Five dead is the biggest single loss of British life in one incident in Afghanistan since 2006 when 14 died in the Nimrod aircraft crash. And it comes at a time when British public opinion is increasingly sceptical of the war.
But the way in which it happened is even more damaging. The five British men and three Afghans were shot dead by an Afghan policeman. The Afghan National Police (ANP), together with the Afghan National Army (ANA), are the exit strategy. The way out. The people NATO hand security over to.
The last thing NATO strategy needs at this delicate moment of reassessment is a broad wave of distrust sweeping NATO troops towards their Afghan counterparts.
This is, as far as the British army will say for now, what happened: at 15.15 hrs yesterday British troops and Afghan police were in a debrief after a foot patrol. They live together in a compound near a checkpoint in Shin Kalay, that’s 400 metres from the British base in Nad-e-Ali (incidentally another compound where they live alongside the ANA).
Fourteen British soldiers protect 2 British police mentors, who teach 15 Afghan police. There were no barriers, we understand, between the Brits and Afghans – they lived side by side, part of the NATO bid to win the trust of the Afghan men they fight alongside, and hope to leave the fighting to.
No-one knows why, but one of the Afghan police opened fire. He is said to have taken everyone by surprise and then fled.
The UK military have a photo of him, and know his name. Local sources say, unsurprisingly, he’s now joined the Taliban, with his AK47.
There will be questions as to how he managed – savagely – to kill 8 armed men and wound 6 other Britons without, it seems, being shot dead himself. That’s for the investigation to work out.
But another question remains, a more serious one: what will this do to the confidence of British troops working in that area? And the relations between the part of Afghan society NATO needs most – its troops and soldiers?
Will the Taliban claim this attack as one of their own and claim they’ve infiltrated the police? Or will this rogue policeman be caught and both sides hope it will never happen again?
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What surprises me is that anybody is surprised that this sort of thing happens in Afghanistan. It’s a completely pointlesss excercise leaving British troops in Afghanistan. Withdraw them a.s.a.p now and let newly elected Presdient Khazi and Abdullah Abdullah unite to get the situation under control themselves. Those two guys co-operating effectively are the best exit strategy at the moment. Whilst foreign troops remain in the country, they’ll continue to be a target…
Shock, horror, etc. but, no surprise. The British government may get away with hoodwinking a gullible public but, reality remains in these places where hatred against the west is rife.
Those poor families who have just lost their loved ones are the ones paying the price of this mess/quagmire.
The only ‘Shock & Awe’ going on now is this mess.
Does this latest episode not tell the Government anything? Will they ever learn? I do not think so. Let them get on with it themselves and stay out of it, there has been too many people dying now. Enough is enough, get our soldiers out! The government does not care about how many people die, they only care about themselves and their pay packets. Get the British soldiers out!!!!
Why are we surprised? The mistakes of the past should be our amunition for the future. No lessons were learned from a very similar conflict, which it could be argued shared striking similarities both politically and ideologically. The US aim in Vietnam was to police and ultimately give control back to a supposedly capable South Vietnamese government forces. In reality corruption was rife and it led to a lacklustre force, who when US forces limped out of a very costly war, capitulated to the invading NVA in a matter of months. There was also documented reports that when US Huey pilots lifted in troops they would spray their bullets in the cockpits killing both pilots and door gunners. yesterdays events are therefore not surprising. the real question is why we are still employing ‘hearts and minds’ tactics to a nation who live and this is not to meant to sound derisery largely simple lives and strict beliefs, they would always count Nato forces has a imperialistic force. If our own experiences regarding foreign policy are to be ignored perhaps we should heed the experiences of another massive state the old Soviet Union.
Can anyone tell me why we cannot destroy all the poppy fields and factories that produce all the drugs that finance the taliban and keep them in the strong situation they are in. I have been told that it is afganistans only source of income, and their main economy. But this money does not feed the poor, provide schools and hospitals, roads and a decent living for the people of afganistan. To destroy the main source of income for the taliban, would surely go a long way to defeat these terrorists.
And even after this horror a politician was willing to sacrifice his integrity and plausibility – to sit on TV today and stress to we the British public that the Afghan police were rigorously checked each of them. I am interested to know how a ‘rigorous’ check is possible in a country that has had buildings bombed/burnt over many years, civil war and foreign invasion and I would think anyway that besides a birth registered then what?? Please enlighten me politician if there are records I am unable to think of – Oo! maybe a year at some school and a register, maybe they pay tax of some sort! In this unstable, on several levels,population I ask where are you going to get the thousands needed to police Afghan that have backgrounds that can be RIGOROUSLY checked? You know if ‘rigorous’ can be accomplished on the quantity or I believe lack of Afghan records why do we need the dozens of checks kept on us?
Kim Howells has been talking sense today. Its very obviously time to withdraw and find other ways of combatting terrorism.
As always, public opinion is well ahead of Gordon Brown. He’s lagging behind the game again…
What a terrible tragedy for the families to come to terms with – somehow this betrayal today is even more sickening as the five Grenadier Guards and Police were murdered by the very people they were trying to help. More vigilence is needed in the recruiting process of new police recruits and they should be tested for drug abuse before enlistment and initial training and whatever happened to psychometric testing surely something could be worked out to screen the applicants so that untainted recruits could join and be properly trained to rebuild the country and police in the proper manner.
The great wars,and others involving this country have been to defend these isles from the threat of foreign invaders.
The government justifies its current expedition by saying the terroist threat is so great that we have to intervene in a foreign country.It is a false excuse to join the US in its warmongering.It is doomed to failure as a few thousand men can not sort a civil war.
There is only one solution.Get our brave men and women out there now ,and instead use them to protect our own shores.Get rid of all illegal immigrants and use the forces as a protection army around points of entry to this country
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