AFGHANISTAN: THE ’GOOD’ WAR TURNS BAD

AFGHANISTAN: THE ’GOOD’ WAR TURNS BAD

The situation in Afghanistan is reaching breaking point.
Civilian and military casualties have risen sharply over the
last few months. The death of another British soldier this
week brings to 200 the number of foreign soldiers killed in
Afghanistan this year.

The level of NATO bombing is up 40% on last year’s levels
and the mainstream press here has had to start reporting on
the innocent dead as a result. Two weeks ago a raid in
western Herat Province left 90 dead. US sources are still
claiming that only Taliban were killed in the village. A
joint UN/Afghan investigation found the dead were civilians.
Local residents were able to confirm the number of
casualties, including their names, age and gender. In the
last few days, other attacks have been reported, including
one bombardment in Helmand that is believed to have led to
the death of 70 people.

The war in Afghanistan risks spreading violence across the
region. On Wednesday 3 September, heavily armed US
commandoes launched a surprise attack on Jala Khel, a
Pakistani town, killing at least 20 people. This was the
first such ground raid on Pakistan by US forces. The
governor of the neighbouring province in Pakistan gave this
response: "This is a direct assault on the sovereignty of
Pakistan and the people of Pakistan expect that the armed
forces ... would rise to defend the sovereignty of the
country and give a befitting reply." SEE
http://tinyurl.com/6zc8tl

Meanwhile, The Times and The Observer have reported that
Kabul is virtually under siege by various armed groups
opposing the occupation and vital aid work has almost ground
to a halt because of the increased level of violence.

The call for all troops to come out of Afghanistan will be
one of the central demands of the demonstration in
Manchester on 20 September.