidents along their country’s border with Pakistan, blaming the neighboring nation for a spate of shootouts near the boundary.
Hundreds of men marched through downtown Kandahar chanting “Death to Pakistan” and “Death to the ISI,” a reference to Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence, the country’s spy agency.
The demonstrators, who dispersed peacefully after the march, were protesting two shooting incidents, one on Monday and one last week that resulted in the death of an Afghan border policeman and the wounding of two Pakistan troops.
Relations between the two neighbors have been severely strained in recent months, and the mountainous region in eastern Afghanistan where the shootings occurred has seen acrimonious exchanges between the two sides over the demarcation of their border.
Afghanistan on Monday filed an official protest with Pakistan after its forces allegedly came under fire earlier that day along a contested stretch of their border.
Kabul’s Foreign Ministry said no one was wounded in the incident, which occurred in the Goshta district of Afghanistan’s eastern Nangarhar province, the same place where a firefight between Afghan and Pakistani forces killed an Afghan border policeman and wounded two Pakistani soldiers last week.
During that incident, a border gate built by Pakistan was damaged in the fighting. According to Afghan officials, Monday’s incident took place when Afghan border police told Pakistani forces to stop repairing the gate and a two-hour firefight ensued before a cease-fire was called.
Pakistan claims the facility is on its territory. But Afghanistan does not recognize the disputed Durand Line, the 19th century demarcation between present-day Afghanistan and Pakistan as its border. Pakistan accepts the line as the boundary between the two sides.
Insurgencies in both nations have also contributed to deteriorating relations.
Both countries have accused each other of providing shelter for militants fighting on the other side of the border, and Afghan officials have claimed Pakistan has tried to torpedo peace talks with the Taliban.
Pakistan summons Afghan envoy over "unprovoked firing incident"
ISLAMABAD, May 7 (Xinhua) -- Pakistan on Tuesday summoned Afghan Charge d'Affaires and lodged a formal protest over the firing of Afghan forces which injured at least five soldiers, said the country's Foreign Ministry.
Tensions escalated between the two uneasy neighbors over cross- border shelling in recent weeks that has overshadowed their cooperation for the much-needed peace and reconciliation process.
"The Afghan Charge d'Affaires was summoned to the Foreign Office today for conveying protest of the Government of Pakistan on repetition of an unprovoked firing incident that took place on May 6, 2013, from the Afghan posts on the Pakistani Gursal post," a Foreign Ministry statement said.
The statement said five Frontier Constabulary soldiers got injured as a result of the unprovoked firing incident.
"As in the past, Pakistan security forces exercised maximum restraint and communicated first to the Afghan side about repetition of this serious violation through military channels," the statement said.
The statement said that the Afghan Charge d'Affaires was conveyed Pakistan's serious concern and asked to advise relevant authorities in Afghanistan to avoid repetition of such unprovoked firing, which undermines the existing coordination mechanisms between the security forces of the two countries.
"Afghan Charge d'Affaires was also conveyed that in case of any further escalation as a result of this situation, the responsibility would be on the Afghan Government," said the ministry.
The Foreign Ministry said Pakistan feels that repetition of unprovoked firing incidents are adversely affecting the friendly relations between the two brotherly countries which have covered a long distance in building trust and understanding in the recent years.
Afghan defense ministry deny secret deal with Pakistan
Khaama Press By Meena Haseeb 07 May 2013
Afghan defense officials denied reports regarding secret deal between former Afghan defense officials with the Pakistani officials regarding border related issues.
This comes as a delegation of the Afghan lawmakers after their return from Goshta district on Monday claimed they have found evidences regarding secret deal with Pakistan.
Without elaborating furhter Afghan lawmakers claimed that the agreement was signed with Pakistan by former Afghan defense minister regarding Durand Line.
However Afghan defense ministry call the allegations as baseless and said no agreement was signed with any defense official.
Defense ministry spokesman Gen. Zahir Azimi called on the Afghan lawmakers to present evidence and documents regarding their claims.
In the meantime Afghan lawmakers delegation who returned from Goshta district following clashes between Afghan and Pakistani troops said they have achieved documents in this regard.
Afghan lawmaker Mohammad Naeem Lalai Ahmadzai who was heading the delegation in Goshta district said the concerned officials and army commanders must provide details in regards to the agreement which was signed under the supervision of Gen. Stanley McChrystal.
Mr. Ahmadzai also urged Afghan president Hamid Karzai to provide details regarding the agreement to Afghan house of representatives.
He also added that the agreement was signed between 2003 and 2004.
Hope Seen for Afghanistan After Coalition Exits
The New York Times By Alissa J. Rubin and Matthew Rosenberg May 6, 2013
Kabul, Afghanistan - Under Gen. Joseph F. Dunford Jr., the new commander of international forces here, the American-led military coalition is no longer aiming to change Afghanistan. Its focus now is on a far more narrow goal: readying Afghan forces to withstand the Taliban regardless of the country’s looming political and economic troubles.
The rest, he said in his first interview since assuming command in February, is up to the Afghans.
Perhaps unsurprisingly for someone who says he sees the glass as “half-full,” General Dunford laid out a case for why he believes Afghan forces will step up as the coalition’s long war here moves toward an official close.
He offered a far more positive take on the prospects for this country than many longtime Western officials here, and a less critical one than many of his predecessors had offered. They had emphasized that long-term stability would require faith in the Afghan government, which could be achieved only if the rampant corruption and widespread rights abuses were reined in.
In describing his goals for the Western military endgame in Afghanistan, General Dunford kept a tight focus on definable training and security benchmarks, leaving much of the politics out. He boiled it down to three fundamental questions: Will the Afghan troops be able to assume lead responsibility for military operations? Will the Afghan security forces be able to give security to the Afghan people nationwide for the presidential elections scheduled for next April? And, will the international troops be able to transfer all authority to the Afghans at the end of 2014, when the International Security Assistance Force mission ends?
“The answer is yes,” to all three questions, General Dunford said, even while readily noting that there was much work ahead to reach that level of readiness.
Referring to the growth in size and capabilities of the Afghan Army, in particular, he said: “You can accuse me of being an optimist and I’ll plead guilty. But to those people who think this can’t happen, I would just ask them to look at the last two or three years and ask them why they can’t imagine that we’ll be on the same trajectory that we’ve been on the last two or three years,” he said referring to the growth in size and capabilities of the Afghan Army, in particular.
While he acknowledged that corruption and human rights failures posed challenges, he appeared to see them as less-corrosive threats to the military mission than some of his predecessors did.
“Over time we’ll continue to see, in fits and starts, corruption,” he said. “We’ll still see predatory behavior, and the only way it’s going to be fixed is when the Afghan people demand that it be different and when Afghan leadership demands that it be different.”
Asked whether widespread perceptions about corruption in the police force could actively help the Taliban, or at least hurt the government, he answered, “This is not something that we can impose.”
Even as a fierce debate is being waged in Washington about how many troops to dedicate to the Afghan mission beyond the end of the international military mission in 2014, General Dunford, rather than weighing in publicly by making an argument for specific troop levels, has taken the tack of laying out a clearly defined picture of the areas where the Afghan military will need long-term help.
He noted several trouble spots: air support and transportation for the Afghan forces, command and control capabilities and a continuing struggle with attrition in the Afghan Army. The army loses 2 percent to 2.9 percent of its soldiers every month, according to the Pentagon’s most recent semiannual report to Congress in December. That added up to more than 54,000 soldiers from September 2011 to September 2012, out of a total force that has hovered at barely 190,000, putting great pressure on the military’s recruiting and training operations.
He has concluded as well that plans to reduce the number of Afghan security forces — the army and police combined — to 228,000 after 2015 from the current target level of 352,000 are not realistic, given the threats in the country. “The consensus now both from the Afghans and certainly from us is that we ought to sustain that for some period time to come,” said General Dunford, referring to the 352,000 head count.
What is less clear is how such a force could be paid for. The international community, led by the United States, has agreed to pay roughly $4.1 billion in aid per year for the Afghan security forces after 2014, based on estimates of what a smaller Afghan security contingent would cost. If the Afghans want to keep a larger force, they will either have to field a cheaper army and police force or come up with more money themselves to pay for it. General Dunford suggested that the Afghans could economize, although he did not give examples of where they might find the savings.
Just months into his command, his tenure has already been marked by tensions between American officials and President Hamid Karzai, who has criticized American Special Operations and intelligence missions in Afghanistan. General Dunford’s approach to working with Mr. Karzai so far has borne out his reputation as a direct and pragmatic Marine officer: While he has not gone out of his way to forge personal trust with the Afghan leader, as some predecessors did, neither has he pushed Mr. Karzai to reform.
His style was particularly visible when Mr. Karzai demanded that all Western forces leave Wardak Province after Afghan civilians were abused by irregular Afghan forces operating under Western supervision. Instead, General Dunford agreed to withdraw the Special Operations forces from the district where the problems occurred and transfer training responsibilities there to the Afghans. He satisfied Mr. Karzai, but left intact much of the security structure in the turbulent province.
As Afghan forces increasingly take the lead in combat operations this year, General Dunford cast it as an opportunity for the Afghan government to prove to Afghans that it is defending them and to show the Taliban that now they are fighting fellow Muslims and countrymen, he said.
The Taliban will make every effort, in his words, “to create the perception of insecurity.” And he warned that the Haqqani group, a well-organized and financed branch of the insurgency in Pakistan’s ungoverned tribal areas, remained “one of the most virulent strains in the insurgency.”
Still, he said he believed this year’s fighting season would be a turning point: “I think the Taliban are going to come out of the gate and they are going to run into a brick wall — and that brick wall is not going to be the coalition, it’s going to be the Afghan security forces.”
Afghan cop killed in bombing at Kunduz bazaar
KUNDUZ, Afghanistan, May 7 (Xinhua) -- At least one policeman was killed and two others wounded in explosion in Khan Abad district of northern Afghan province of Kunduz Tuesday morning, a local official said.
"The initial reports say that an improvised bomb was detonated through a remote control device at the district bazaar at about 10: 15 local time when a police vehicle was running through the area, causing the casualties," the district governor Hayatullah Amiri told Xinhua.
The official also said the wounded policemen who sustained severe injuries were shifted to a district hospital.
The police vehicle was also destroyed in the attack, he added.
Police are trying to keep people from gathering at the scene for fears that there might be a second blast.
No group has claimed responsibility for the attack so far.
The Taliban, fighting an insurgency of more than one decade, has intensified attacks since late last month when they launched an annual rebel offensive against Afghan and about 100,000 NATO- led forces stationed in the country.
The Taliban also urged civilians to stay away from official gatherings, military convoys and centers regarded as the legitimate targets by militants besides warning people not to support the government and foreign troops.
In remote Afghan district, the roots of insurgency are local
Dialogue with Taliban fighters has given way to an escalating conflict that has taken dozens of lives and displaced hundreds in Badakhshan province.
Global Post By Chris Sands May 6, 2013
Faizabad, Afghanistan - More than a year after the Taliban issued a set of demands for the Afghan government in northeast Afghanistan's Warduj district, this once-peaceful area is now wracked by violence.
Back then, a page of lined paper with neat, blue handwriting was passed on to the local representatives of a national peace initiative and signed by the local Taliban leader, Qari Fasihuddin. If Islamic scholars could prove that a “jihad” against “the infidels” was not a religious obligation, the fight against NATO would stop, the note said.
Insurgents would leave alone members of the national army and police, whom assumed security responsibilities in this area from NATO last year, if they agreed to a truce. If these terms were not accepted, security should be handed over to the insurgents and all Taliban prisoners from Badakhshan, the province to which Warduj belongs, released.
But now, dialogue with the fighters has given way to an escalating conflict that has taken dozens of lives and at one stage displaced hundreds in a strategically important province where violence was scarce, and where the origins and motives of the insurgency are unclear.
“They had some conditions and these conditions were not accepted,” the chairman of the High Peace Council in Badakhshan, Qazi Sadullah Abu Aman, said of the Taliban in Warduj district. “Therefore, they were encouraged to fight.”
Like the majority of Afghans interviewed for this article, Abu Aman spoke to GlobalPost in the provincial capital, Faizabad, northwest of Warduj. But the peace council member met with 12 insurgents in Warduj district months before the letter outlining their demands was written as part of a negotiation team to end the discord.
The tension in Warduj reached a boiling point in March when Taliban rebels ambushed and kidnapped Afghan soldiers on a resupply mission. Insurgents are then reported to have executed 16 of the captives.
Soon after, the Afghan government launched a major offensive in the area and that included NATO air support. The government claims scores of Taliban were killed, and that the situation is now improving — with the militants on the run and confined to local mountain hideouts.
But Wahiduddin Arghon, who runs the Badakhshan office of the Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission, visited Warduj in mid-March to witness the impact of the operation first-hand.
He told GlobalPost that more than 200 people had fled to the district center due to the unrest. The government offered them basic assistance like blankets, tents and food — but on the condition they agreed to move to a neighboring district.
When the refugees insisted they wanted to return to their own villages, officials “decided that if they give them these materials maybe they would hand them over to the enemies” and the aid was withheld, Arghon said. An Afghan official told him residents had been going to the Taliban rather than the government to solve any community disputes.
But when the Taliban ruled Afghanistan from 1996 to 2001, Warduj was among large parts of Badakshan province that stayed out of their reach.
Badakhshan province — the majority of which remains relatively calm — shares borders with Tajikistan, Pakistan and China, making it strategically and economically important.
The mountains and caves of Warduj are a traditional stronghold of Jamiat-e Islami, one of the main parties in the anti-Soviet resistance and a key contributor to the Northern Alliance movement that fought the Taliban regime.
Opponents of the Taliban today claim the problems in Warduj are actually linked to a construction project designed to connect Faizabad to China via a paved highway. This would open up a lucrative new trade route and has caused speculation that the militants, backed by Pakistan, are trying to undermine the work.
But others say disillusionment with the local government is believed to be a factor behind the insurgency here.
“Poverty, injustice, oppression and corruption have caused people to rise up [and join the Taliban],” Abu Aman said.
“If [the government] had dealt with this through the window of peace there would be no issue,” he said. “But they are always doing operations and the operations are all failures.”
Abu Aman claims Fasihuddin — a young, ethnic Tajik believed to be the Taliban’s shadow governor for the province — first took up arms because local security forces were harassing religious scholars.
Fasihuddin’s brother, Mawlawi Mohammad Amin, was killed by foreign troops last year. One rumor circulating here is that the troops then let dogs tear the body to pieces, angering him further.
Indeed, many people in Badakshan say former policemen from Warduj district have joined the insurgency because of the local police chief’s allegedly abusive behavior against both junior officers and the local population.
Mawlawi Fazlullah Hanif is a former member of the Taliban now involved in dialogue with the insurgents here. Last year he also visited Fasihuddin for talks, but he believes the government has still not showed it is serious about negotiations.
"There was war in Warduj and just the district police used 30,000 bullets,” he said. "How can peace rise among us?"
Afghan defense ministry deny secret deal with Pakistan
By MEENA HASEEB - 07 May 2013, 11:00 am Khaama Press
Afghan defense officials denied reports regarding secret deal between former Afghan defense officials with the Pakistani officials regarding border related issues.
This comes as a delegation of the Afghan lawmakers after their return from Goshta district on Monday claimed they have found evidences regarding secret deal with Pakistan.
Without elaborating further Afghan lawmakers claimed that the agreement was signed with Pakistan by former Afghan defense minister regarding Durand Line.
However Afghan defense ministry call the allegations as baseless and said no agreement was signed with any defense official.
Defense ministry spokesman Gen. Zahir Azimi called on the Afghan lawmakers to present evidence and documents regarding their claims.
In the meantime Afghan lawmakers delegation who returned from Goshta district following clashes between Afghan and Pakistani troops said they have achieved documents in this regard.
Afghan lawmaker Mohammad Naeem Lalai Hamidzai who was heading the delegation in Goshta district said the concerned officials and army commanders must provide details in regards to the agreement which was signed under the supervision of Gen. Stanley McChrystal.
Mr. Hamidzai also urged Afghan president Hamid Karzai to provide details regarding the agreement to Afghan house of representatives.
He also added that the agreement was signed between 2003 and 2004.
Afghan finance minister accuse lawmakers for illegal activities
By SADAF SHINWARI - 07 May 2013, 3:33 pm Khaama Press
Afghan finance minister Hazrat Omer Zakhilwal on Monday accused a number of Afghan lawmakers for being involved in illegal activities.
While speaking during a press conference, Mr. Zakhilwal also said that the lawmakers are boosting corruption in government institutions through illegal activities.
Mr. Zakilwal did not disclose further information regarding identities of the lawmakers however he said that the individuals are creating pressure on Afghan finance ministry officials.
He said, “A very small group of the lawmakers are involved in smuggling specifically smuggling of alcoholic drinks, and they are putting pressure on the finance ministry to place their individuals in customs department.”
Finance minister Hazrat Omer Zakilwal also added that he has evidence and documents regarding his remarks which can be presented to Afghan house of representatives and to Afghan people if need.
He also accused a number of Afghan lawmakers for concentrating on their personal business rather than working for the national interest of the country.
“During the past two a number of the lawmakers have been trying to sell their signatures on me however I have ignored their request” Mr. Zakhilwal said adding that, “We have appointed officials in Customs department who are keen on preventing corruption, and we will do our best to present the reality of the individuals in the parliament to Afghan people.”
According to Zakhilwal a number of the Afghan lawmakers have also threatened him to summon him in the parliament if their demands have not been met.
This comes as Afghan interior minister earlier also complained regarding the interference of Afghan lawmakers during a national security council meeting.
Afghan Air Force Struggles To Take Off
By Frud Bezhan May 6, 2013 Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty
Afghanistan's fledgling air force is scrambling to prepare to take control of the country's airspace. But while expectations are high, the force is having trouble getting off the ground.
Air power has proved crucial in rugged Afghanistan, where road networks are poor and often mined by militants. Afghan and international ground forces have relied heavily on NATO's massive fleet of fighter jets, assault helicopters, and cargo aircraft to attack militants, provide surveillance, and carry personnel to and from the battlefield.
With NATO troops expected to leave Afghanistan by the end of 2014, the alliance has been arming and training its eventual replacement -- the Afghan Air Force (AAF) -- in order to leave behind a force capable of maintaining control of the country's airspace. But development of the 352,000-strong Afghan National Army and National Police has taken the highest priority, stunting the Air Force's growth.
The development of the Air Force is being watched closely. There are fears that without crucial NATO air power, the Afghan security forces will struggle to keep the Taliban at bay without a fully functioning air force.
NATO has set ambitious targets for the Afghan Air Force, which was created in 2007. It expects the force to be fully operational by the end of 2016, with 8,000 personnel and some 200 aircraft. But those goals are looking overly lofty, considering the current chronic shortage of operational aircraft and trained Afghan pilots.
That has set off alarm bells in Kabul. The Afghan government has pressed hard to convince the United States to speed up training and to boost Kabul's air capability by supplying the Air Force with advanced aircraft and equipment.
'Many Shortcomings'
General Mohammad Zahir Azimi, spokesman for the Afghan Defense Ministry, says that in order for Afghanistan to defend itself and its airspace, a self-sufficient air force must be made a priority.
"The Afghan Air Force suffers from many shortcomings," Azimi says. "In particular, we don't have fighter jets to support ground troops and protect our airspace. We also don't have any reconnaissance or surveillance capabilities, or an air-defense system."
To boost the Air Force's capabilities, the U.S. Air Force (USAF) signed a $427 million contract with U.S.-based Sierra Nevada Corporation in March to provide 20 light-attack aircraft. The A-29 Super Tucano turboprop plane will be built by Brazilian subcontractor Embraer and is expected to be delivered by the end of next year.
The Afghan Air Force will also receive at least four C-130 Hercules transport planes within the next two years.
Those arrivals will complement the Afghan Air Force's current fleet, which consists of about 50 operational aircraft, including 40 Russian Mi-17 transport helicopters and seven Mi-35 Hind attack helicopters. It also has transport aircraft, including 16 Italian-made C-27s, although many have been grounded or removed from service due to issues with safety, maintenance, and a lack of spare parts.
Expect Turbulence
Meanwhile, the Afghan Air Force has only around 6,000 personnel, with many recruits often turned away because they cannot meet literacy requirements.
The Afghan Air Force's ranks include only a small team of trained pilots, many of them veterans from the Soviet era. Around 150 Afghan pilots are being trained inside Afghanistan and abroad, mostly in the United States and the Czech Republic.
Mark Young -- president of Defense Technology Inc., an Alabama-based company providing aviation support services to the U.S. government in Afghanistan -- says Afghanistan will not have a fully functioning air force for at least another decade.
Young says even if the Afghan Air Force were to reach its goals, the force would not be sufficient to protect Afghanistan, considering the country's size and militant threat.
And, he notes, Afghanistan will likely struggle to fund an independent air force.
"What we [the United States] have given them they can't afford. It would take half of their defense budget just to keep those aircrafts flying," Young says. "Plus, we fly thousands of missions over there and they don't have the aircraft to do that either. I think their air force is largely going to be a special-missions air force. It's going to move the president and elected officials, help when there's a disaster, and help move ballots during the votes. But it will not be a true cornerstone of their national defense."
'Motivated' Crew
Air Force Major General H.D. Jake Polumbo Jr., director of the NATO ISAF mission's Air Component Coordination Element in Afghanistan, has conceded that the capacity of the Afghan Air Force is "still very limited" and it needs the continued support of NATO to be able to conduct independent air surveillance, air support, and mobility operations.
Speaking via video teleconference from his headquarters in Kabul on April 23, Polumbo said NATO's air-power assets would draw down at a "lower slope" than ground forces. He also said the United States would maintain some sort of air presence after 2014, including support from bases and Navy aircraft carriers in the region, and the use of unmanned drones.
Lieutenant Colonel Brandon Deacon, the commander of the 438th Air Expeditionary Advisory Squadron based in Kabul, says that despite its weaknesses the AAF has plenty of strengths, including strong leadership and motivation.
"Their biggest strength is their motivation," Deacon says. "They seem to me to be very grateful to have our assistance, and they're also very receptive to our ideas. I think a lot of the air crew perform very well and they're doing a lot of missions on their own."
The Afghan Air Force has conducted winter resupply missions to remote Afghan army locations in the east, provided direct support to Afghan border police, and conducted independent air assaults into Taliban-controlled areas.
Washington and Kabul are currently in talks over a residual U.S. military presence that may remain in Afghanistan after 2014. Aircrafts and weaponry to the Afghan military is likely to be subject to negotiations over the Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA).
There are currently 66,000 American troops in Afghanistan. That number is expected to drop to around 32,000 by February. The United States is expected to keep somewhere between 6,000 and 10,000 troops to advise Afghan security forces after the combat mission ends in December 2014.
Written and reported by Frud Bezhan, with additional reporting by RFE/RL Radio Free Afghanistan correspondent Ahmad Zhakfar
Afghanistan War Is Not a Just War
Huffington Post By Nake M. Kamrany and Jessica Greenhalgh 05/06/2013
Unbeknown to most Americans, the Afghanistan war is the longest American war in its history. More importantly, this war defies the elements of a just war as elucidated by St Augustine of Hippo 2000 years ago: First, it was not based on clear, legitimate or just aims. The war aim was to capture Osama bin Laden but he was not in Afghanistan. Second, it should not have been undertaken out of hate, greed or other base motives, ostensibly, it was taken out of punishment of the Pashtun tribes under the mistaken view of their anti-American role. Third, this war was prosecuted as a first resort instead of a last resort and finally there must have been the likelihood of success, there is no success in this war.
To date, this is the longest war ever endured by the U.S. The only other longest wars the U.S. participated in were the Vietnam War from 1964-1972, and the Iraq War from 2003-2011. Sadly, there was no true victory in either of those two wars. Unfortunately, the same unsuccessful outcome will be true with the Afghanistan War. At this point, thousands of innocent lives, women, children, and American Soldiers have lost their lives in this war. To help alleviate any further damages incurred by the war, it is essential that the U.S. withdraw their forces this year instead in 2014. Most likely, historians will mark the Afghanistan war the greatest mistake of Obama's presidency, as he labeled it, "the right war."
When evaluating why the war should end in Afghanistan, it is very important to consider the total damages sustained compared to benefits endured from the war. Let's begin by considering the costs incurred by the United States. Tragically, as of May 5, 2013, there have been 2,206 American soldiers killed , and 18,462 wounded, all young Americans between 18 -29 years of age... Additionally, during the end of 2012, the Congressional Research Service estimated that the total operations cost for the Afghanistan War was $557 billion dollars, not including costs incurred in 2013 and beyond. To put this into comparison, the current California budget deficit is $16 billion dollars , and the federal budget deficit is estimated at $845 billion for 2013. Evidently, the amount spent on the war could have paid off California's deficit 34 times over.
Furthermore, when breaking down the U.S. expenses into components, the costs are quite alarming. Just to train and send one U.S. soldier to Afghanistan, it is estimated to cost the United States $500,000. And the estimated cost to deploy one U.S. civilian government employee in Afghanistan is $425,926-$570,998. Furthermore, there is also a substantial cost for the military equipment in Afghanistan. Currently, the U.S. military equipment in Afghanistan that has accumulated over the past 10 years is estimated to be worth $36 billion dollars. In addition to that, there is an estimated $12.8 million dollars purchased equipment sitting unused and in storage. Most of it will become worthless, as much of the equipment had warranties that are soon to expire and have yet to be tested. Evidently, it was not needed. Furthermore, what the nation owes to veterans who are disabled during service has more than doubled since 2000, rising from $14.8 billion in 2000 to $39.4 billion in 2011, according to the Department of Vete
rans Affairs. In this case, Afghanistan and the Iraq War were key contributors. How do these costs measure up against the benefits of the war? What benefits were there for the United States in Afghanistan war? How did the security of the United States improve by occupying numerous villages or imprisoning thousands of Pushtun villages in Afghanistan?
To fully analyze the cost vs. benefits from the war, it's also necessary to consider the damages sustained by Afghanistan due to the war. From the war alone, it's estimated that Afghanistan has sustained over $100 million, USD, in property damages alone. Considering it is a very low income country having low GDP, that amount is a substantial loss to encounter. Moreover, it's estimated that at least 3,315,000 Afghans have been displaced due to the war. In addition to financial losses, the most critical damages they have sustained are from fatalities and injuries. Reports indicate that there were 225,000 civilian deaths and 365,000 physically wounded over 10 years of war in Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Iraq combined. However, the estimates in the civilian casualties in the Afghanistan War are likely to be largely underestimated due to the lack of proper body count. Nonetheless, the fact remains that the number of innocent civilian lives killed were enormous.
Afghanistan has also encountered many consequential war costs, which include diseases due to lack of clean drinking water, malnutrition and poverty, and reduced healthcare access. The war has also caused invisible problems to Afghan civilians. In 2009, the Afghan ministry said "fully two-thirds of Afghans suffer mental health problems," and over 800,000 Afghans are disabled due to the war. Sadly, once disabled, less than 30 percent are able to find work, leaving them with great financial hardships.
While the U.S. is starting to lower the level of troops in Afghanistan, in its place the U.S. is now increasing the use of Drones. Drone strikes rose 72 percent in 2012 compared to 2011, and there were 506 strikes alone in 2012. The problem is that while drones reduce risk for U.S. forces, it greatly increases safety risks for civilians. For example, an untargeted Afghan girl collecting firewood had died from shrapnel caused by a drone attack that hit only 30 yards from her home. There will continue to be a rise in risk as the use of armed drones is expected to accelerate as 66,000 troops are expected to leave by 2014. Why are we continuing to kill Afghans if we are withdrawing from the war?
On a societal level, it's also important to consider the impact on the tribal villages, such as the crime and genocide against the Pashtun Tribes. Pashtun people are the largest ethnic group in the world with 45 million living in Afghanistan and Pakistan. However, they are constantly being pushed out of their villages. Around 85 percent of the 6.2 million Afghans that fled and emigrated due to the 1979 Soviet invasion were Pashtun. And now more are having to leave their villages due to U.S. war in Afghanistan War. They have experienced 30,000 pound bombs destroying their villages, burning of crops, killings of animals and civilians, many women and children. In general, the Pashtun tribes are wishing for peace, equal rights, and education, not war and terrorism. Sadly, they are wrongly being punished for the crimes committed by bin Laden, al-Qaeda, and the Arabs against the United States.
Upon considering the possible reasons the U.S. invaded Afghanistan, maybe it could have been due to capturing Osama bin Laden, wiping out the poppy production, doing away with warlords and drug lords, going after minerals, or spreading the democratic process to help increase jobs, equal rights for women and protection. Evidently, none of this happened, nor was it necessary. The only benefit that could have come from the war in Afghanistan was with capturing Osama bin Laden. However, that didn't come about due to the war, as bin Laden escaped Afghanistan through Tora Bora in 2001 and fled to Pakistan. Ostensibly he was not even living in Afghanistan during all of these war years. Therefore, it is regrettably reasonable to state that no significant benefits were created for the United States from the war.
The critical question remaining is how to end the longest American war in history? Fortunately, the answer to this is quite simple, which is to use Nixon's Vietnam and China approach. In this case, it would be to simply declare victory and pull out by withdrawing all U.S. troops and drones from Afghanistan. Furthermore, as the U.S. continues to withdraw troops, the number of American soldier and civilian casualties in Afghanistan will also substantially decline. Considering that there was substantially more damages than benefits from this war, it is clearly evident that the people of Afghanistan do not need the assistance of the U.S forces. They do not want it. They are fully capable leading their own government into proper organization necessary for peace and prosperity of their country.
MoD To Begin Repairing of Weapons and Armoured Tanks
TOLOnews.com By Shakela Abrahimkhil 06 May 2013
Afghanistan government on Monday ordered ministry of defence to take immediate steps for repairing of heavy weapons and 800 armoured tanks.
Meanwhile, Afghanistan National Security Council has ordered Ministry of Finance to allocate $600 million dollars for ministry of defence to repair military equipment.
“We have started repairing of armoured tanks and heavy weapons and based on the order of the president and national security council we will pursue it seriously. To repair these tanks and weapons we need $60 million dollars and they have ordered ministry of finance to allocate this amount for ministry of defence, and from today we have started evaluation for repairing of vehicles and weapons,“ Gen. Zahir Azimi ministry of defence spokesman said.
Afghanistan National Security Council in a released statement added that for this purpose a period of one year has been estimated and that the ministry of defence has to present its report to the security council every three months.
In the mean time, Isaf has declared its commitment to equip Afghan Security Forces which according to this commitment, Afghan Air Force will be fully equipped and ready to conduct operations by 2016.
“So far individual Isaf nations have already very generously equipped the Afghan National Security Forces. And I just give you a few examples. Just recently the United States provided hundreds of Humvees to the Afghan National Army, to keep them more protected when moving, Isaf spokesman said.
He said that the Isaf provided 100 percent in terms of small weapons of what the Afghan National Security Forces need, “so 100 percent of Tashkeel has been fulfilled for small weapons and when you look at the Tashkeel regarding transportation and communication, we provided so far approximately 90 percent.”
“Now I know that there are still shortfalls in ANSF regarding equipment, and virtually as we speak, individual nations sit together with representatives from GoIRA and with representatives from the ANSF and discuss how they can overcome those shortfalls. And I know that at the NACD air forces have been addressed as well,” he said.
Afghanistan National Security Council ordered both defence and interior ministries to place Afghan Security Forces in all the bases which are evacuated by foreign forces.
On the other hand, Isaf said that each base station Isaf forces leaves, these bases are handed over to Afghan Security Forces and a commission is working for this purpose and Isaf is cooperating with this commission.
Inmates Go on Hunger Strike Over President Karzai’s Decree
TOLOnews.com By Anisa Shahid 06 May 2013
A number of inmates in Pul e Charkhi prison have begun hunger strike in response to President Karzai’s last decree on prisoners, Prison Officials said on Monday.
Afghan President Hamed Karzai in his last decree has brought some decrease in jail terms of some prisoners, which faced reactions of other prisoners.
Chief of the Afghan Detention Facilities Department Amir Mohammad Jamshid said that a number of prisoners have been refusing to eat lunch and dinner since Friday against the President’s decree.
Mr Jamshid added that the prisoners whose executions have been changed to years in prison and those who have major crimes are out of the decree.
“A number of inmates including smugglers and murderers with heavy criminal backgrounds have gone on strike against the decree. These people are kidnappers, thieves and people who have committed rape,”
Chief of the Afghan Detention Facilities Department Amir Mohammad Jamshid said.
Meanwhile, a number of prisoners in the fourth block of Pul e Charkhi prison through some pictures said to media that they have started hunger strike since Friday.
According to the decree, the prisoners who are sentenced to more than ten years in prison, two years discount, the prisoners of 5 to 10 years, one year discount, and the prisoners who have been sentenced to five years, faced six months discounts.
“There are al Qaida and Taliban followers among the strikers who want to take down the situation and provoke other prisoners ,” Amir Mohammad Jamshid said.
Chief of the Afghan Detention Facilities added that around 2,000 prisoners will be released and around 3,000 others will be granted discounts, based on the decree. He believes that the decree gives more advantage to female prisoners. It is said that nearly 24,000 men and around 700 women are imprisoned in all the government prisons in the country.
By MIRWAIS KHAN and PATRICK QUINN | Associated Press
KANDAHAR, Afghanistan (AP) — Pakistan warned Afghanistan on Tuesday that it would not be responsible for the consequences if a border spat between the two countries escalated further, even as hundreds of Afghans rallied in a southern city to protest the latest incidents along their country's frontier.
The Pakistani warning came one day after Afghanistan lodged a similar protest with Islamabad, blaming its neighbor for a spate of shootouts near the boundary.
Afghanistan had claimed Monday that its forces were fired on in the Goshta district of Afghanistan's eastern Nangarhar province, the same place where a firefight between Afghan and Pakistani forces left an Afghan border policeman dead and two Pakistani soldiers wounded last week.
Relations between the two neighbors have been severely strained in recent months, and the mountainous region in eastern Afghanistan where the shootings occurred has seen acrimonious exchanges between the two sides over the demarcation of their border.
The Pakistani protest, made to Afghanistan's charge d'affairs in Islamabad, described Monday's incident as an "unprovoked fire incident" that resulted in the wounding of five Pakistani soldiers.
A Pakistani statement said the Afghan diplomat was told that "in case of any further escalation as a result of this situation, the responsibility would be on the Afghan government."
It added that in Monday's incident "Pakistan security forces exercised maximum restraint."
"Pakistan feels that repetition of unprovoked firing incidents are adversely affecting the friendly relations between the two brotherly countries which have covered a long distance in building trust and understanding in the recent years," the statement said.
Although Afghanistan's national security forces have swelled to nearly 352,000 in recent years, their size is tiny compared to a Pakistani military that is one of the 10 biggest in the world.
Earlier, hundreds of men marched through downtown Kandahar chanting "Death to Pakistan" and "Death to the ISI," a reference to Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence, the country's spy agency.
The demonstrators, who dispersed peacefully after the march, were protesting the two shooting incidents along the frontier.
In the first incident last week, a border gate built by Pakistan was damaged in the fighting. Afghan officials say the second exchange started Monday when Afghan border police told Pakistani forces to stop repairing the gate, sparking a firefight that ended two hours later with a cease-fire.
Pakistan claims the facility is on its territory. But Afghanistan does not recognize the disputed Durand Line, the 19th century demarcation between present-day Afghanistan and Pakistan as its border. Pakistan accepts the line as the boundary between the two sides.
Insurgencies in both nations have also contributed to deteriorating relations.
Both countries have accused each other of providing shelter for militants fighting on the other side of the border, and Afghan officials have claimed Pakistan has tried to torpedo peace talks with the Taliban.
In domestic violence, insurgents placed a bomb on a police vehicle in the Khan Abad district of eastern Kunar province, killing two police officers and wounding five — including two civilians. District chief Hayatullha Amiri said the bomb was attached to the police pickup truck using a magnet.
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Amir Shah and Patrick Quinn contributed from Kabul.
Afghans hold anti-Pakistan demonstration to protest border incidents
Associated Press May 7, 2013
Kandahar, Afghanistan - Hundreds of Afghans rallied in a southern city on Tuesday to protest the latest incidents along their country’s border with Pakistan, blaming the neighboring nation for a spate of shootouts near the boundary.
Hundreds of men marched through downtown Kandahar chanting “Death to Pakistan” and “Death to the ISI,” a reference to Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence, the country’s spy agency.
The demonstrators, who dispersed peacefully after the march, were protesting two shooting incidents, one on Monday and one last week that resulted in the death of an Afghan border policeman and the wounding of two Pakistan troops.
Relations between the two neighbors have been severely strained in recent months, and the mountainous region in eastern Afghanistan where the shootings occurred has seen acrimonious exchanges between the two sides over the demarcation of their border.
Afghanistan on Monday filed an official protest with Pakistan after its forces allegedly came under fire earlier that day along a contested stretch of their border.
Kabul’s Foreign Ministry said no one was wounded in the incident, which occurred in the Goshta district of Afghanistan’s eastern Nangarhar province, the same place where a firefight between Afghan and Pakistani forces killed an Afghan border policeman and wounded two Pakistani soldiers last week.
During that incident, a border gate built by Pakistan was damaged in the fighting. According to Afghan officials, Monday’s incident took place when Afghan border police told Pakistani forces to stop repairing the gate and a two-hour firefight ensued before a cease-fire was called.
Pakistan claims the facility is on its territory. But Afghanistan does not recognize the disputed Durand Line, the 19th century demarcation between present-day Afghanistan and Pakistan as its border. Pakistan accepts the line as the boundary between the two sides.
Insurgencies in both nations have also contributed to deteriorating relations.
Both countries have accused each other of providing shelter for militants fighting on the other side of the border, and Afghan officials have claimed Pakistan has tried to torpedo peace talks with the Taliban.
Pakistan summons Afghan envoy over "unprovoked firing incident"
ISLAMABAD, May 7 (Xinhua) -- Pakistan on Tuesday summoned Afghan Charge d'Affaires and lodged a formal protest over the firing of Afghan forces which injured at least five soldiers, said the country's Foreign Ministry.
Tensions escalated between the two uneasy neighbors over cross- border shelling in recent weeks that has overshadowed their cooperation for the much-needed peace and reconciliation process.
"The Afghan Charge d'Affaires was summoned to the Foreign Office today for conveying protest of the Government of Pakistan on repetition of an unprovoked firing incident that took place on May 6, 2013, from the Afghan posts on the Pakistani Gursal post," a Foreign Ministry statement said.
The statement said five Frontier Constabulary soldiers got injured as a result of the unprovoked firing incident.
"As in the past, Pakistan security forces exercised maximum restraint and communicated first to the Afghan side about repetition of this serious violation through military channels," the statement said.
The statement said that the Afghan Charge d'Affaires was conveyed Pakistan's serious concern and asked to advise relevant authorities in Afghanistan to avoid repetition of such unprovoked firing, which undermines the existing coordination mechanisms between the security forces of the two countries.
"Afghan Charge d'Affaires was also conveyed that in case of any further escalation as a result of this situation, the responsibility would be on the Afghan Government," said the ministry.
The Foreign Ministry said Pakistan feels that repetition of unprovoked firing incidents are adversely affecting the friendly relations between the two brotherly countries which have covered a long distance in building trust and understanding in the recent years.
Afghan defense ministry deny secret deal with Pakistan
Khaama Press By Meena Haseeb 07 May 2013
Afghan defense officials denied reports regarding secret deal between former Afghan defense officials with the Pakistani officials regarding border related issues.
This comes as a delegation of the Afghan lawmakers after their return from Goshta district on Monday claimed they have found evidences regarding secret deal with Pakistan.
Without elaborating furhter Afghan lawmakers claimed that the agreement was signed with Pakistan by former Afghan defense minister regarding Durand Line.
However Afghan defense ministry call the allegations as baseless and said no agreement was signed with any defense official.
Defense ministry spokesman Gen. Zahir Azimi called on the Afghan lawmakers to present evidence and documents regarding their claims.
In the meantime Afghan lawmakers delegation who returned from Goshta district following clashes between Afghan and Pakistani troops said they have achieved documents in this regard.
Afghan lawmaker Mohammad Naeem Lalai Ahmadzai who was heading the delegation in Goshta district said the concerned officials and army commanders must provide details in regards to the agreement which was signed under the supervision of Gen. Stanley McChrystal.
Mr. Ahmadzai also urged Afghan president Hamid Karzai to provide details regarding the agreement to Afghan house of representatives.
He also added that the agreement was signed between 2003 and 2004.
Hope Seen for Afghanistan After Coalition Exits
The New York Times By Alissa J. Rubin and Matthew Rosenberg May 6, 2013
Kabul, Afghanistan - Under Gen. Joseph F. Dunford Jr., the new commander of international forces here, the American-led military coalition is no longer aiming to change Afghanistan. Its focus now is on a far more narrow goal: readying Afghan forces to withstand the Taliban regardless of the country’s looming political and economic troubles.
The rest, he said in his first interview since assuming command in February, is up to the Afghans.
Perhaps unsurprisingly for someone who says he sees the glass as “half-full,” General Dunford laid out a case for why he believes Afghan forces will step up as the coalition’s long war here moves toward an official close.
He offered a far more positive take on the prospects for this country than many longtime Western officials here, and a less critical one than many of his predecessors had offered. They had emphasized that long-term stability would require faith in the Afghan government, which could be achieved only if the rampant corruption and widespread rights abuses were reined in.
In describing his goals for the Western military endgame in Afghanistan, General Dunford kept a tight focus on definable training and security benchmarks, leaving much of the politics out. He boiled it down to three fundamental questions: Will the Afghan troops be able to assume lead responsibility for military operations? Will the Afghan security forces be able to give security to the Afghan people nationwide for the presidential elections scheduled for next April? And, will the international troops be able to transfer all authority to the Afghans at the end of 2014, when the International Security Assistance Force mission ends?
“The answer is yes,” to all three questions, General Dunford said, even while readily noting that there was much work ahead to reach that level of readiness.
Referring to the growth in size and capabilities of the Afghan Army, in particular, he said: “You can accuse me of being an optimist and I’ll plead guilty. But to those people who think this can’t happen, I would just ask them to look at the last two or three years and ask them why they can’t imagine that we’ll be on the same trajectory that we’ve been on the last two or three years,” he said referring to the growth in size and capabilities of the Afghan Army, in particular.
While he acknowledged that corruption and human rights failures posed challenges, he appeared to see them as less-corrosive threats to the military mission than some of his predecessors did.
“Over time we’ll continue to see, in fits and starts, corruption,” he said. “We’ll still see predatory behavior, and the only way it’s going to be fixed is when the Afghan people demand that it be different and when Afghan leadership demands that it be different.”
Asked whether widespread perceptions about corruption in the police force could actively help the Taliban, or at least hurt the government, he answered, “This is not something that we can impose.”
Even as a fierce debate is being waged in Washington about how many troops to dedicate to the Afghan mission beyond the end of the international military mission in 2014, General Dunford, rather than weighing in publicly by making an argument for specific troop levels, has taken the tack of laying out a clearly defined picture of the areas where the Afghan military will need long-term help.
He noted several trouble spots: air support and transportation for the Afghan forces, command and control capabilities and a continuing struggle with attrition in the Afghan Army. The army loses 2 percent to 2.9 percent of its soldiers every month, according to the Pentagon’s most recent semiannual report to Congress in December. That added up to more than 54,000 soldiers from September 2011 to September 2012, out of a total force that has hovered at barely 190,000, putting great pressure on the military’s recruiting and training operations.
He has concluded as well that plans to reduce the number of Afghan security forces — the army and police combined — to 228,000 after 2015 from the current target level of 352,000 are not realistic, given the threats in the country. “The consensus now both from the Afghans and certainly from us is that we ought to sustain that for some period time to come,” said General Dunford, referring to the 352,000 head count.
What is less clear is how such a force could be paid for. The international community, led by the United States, has agreed to pay roughly $4.1 billion in aid per year for the Afghan security forces after 2014, based on estimates of what a smaller Afghan security contingent would cost. If the Afghans want to keep a larger force, they will either have to field a cheaper army and police force or come up with more money themselves to pay for it. General Dunford suggested that the Afghans could economize, although he did not give examples of where they might find the savings.
Just months into his command, his tenure has already been marked by tensions between American officials and President Hamid Karzai, who has criticized American Special Operations and intelligence missions in Afghanistan. General Dunford’s approach to working with Mr. Karzai so far has borne out his reputation as a direct and pragmatic Marine officer: While he has not gone out of his way to forge personal trust with the Afghan leader, as some predecessors did, neither has he pushed Mr. Karzai to reform.
His style was particularly visible when Mr. Karzai demanded that all Western forces leave Wardak Province after Afghan civilians were abused by irregular Afghan forces operating under Western supervision. Instead, General Dunford agreed to withdraw the Special Operations forces from the district where the problems occurred and transfer training responsibilities there to the Afghans. He satisfied Mr. Karzai, but left intact much of the security structure in the turbulent province.
As Afghan forces increasingly take the lead in combat operations this year, General Dunford cast it as an opportunity for the Afghan government to prove to Afghans that it is defending them and to show the Taliban that now they are fighting fellow Muslims and countrymen, he said.
The Taliban will make every effort, in his words, “to create the perception of insecurity.” And he warned that the Haqqani group, a well-organized and financed branch of the insurgency in Pakistan’s ungoverned tribal areas, remained “one of the most virulent strains in the insurgency.”
Still, he said he believed this year’s fighting season would be a turning point: “I think the Taliban are going to come out of the gate and they are going to run into a brick wall — and that brick wall is not going to be the coalition, it’s going to be the Afghan security forces.”
Afghan cop killed in bombing at Kunduz bazaar
KUNDUZ, Afghanistan, May 7 (Xinhua) -- At least one policeman was killed and two others wounded in explosion in Khan Abad district of northern Afghan province of Kunduz Tuesday morning, a local official said.
"The initial reports say that an improvised bomb was detonated through a remote control device at the district bazaar at about 10: 15 local time when a police vehicle was running through the area, causing the casualties," the district governor Hayatullah Amiri told Xinhua.
The official also said the wounded policemen who sustained severe injuries were shifted to a district hospital.
The police vehicle was also destroyed in the attack, he added.
Police are trying to keep people from gathering at the scene for fears that there might be a second blast.
No group has claimed responsibility for the attack so far.
The Taliban, fighting an insurgency of more than one decade, has intensified attacks since late last month when they launched an annual rebel offensive against Afghan and about 100,000 NATO- led forces stationed in the country.
The Taliban also urged civilians to stay away from official gatherings, military convoys and centers regarded as the legitimate targets by militants besides warning people not to support the government and foreign troops.
In remote Afghan district, the roots of insurgency are local
Dialogue with Taliban fighters has given way to an escalating conflict that has taken dozens of lives and displaced hundreds in Badakhshan province.
Global Post By Chris Sands May 6, 2013
Faizabad, Afghanistan - More than a year after the Taliban issued a set of demands for the Afghan government in northeast Afghanistan's Warduj district, this once-peaceful area is now wracked by violence.
Back then, a page of lined paper with neat, blue handwriting was passed on to the local representatives of a national peace initiative and signed by the local Taliban leader, Qari Fasihuddin. If Islamic scholars could prove that a “jihad” against “the infidels” was not a religious obligation, the fight against NATO would stop, the note said.
Insurgents would leave alone members of the national army and police, whom assumed security responsibilities in this area from NATO last year, if they agreed to a truce. If these terms were not accepted, security should be handed over to the insurgents and all Taliban prisoners from Badakhshan, the province to which Warduj belongs, released.
But now, dialogue with the fighters has given way to an escalating conflict that has taken dozens of lives and at one stage displaced hundreds in a strategically important province where violence was scarce, and where the origins and motives of the insurgency are unclear.
“They had some conditions and these conditions were not accepted,” the chairman of the High Peace Council in Badakhshan, Qazi Sadullah Abu Aman, said of the Taliban in Warduj district. “Therefore, they were encouraged to fight.”
Like the majority of Afghans interviewed for this article, Abu Aman spoke to GlobalPost in the provincial capital, Faizabad, northwest of Warduj. But the peace council member met with 12 insurgents in Warduj district months before the letter outlining their demands was written as part of a negotiation team to end the discord.
The tension in Warduj reached a boiling point in March when Taliban rebels ambushed and kidnapped Afghan soldiers on a resupply mission. Insurgents are then reported to have executed 16 of the captives.
Soon after, the Afghan government launched a major offensive in the area and that included NATO air support. The government claims scores of Taliban were killed, and that the situation is now improving — with the militants on the run and confined to local mountain hideouts.
But Wahiduddin Arghon, who runs the Badakhshan office of the Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission, visited Warduj in mid-March to witness the impact of the operation first-hand.
He told GlobalPost that more than 200 people had fled to the district center due to the unrest. The government offered them basic assistance like blankets, tents and food — but on the condition they agreed to move to a neighboring district.
When the refugees insisted they wanted to return to their own villages, officials “decided that if they give them these materials maybe they would hand them over to the enemies” and the aid was withheld, Arghon said. An Afghan official told him residents had been going to the Taliban rather than the government to solve any community disputes.
But when the Taliban ruled Afghanistan from 1996 to 2001, Warduj was among large parts of Badakshan province that stayed out of their reach.
Badakhshan province — the majority of which remains relatively calm — shares borders with Tajikistan, Pakistan and China, making it strategically and economically important.
The mountains and caves of Warduj are a traditional stronghold of Jamiat-e Islami, one of the main parties in the anti-Soviet resistance and a key contributor to the Northern Alliance movement that fought the Taliban regime.
Opponents of the Taliban today claim the problems in Warduj are actually linked to a construction project designed to connect Faizabad to China via a paved highway. This would open up a lucrative new trade route and has caused speculation that the militants, backed by Pakistan, are trying to undermine the work.
But others say disillusionment with the local government is believed to be a factor behind the insurgency here.
“Poverty, injustice, oppression and corruption have caused people to rise up [and join the Taliban],” Abu Aman said.
“If [the government] had dealt with this through the window of peace there would be no issue,” he said. “But they are always doing operations and the operations are all failures.”
Abu Aman claims Fasihuddin — a young, ethnic Tajik believed to be the Taliban’s shadow governor for the province — first took up arms because local security forces were harassing religious scholars.
Fasihuddin’s brother, Mawlawi Mohammad Amin, was killed by foreign troops last year. One rumor circulating here is that the troops then let dogs tear the body to pieces, angering him further.
Indeed, many people in Badakshan say former policemen from Warduj district have joined the insurgency because of the local police chief’s allegedly abusive behavior against both junior officers and the local population.
Mawlawi Fazlullah Hanif is a former member of the Taliban now involved in dialogue with the insurgents here. Last year he also visited Fasihuddin for talks, but he believes the government has still not showed it is serious about negotiations.
"There was war in Warduj and just the district police used 30,000 bullets,” he said. "How can peace rise among us?"
Afghan defense ministry deny secret deal with Pakistan
By MEENA HASEEB - 07 May 2013, 11:00 am Khaama Press
Afghan defense officials denied reports regarding secret deal between former Afghan defense officials with the Pakistani officials regarding border related issues.
This comes as a delegation of the Afghan lawmakers after their return from Goshta district on Monday claimed they have found evidences regarding secret deal with Pakistan.
Without elaborating further Afghan lawmakers claimed that the agreement was signed with Pakistan by former Afghan defense minister regarding Durand Line.
However Afghan defense ministry call the allegations as baseless and said no agreement was signed with any defense official.
Defense ministry spokesman Gen. Zahir Azimi called on the Afghan lawmakers to present evidence and documents regarding their claims.
In the meantime Afghan lawmakers delegation who returned from Goshta district following clashes between Afghan and Pakistani troops said they have achieved documents in this regard.
Afghan lawmaker Mohammad Naeem Lalai Hamidzai who was heading the delegation in Goshta district said the concerned officials and army commanders must provide details in regards to the agreement which was signed under the supervision of Gen. Stanley McChrystal.
Mr. Hamidzai also urged Afghan president Hamid Karzai to provide details regarding the agreement to Afghan house of representatives.
He also added that the agreement was signed between 2003 and 2004.
Afghan finance minister accuse lawmakers for illegal activities
By SADAF SHINWARI - 07 May 2013, 3:33 pm Khaama Press
Afghan finance minister Hazrat Omer Zakhilwal on Monday accused a number of Afghan lawmakers for being involved in illegal activities.
While speaking during a press conference, Mr. Zakhilwal also said that the lawmakers are boosting corruption in government institutions through illegal activities.
Mr. Zakilwal did not disclose further information regarding identities of the lawmakers however he said that the individuals are creating pressure on Afghan finance ministry officials.
He said, “A very small group of the lawmakers are involved in smuggling specifically smuggling of alcoholic drinks, and they are putting pressure on the finance ministry to place their individuals in customs department.”
Finance minister Hazrat Omer Zakilwal also added that he has evidence and documents regarding his remarks which can be presented to Afghan house of representatives and to Afghan people if need.
He also accused a number of Afghan lawmakers for concentrating on their personal business rather than working for the national interest of the country.
“During the past two a number of the lawmakers have been trying to sell their signatures on me however I have ignored their request” Mr. Zakhilwal said adding that, “We have appointed officials in Customs department who are keen on preventing corruption, and we will do our best to present the reality of the individuals in the parliament to Afghan people.”
According to Zakhilwal a number of the Afghan lawmakers have also threatened him to summon him in the parliament if their demands have not been met.
This comes as Afghan interior minister earlier also complained regarding the interference of Afghan lawmakers during a national security council meeting.
Afghan Air Force Struggles To Take Off
By Frud Bezhan May 6, 2013 Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty
Afghanistan's fledgling air force is scrambling to prepare to take control of the country's airspace. But while expectations are high, the force is having trouble getting off the ground.
Air power has proved crucial in rugged Afghanistan, where road networks are poor and often mined by militants. Afghan and international ground forces have relied heavily on NATO's massive fleet of fighter jets, assault helicopters, and cargo aircraft to attack militants, provide surveillance, and carry personnel to and from the battlefield.
With NATO troops expected to leave Afghanistan by the end of 2014, the alliance has been arming and training its eventual replacement -- the Afghan Air Force (AAF) -- in order to leave behind a force capable of maintaining control of the country's airspace. But development of the 352,000-strong Afghan National Army and National Police has taken the highest priority, stunting the Air Force's growth.
The development of the Air Force is being watched closely. There are fears that without crucial NATO air power, the Afghan security forces will struggle to keep the Taliban at bay without a fully functioning air force.
NATO has set ambitious targets for the Afghan Air Force, which was created in 2007. It expects the force to be fully operational by the end of 2016, with 8,000 personnel and some 200 aircraft. But those goals are looking overly lofty, considering the current chronic shortage of operational aircraft and trained Afghan pilots.
That has set off alarm bells in Kabul. The Afghan government has pressed hard to convince the United States to speed up training and to boost Kabul's air capability by supplying the Air Force with advanced aircraft and equipment.
'Many Shortcomings'
General Mohammad Zahir Azimi, spokesman for the Afghan Defense Ministry, says that in order for Afghanistan to defend itself and its airspace, a self-sufficient air force must be made a priority.
"The Afghan Air Force suffers from many shortcomings," Azimi says. "In particular, we don't have fighter jets to support ground troops and protect our airspace. We also don't have any reconnaissance or surveillance capabilities, or an air-defense system."
To boost the Air Force's capabilities, the U.S. Air Force (USAF) signed a $427 million contract with U.S.-based Sierra Nevada Corporation in March to provide 20 light-attack aircraft. The A-29 Super Tucano turboprop plane will be built by Brazilian subcontractor Embraer and is expected to be delivered by the end of next year.
The Afghan Air Force will also receive at least four C-130 Hercules transport planes within the next two years.
Those arrivals will complement the Afghan Air Force's current fleet, which consists of about 50 operational aircraft, including 40 Russian Mi-17 transport helicopters and seven Mi-35 Hind attack helicopters. It also has transport aircraft, including 16 Italian-made C-27s, although many have been grounded or removed from service due to issues with safety, maintenance, and a lack of spare parts.
Expect Turbulence
Meanwhile, the Afghan Air Force has only around 6,000 personnel, with many recruits often turned away because they cannot meet literacy requirements.
The Afghan Air Force's ranks include only a small team of trained pilots, many of them veterans from the Soviet era. Around 150 Afghan pilots are being trained inside Afghanistan and abroad, mostly in the United States and the Czech Republic.
Mark Young -- president of Defense Technology Inc., an Alabama-based company providing aviation support services to the U.S. government in Afghanistan -- says Afghanistan will not have a fully functioning air force for at least another decade.
Young says even if the Afghan Air Force were to reach its goals, the force would not be sufficient to protect Afghanistan, considering the country's size and militant threat.
And, he notes, Afghanistan will likely struggle to fund an independent air force.
"What we [the United States] have given them they can't afford. It would take half of their defense budget just to keep those aircrafts flying," Young says. "Plus, we fly thousands of missions over there and they don't have the aircraft to do that either. I think their air force is largely going to be a special-missions air force. It's going to move the president and elected officials, help when there's a disaster, and help move ballots during the votes. But it will not be a true cornerstone of their national defense."
'Motivated' Crew
Air Force Major General H.D. Jake Polumbo Jr., director of the NATO ISAF mission's Air Component Coordination Element in Afghanistan, has conceded that the capacity of the Afghan Air Force is "still very limited" and it needs the continued support of NATO to be able to conduct independent air surveillance, air support, and mobility operations.
Speaking via video teleconference from his headquarters in Kabul on April 23, Polumbo said NATO's air-power assets would draw down at a "lower slope" than ground forces. He also said the United States would maintain some sort of air presence after 2014, including support from bases and Navy aircraft carriers in the region, and the use of unmanned drones.
Lieutenant Colonel Brandon Deacon, the commander of the 438th Air Expeditionary Advisory Squadron based in Kabul, says that despite its weaknesses the AAF has plenty of strengths, including strong leadership and motivation.
"Their biggest strength is their motivation," Deacon says. "They seem to me to be very grateful to have our assistance, and they're also very receptive to our ideas. I think a lot of the air crew perform very well and they're doing a lot of missions on their own."
The Afghan Air Force has conducted winter resupply missions to remote Afghan army locations in the east, provided direct support to Afghan border police, and conducted independent air assaults into Taliban-controlled areas.
Washington and Kabul are currently in talks over a residual U.S. military presence that may remain in Afghanistan after 2014. Aircrafts and weaponry to the Afghan military is likely to be subject to negotiations over the Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA).
There are currently 66,000 American troops in Afghanistan. That number is expected to drop to around 32,000 by February. The United States is expected to keep somewhere between 6,000 and 10,000 troops to advise Afghan security forces after the combat mission ends in December 2014.
Written and reported by Frud Bezhan, with additional reporting by RFE/RL Radio Free Afghanistan correspondent Ahmad Zhakfar
Afghanistan War Is Not a Just War
Huffington Post By Nake M. Kamrany and Jessica Greenhalgh 05/06/2013
Unbeknown to most Americans, the Afghanistan war is the longest American war in its history. More importantly, this war defies the elements of a just war as elucidated by St Augustine of Hippo 2000 years ago: First, it was not based on clear, legitimate or just aims. The war aim was to capture Osama bin Laden but he was not in Afghanistan. Second, it should not have been undertaken out of hate, greed or other base motives, ostensibly, it was taken out of punishment of the Pashtun tribes under the mistaken view of their anti-American role. Third, this war was prosecuted as a first resort instead of a last resort and finally there must have been the likelihood of success, there is no success in this war.
To date, this is the longest war ever endured by the U.S. The only other longest wars the U.S. participated in were the Vietnam War from 1964-1972, and the Iraq War from 2003-2011. Sadly, there was no true victory in either of those two wars. Unfortunately, the same unsuccessful outcome will be true with the Afghanistan War. At this point, thousands of innocent lives, women, children, and American Soldiers have lost their lives in this war. To help alleviate any further damages incurred by the war, it is essential that the U.S. withdraw their forces this year instead in 2014. Most likely, historians will mark the Afghanistan war the greatest mistake of Obama's presidency, as he labeled it, "the right war."
When evaluating why the war should end in Afghanistan, it is very important to consider the total damages sustained compared to benefits endured from the war. Let's begin by considering the costs incurred by the United States. Tragically, as of May 5, 2013, there have been 2,206 American soldiers killed , and 18,462 wounded, all young Americans between 18 -29 years of age... Additionally, during the end of 2012, the Congressional Research Service estimated that the total operations cost for the Afghanistan War was $557 billion dollars, not including costs incurred in 2013 and beyond. To put this into comparison, the current California budget deficit is $16 billion dollars , and the federal budget deficit is estimated at $845 billion for 2013. Evidently, the amount spent on the war could have paid off California's deficit 34 times over.
Furthermore, when breaking down the U.S. expenses into components, the costs are quite alarming. Just to train and send one U.S. soldier to Afghanistan, it is estimated to cost the United States $500,000. And the estimated cost to deploy one U.S. civilian government employee in Afghanistan is $425,926-$570,998. Furthermore, there is also a substantial cost for the military equipment in Afghanistan. Currently, the U.S. military equipment in Afghanistan that has accumulated over the past 10 years is estimated to be worth $36 billion dollars. In addition to that, there is an estimated $12.8 million dollars purchased equipment sitting unused and in storage. Most of it will become worthless, as much of the equipment had warranties that are soon to expire and have yet to be tested. Evidently, it was not needed. Furthermore, what the nation owes to veterans who are disabled during service has more than doubled since 2000, rising from $14.8 billion in 2000 to $39.4 billion in 2011, according to the Department of Vete
rans Affairs. In this case, Afghanistan and the Iraq War were key contributors. How do these costs measure up against the benefits of the war? What benefits were there for the United States in Afghanistan war? How did the security of the United States improve by occupying numerous villages or imprisoning thousands of Pushtun villages in Afghanistan?
To fully analyze the cost vs. benefits from the war, it's also necessary to consider the damages sustained by Afghanistan due to the war. From the war alone, it's estimated that Afghanistan has sustained over $100 million, USD, in property damages alone. Considering it is a very low income country having low GDP, that amount is a substantial loss to encounter. Moreover, it's estimated that at least 3,315,000 Afghans have been displaced due to the war. In addition to financial losses, the most critical damages they have sustained are from fatalities and injuries. Reports indicate that there were 225,000 civilian deaths and 365,000 physically wounded over 10 years of war in Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Iraq combined. However, the estimates in the civilian casualties in the Afghanistan War are likely to be largely underestimated due to the lack of proper body count. Nonetheless, the fact remains that the number of innocent civilian lives killed were enormous.
Afghanistan has also encountered many consequential war costs, which include diseases due to lack of clean drinking water, malnutrition and poverty, and reduced healthcare access. The war has also caused invisible problems to Afghan civilians. In 2009, the Afghan ministry said "fully two-thirds of Afghans suffer mental health problems," and over 800,000 Afghans are disabled due to the war. Sadly, once disabled, less than 30 percent are able to find work, leaving them with great financial hardships.
While the U.S. is starting to lower the level of troops in Afghanistan, in its place the U.S. is now increasing the use of Drones. Drone strikes rose 72 percent in 2012 compared to 2011, and there were 506 strikes alone in 2012. The problem is that while drones reduce risk for U.S. forces, it greatly increases safety risks for civilians. For example, an untargeted Afghan girl collecting firewood had died from shrapnel caused by a drone attack that hit only 30 yards from her home. There will continue to be a rise in risk as the use of armed drones is expected to accelerate as 66,000 troops are expected to leave by 2014. Why are we continuing to kill Afghans if we are withdrawing from the war?
On a societal level, it's also important to consider the impact on the tribal villages, such as the crime and genocide against the Pashtun Tribes. Pashtun people are the largest ethnic group in the world with 45 million living in Afghanistan and Pakistan. However, they are constantly being pushed out of their villages. Around 85 percent of the 6.2 million Afghans that fled and emigrated due to the 1979 Soviet invasion were Pashtun. And now more are having to leave their villages due to U.S. war in Afghanistan War. They have experienced 30,000 pound bombs destroying their villages, burning of crops, killings of animals and civilians, many women and children. In general, the Pashtun tribes are wishing for peace, equal rights, and education, not war and terrorism. Sadly, they are wrongly being punished for the crimes committed by bin Laden, al-Qaeda, and the Arabs against the United States.
Upon considering the possible reasons the U.S. invaded Afghanistan, maybe it could have been due to capturing Osama bin Laden, wiping out the poppy production, doing away with warlords and drug lords, going after minerals, or spreading the democratic process to help increase jobs, equal rights for women and protection. Evidently, none of this happened, nor was it necessary. The only benefit that could have come from the war in Afghanistan was with capturing Osama bin Laden. However, that didn't come about due to the war, as bin Laden escaped Afghanistan through Tora Bora in 2001 and fled to Pakistan. Ostensibly he was not even living in Afghanistan during all of these war years. Therefore, it is regrettably reasonable to state that no significant benefits were created for the United States from the war.
The critical question remaining is how to end the longest American war in history? Fortunately, the answer to this is quite simple, which is to use Nixon's Vietnam and China approach. In this case, it would be to simply declare victory and pull out by withdrawing all U.S. troops and drones from Afghanistan. Furthermore, as the U.S. continues to withdraw troops, the number of American soldier and civilian casualties in Afghanistan will also substantially decline. Considering that there was substantially more damages than benefits from this war, it is clearly evident that the people of Afghanistan do not need the assistance of the U.S forces. They do not want it. They are fully capable leading their own government into proper organization necessary for peace and prosperity of their country.
MoD To Begin Repairing of Weapons and Armoured Tanks
TOLOnews.com By Shakela Abrahimkhil 06 May 2013
Afghanistan government on Monday ordered ministry of defence to take immediate steps for repairing of heavy weapons and 800 armoured tanks.
Meanwhile, Afghanistan National Security Council has ordered Ministry of Finance to allocate $600 million dollars for ministry of defence to repair military equipment.
“We have started repairing of armoured tanks and heavy weapons and based on the order of the president and national security council we will pursue it seriously. To repair these tanks and weapons we need $60 million dollars and they have ordered ministry of finance to allocate this amount for ministry of defence, and from today we have started evaluation for repairing of vehicles and weapons,“ Gen. Zahir Azimi ministry of defence spokesman said.
Afghanistan National Security Council in a released statement added that for this purpose a period of one year has been estimated and that the ministry of defence has to present its report to the security council every three months.
In the mean time, Isaf has declared its commitment to equip Afghan Security Forces which according to this commitment, Afghan Air Force will be fully equipped and ready to conduct operations by 2016.
“So far individual Isaf nations have already very generously equipped the Afghan National Security Forces. And I just give you a few examples. Just recently the United States provided hundreds of Humvees to the Afghan National Army, to keep them more protected when moving, Isaf spokesman said.
He said that the Isaf provided 100 percent in terms of small weapons of what the Afghan National Security Forces need, “so 100 percent of Tashkeel has been fulfilled for small weapons and when you look at the Tashkeel regarding transportation and communication, we provided so far approximately 90 percent.”
“Now I know that there are still shortfalls in ANSF regarding equipment, and virtually as we speak, individual nations sit together with representatives from GoIRA and with representatives from the ANSF and discuss how they can overcome those shortfalls. And I know that at the NACD air forces have been addressed as well,” he said.
Afghanistan National Security Council ordered both defence and interior ministries to place Afghan Security Forces in all the bases which are evacuated by foreign forces.
On the other hand, Isaf said that each base station Isaf forces leaves, these bases are handed over to Afghan Security Forces and a commission is working for this purpose and Isaf is cooperating with this commission.
Inmates Go on Hunger Strike Over President Karzai’s Decree
TOLOnews.com By Anisa Shahid 06 May 2013
A number of inmates in Pul e Charkhi prison have begun hunger strike in response to President Karzai’s last decree on prisoners, Prison Officials said on Monday.
Afghan President Hamed Karzai in his last decree has brought some decrease in jail terms of some prisoners, which faced reactions of other prisoners.
Chief of the Afghan Detention Facilities Department Amir Mohammad Jamshid said that a number of prisoners have been refusing to eat lunch and dinner since Friday against the President’s decree.
Mr Jamshid added that the prisoners whose executions have been changed to years in prison and those who have major crimes are out of the decree.
“A number of inmates including smugglers and murderers with heavy criminal backgrounds have gone on strike against the decree. These people are kidnappers, thieves and people who have committed rape,”
Chief of the Afghan Detention Facilities Department Amir Mohammad Jamshid said.
Meanwhile, a number of prisoners in the fourth block of Pul e Charkhi prison through some pictures said to media that they have started hunger strike since Friday.
According to the decree, the prisoners who are sentenced to more than ten years in prison, two years discount, the prisoners of 5 to 10 years, one year discount, and the prisoners who have been sentenced to five years, faced six months discounts.
“There are al Qaida and Taliban followers among the strikers who want to take down the situation and provoke other prisoners ,” Amir Mohammad Jamshid said.
Chief of the Afghan Detention Facilities added that around 2,000 prisoners will be released and around 3,000 others will be granted discounts, based on the decree. He believes that the decree gives more advantage to female prisoners. It is said that nearly 24,000 men and around 700 women are imprisoned in all the government prisons in the country.
Smashed U.S. cars get a second chance in Afghanistan
Vehicles rejected by insurance companies in the U.S. and Europe gain a certain mystique in used-car lots, their musty interiors revealing vestiges of the past.
Los Angels Times By Mark Magnier May 6, 2013
They sit in the sun harboring their lost histories, their forgotten dreams, their traces of funerals, graduations and stolen kisses. On dusty windshields, insurance stickers from Travelers and State Farm bear witness to wrecks in "Metro DC," "Hardin, Texas," and "North Hollywood," some with bright orange "total loss" decals.
For their former owners, that was it, nothing left but a story to recount of a corner rounded too quickly, a red light run, one too many drinks for the road.
But here on the highway to Iran, thousands of used cars from America and Western Europe begin a second life.
Afghanistan doesn't manufacture its own cars, or much else, so most vehicles sold here are "pre-owned" (and many pre-crashed — but with barely a dent thanks to deft repair work by local body shops).
Most begin their journey by ship to a new world of unpaved roads, kidnappers and Islamist militants after being auctioned to middlemen by U.S. or European insurers. The vehicles land in Dubai or other ports and are then transferred onto other ships bound for Pakistan or — after being resold to circumvent U.S. and European sanctions — Iran.
The final leg of their trip to this "graveyard of empires" (and Toyota Corollas) is via transport truck.
American brands don't sell as well as Japanese and are hard to find parts for, said Abdullah, a salesman with Herat's Tamin Ansar Autos who, like many Afghans, uses only one na too much gas."
Musty interiors reveal vestiges of former lives, from sweat-stained lumbar supports and air-freshener strips to coffee-stained upholstery and shag carpeting.
Dealers in this Muslim country are careful to remove such potentially offensive hitchhikers as liquor bottles and pork-sandwich wrappers. "No one worries if 'infidels' drove them, as long as they're cleaned," said car-lot owner Abdul Aziz, 35.
Some lots sport frayed colored flags and one has a rusting model airplane out front, but there isn't much devoted to marketing, as evidenced by dealers who apparently see insurance "collision" stickers as a point of pride.
Prices range from $15,000 for late-model used Toyotas to $2,500 for aging wrecks. Unlike their American cousins, most northern European cars here aren't accident victims and thus command higher prices.
"I think Germans and Swiss must be better drivers, neater, more law abiding," Aziz said as a chicken strutted past. "Americans have that cowboy history."
Used-car importing became a lucrative business after Taliban rule ended in late 2001. But uncertainty tied to the departure of foreign combat troops in 2014 is now hurting the Afghan economy.
On a recent Friday, normally the week's busiest shopping day, a handful of shoppers browsed the half-mile strip of 30 or so used-car lots lining both sides of the road a few miles west of Herat.
"We have nothing but time," said Aziz, watching as his 3-year-old son, Omar, and friend Kaihan, 8, took one of his cars for a spin. Kaihan sat atop a booster on the driver's seat, and Aziz said Omar also sometimes took the wheel. Sure, he said, the kids are too young for driver's licenses, but they stay inside the lot and have never had an accident.
Three years ago, customers snapped up two or three of the road warriors a day, dealers say. Now two weeks can pass without a sale.
Sangin, 40, said he's lucky to clear $50 a month as both salesman and security guard, compared with $200 a couple of years back.
"People are worried about the future," he said, standing near a Toyota 4Runner bearing Virginia safety stickers splattered with bird poop. "They're just not spending."
Amid a sea of Corollas sit a few used trucks, Korean ambulances and high-end SUVs. "I don't deal with warlord customers," Abdullah said. "Besides, most don't buy used cars. Armored vehicles are specially ordered." Toyota Land Cruisers and Lexus are the models of choice, with most "hardened" in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
Shams, 33, pulled into the Baharan Jadid Auto Co. lot on a dented motorbike and looked over a Suzuki sedan without air conditioning for $3,000 as salesman Rahmatullah popped open a hood to reveal a dust-caked engine. Shams then considered a nearby air-chilled sedan for $500 more.
"The price is negotiable," Rahmatullah added plaintively as Shams headed to the next lot.
Despite the economic turndown, traffic jams in Kabul and Herat have become world class. The rare traffic signals are all but ignored in a driving culture that dictates going as fast as possible, zigzagging in and out of oncoming traffic and beeping the horn incessantly while ignoring demoralized traffic policemen in ill-fitting uniforms.
But it will be awhile before Afghans catch up to Americans in terms of numbers: At last check in 2010, there were 20 cars per 1,000 people, up from 17 per 1,000 in 2006 in a population of 34 million, the World Bank reported. That compares with 797 cars per 1,000 Americans.
In Herat's crowded Shahin market, electrician Sufiullah Herawi double-parked his 1996 Toyota Corolla DX as two workers installed a checkered strip on his doors, complementing his dashboard carpet, leather steering wheel cover and DVD player. "My friends are jealous," he said. "Whenever I add something, they copy me."
"It's good to see Afghans become more car-conscious," added Abdul Zahir, owner of a nearby accessory shop, surrounded by high-end tires and metallic-sheen rims. "And it's great for my business."
In the 1950s and 1960s, Ford, Mercedes and GM cars graced Afghanistan's hot, dusty roads, giving way to temperamental Volgas after the 1979 Soviet invasion.
Once the Taliban took over, dealers said, used made-in-Japan cars grew more popular. After the group's ouster, regulations were imposed requiring that steering wheels be on the left side, opening the door for a torrent of imports from the U.S. and Europe.
For Anna Patterson, author of a study on Afghanistan's used-car market, there's a certain magic in the aging autos. "It feels a bit like a camel herd in medieval times, with so many stories around these vintage vehicles," she said. "It's rather romantic."
For local dealers, it's just a paycheck. "I don't know why Americans don't fix their cars after an accident and keep using them," salesman Abdullah said. "Perhaps they have so much money they don't care? Anyways, we sell 'em all."
Vehicles rejected by insurance companies in the U.S. and Europe gain a certain mystique in used-car lots, their musty interiors revealing vestiges of the past.
Los Angels Times By Mark Magnier May 6, 2013
They sit in the sun harboring their lost histories, their forgotten dreams, their traces of funerals, graduations and stolen kisses. On dusty windshields, insurance stickers from Travelers and State Farm bear witness to wrecks in "Metro DC," "Hardin, Texas," and "North Hollywood," some with bright orange "total loss" decals.
For their former owners, that was it, nothing left but a story to recount of a corner rounded too quickly, a red light run, one too many drinks for the road.
But here on the highway to Iran, thousands of used cars from America and Western Europe begin a second life.
Afghanistan doesn't manufacture its own cars, or much else, so most vehicles sold here are "pre-owned" (and many pre-crashed — but with barely a dent thanks to deft repair work by local body shops).
Most begin their journey by ship to a new world of unpaved roads, kidnappers and Islamist militants after being auctioned to middlemen by U.S. or European insurers. The vehicles land in Dubai or other ports and are then transferred onto other ships bound for Pakistan or — after being resold to circumvent U.S. and European sanctions — Iran.
The final leg of their trip to this "graveyard of empires" (and Toyota Corollas) is via transport truck.
American brands don't sell as well as Japanese and are hard to find parts for, said Abdullah, a salesman with Herat's Tamin Ansar Autos who, like many Afghans, uses only one na too much gas."
Musty interiors reveal vestiges of former lives, from sweat-stained lumbar supports and air-freshener strips to coffee-stained upholstery and shag carpeting.
Dealers in this Muslim country are careful to remove such potentially offensive hitchhikers as liquor bottles and pork-sandwich wrappers. "No one worries if 'infidels' drove them, as long as they're cleaned," said car-lot owner Abdul Aziz, 35.
Some lots sport frayed colored flags and one has a rusting model airplane out front, but there isn't much devoted to marketing, as evidenced by dealers who apparently see insurance "collision" stickers as a point of pride.
Prices range from $15,000 for late-model used Toyotas to $2,500 for aging wrecks. Unlike their American cousins, most northern European cars here aren't accident victims and thus command higher prices.
"I think Germans and Swiss must be better drivers, neater, more law abiding," Aziz said as a chicken strutted past. "Americans have that cowboy history."
Used-car importing became a lucrative business after Taliban rule ended in late 2001. But uncertainty tied to the departure of foreign combat troops in 2014 is now hurting the Afghan economy.
On a recent Friday, normally the week's busiest shopping day, a handful of shoppers browsed the half-mile strip of 30 or so used-car lots lining both sides of the road a few miles west of Herat.
"We have nothing but time," said Aziz, watching as his 3-year-old son, Omar, and friend Kaihan, 8, took one of his cars for a spin. Kaihan sat atop a booster on the driver's seat, and Aziz said Omar also sometimes took the wheel. Sure, he said, the kids are too young for driver's licenses, but they stay inside the lot and have never had an accident.
Three years ago, customers snapped up two or three of the road warriors a day, dealers say. Now two weeks can pass without a sale.
Sangin, 40, said he's lucky to clear $50 a month as both salesman and security guard, compared with $200 a couple of years back.
"People are worried about the future," he said, standing near a Toyota 4Runner bearing Virginia safety stickers splattered with bird poop. "They're just not spending."
Amid a sea of Corollas sit a few used trucks, Korean ambulances and high-end SUVs. "I don't deal with warlord customers," Abdullah said. "Besides, most don't buy used cars. Armored vehicles are specially ordered." Toyota Land Cruisers and Lexus are the models of choice, with most "hardened" in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
Shams, 33, pulled into the Baharan Jadid Auto Co. lot on a dented motorbike and looked over a Suzuki sedan without air conditioning for $3,000 as salesman Rahmatullah popped open a hood to reveal a dust-caked engine. Shams then considered a nearby air-chilled sedan for $500 more.
"The price is negotiable," Rahmatullah added plaintively as Shams headed to the next lot.
Despite the economic turndown, traffic jams in Kabul and Herat have become world class. The rare traffic signals are all but ignored in a driving culture that dictates going as fast as possible, zigzagging in and out of oncoming traffic and beeping the horn incessantly while ignoring demoralized traffic policemen in ill-fitting uniforms.
But it will be awhile before Afghans catch up to Americans in terms of numbers: At last check in 2010, there were 20 cars per 1,000 people, up from 17 per 1,000 in 2006 in a population of 34 million, the World Bank reported. That compares with 797 cars per 1,000 Americans.
In Herat's crowded Shahin market, electrician Sufiullah Herawi double-parked his 1996 Toyota Corolla DX as two workers installed a checkered strip on his doors, complementing his dashboard carpet, leather steering wheel cover and DVD player. "My friends are jealous," he said. "Whenever I add something, they copy me."
"It's good to see Afghans become more car-conscious," added Abdul Zahir, owner of a nearby accessory shop, surrounded by high-end tires and metallic-sheen rims. "And it's great for my business."
In the 1950s and 1960s, Ford, Mercedes and GM cars graced Afghanistan's hot, dusty roads, giving way to temperamental Volgas after the 1979 Soviet invasion.
Once the Taliban took over, dealers said, used made-in-Japan cars grew more popular. After the group's ouster, regulations were imposed requiring that steering wheels be on the left side, opening the door for a torrent of imports from the U.S. and Europe.
For Anna Patterson, author of a study on Afghanistan's used-car market, there's a certain magic in the aging autos. "It feels a bit like a camel herd in medieval times, with so many stories around these vintage vehicles," she said. "It's rather romantic."
For local dealers, it's just a paycheck. "I don't know why Americans don't fix their cars after an accident and keep using them," salesman Abdullah said. "Perhaps they have so much money they don't care? Anyways, we sell 'em all."