Tuesday, April 27, 2010
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
Blast at Army Base Near Kabul Airport Kills Two
Blast at army base near Kabul airport kills two
19 Apr 2010 14:43:17 GMT
Source: Reuters
* Taliban say blast on base caused by infiltrator
* Bomb in south kills three nephews of Karzai ally
By Sayed Salahuddin
KABUL, April 19 (Reuters) - An explosion at an Afghan army base near Kabul's airport on Monday killed one NATO service member and one Afghan soldier, officials said, in an attack claimed by the Taliban.
A separate bomb attack killed three young nephews of a high-profile ally of President Hamid Karzai in the southern city of Kandahar, where violence has surged ahead of a planned major offensive by U.S.-led forces.
Afghan and NATO officials declined to give details of the cause of the blast at the base near Kabul airport, saying it was still under investigation.
Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said the attack was carried out by a Taliban infiltrator, who struck while foreign advisers were training Afghan troops.
The airport is a combined civil-military one which is also used by foreign troops and in the past has come under rocket attacks as well as suicide strikes at its gates.
A Defence Ministry spokesman Zaher Murad said one Afghan soldier was killed and three wounded. The NATO-led International Security Assistance Force said in a statement that one of its members was also killed and several wounded.
NATO efforts to train Afghan forces have been plagued in recent months by "rogue" Afghan soldiers and police turning weapons on their trainers, and infiltrators gaining access to compounds meant to be secure.
In November, an Afghan police trainee killed five British soldiers at a checkpoint. In December, a Jordanian infiltrator at a U.S. base killed seven employees or contractors working for the CIA and a Jordanian intelligence officer.
DONKEY BOMBER
In the other big attack on Monday, a bomb strapped to the back of a donkey killed three young nephews of a tribal chief allied to Karzai in Kandahar, the president's home town.
Three pedestrians and two police were also wounded in the blast, which struck a police post guarding the home of the tribal chief, Fazluddin, said Zalmai Ayoubi, spokesman for the regional governor.
The city, birthplace of the resurgent Taliban, has witnessed a dramatic upsurge in violence in recent weeks, ahead of a planned major offensive by U.S.-led NATO troops.
U.S. officials say their operation in Kandahar in coming months will be the centrepiece of a military campaign this year to turn the tide in the eight-year-old war with an extra 30,000 troops sent by President Barack Obama.
19 Apr 2010 14:43:17 GMT
Source: Reuters
* Taliban say blast on base caused by infiltrator
* Bomb in south kills three nephews of Karzai ally
By Sayed Salahuddin
KABUL, April 19 (Reuters) - An explosion at an Afghan army base near Kabul's airport on Monday killed one NATO service member and one Afghan soldier, officials said, in an attack claimed by the Taliban.
A separate bomb attack killed three young nephews of a high-profile ally of President Hamid Karzai in the southern city of Kandahar, where violence has surged ahead of a planned major offensive by U.S.-led forces.
Afghan and NATO officials declined to give details of the cause of the blast at the base near Kabul airport, saying it was still under investigation.
Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said the attack was carried out by a Taliban infiltrator, who struck while foreign advisers were training Afghan troops.
The airport is a combined civil-military one which is also used by foreign troops and in the past has come under rocket attacks as well as suicide strikes at its gates.
A Defence Ministry spokesman Zaher Murad said one Afghan soldier was killed and three wounded. The NATO-led International Security Assistance Force said in a statement that one of its members was also killed and several wounded.
NATO efforts to train Afghan forces have been plagued in recent months by "rogue" Afghan soldiers and police turning weapons on their trainers, and infiltrators gaining access to compounds meant to be secure.
In November, an Afghan police trainee killed five British soldiers at a checkpoint. In December, a Jordanian infiltrator at a U.S. base killed seven employees or contractors working for the CIA and a Jordanian intelligence officer.
DONKEY BOMBER
In the other big attack on Monday, a bomb strapped to the back of a donkey killed three young nephews of a tribal chief allied to Karzai in Kandahar, the president's home town.
Three pedestrians and two police were also wounded in the blast, which struck a police post guarding the home of the tribal chief, Fazluddin, said Zalmai Ayoubi, spokesman for the regional governor.
The city, birthplace of the resurgent Taliban, has witnessed a dramatic upsurge in violence in recent weeks, ahead of a planned major offensive by U.S.-led NATO troops.
U.S. officials say their operation in Kandahar in coming months will be the centrepiece of a military campaign this year to turn the tide in the eight-year-old war with an extra 30,000 troops sent by President Barack Obama.
Monday, April 19, 2010
The Earth Moved Again -- But I didn't Feel It
KABUL — A magnitude 5.3 earthquake struck in the mountains north of Afghanistan's capital early Monday, killing at least seven people and injuring 30, officials said.
The temblor hit just before 1 a.m. (2030 GMT Sunday) in Samangan province, about halfway between Kabul and the northern city of Mazar-i-Sharif, according to the province's deputy governor, Kulam Sakhi Baghlani.
Roads and communications are sparse in the area, and casualty reports take time to reach authorities. The quake was felt in Kabul as well as the neighboring countries of Uzbekistan and Tajikistan.
Baghlani said three districts of scattered mud-walled villages were affected, with more than 300 homes damaged and dozens of head of livestock killed. Landslides sparked by the quake had blocked roads, making even more arduous what was already an eight-hour drive along winding mountain trails from the provincial capital of Aybak.
"The quake would have been felt much more intensely up in the mountains," Baghlani said. He said three civil defense units had been dispatched to check on the damage and casualties.
The Hindu Kush region is capable of producing large earthquakes along faultlines where India slammed against the Asian continent millions of years ago.
In 1998, a pair of quakes measuring 5.9 and 6.6 struck along Afghanistan's border with Tajikistan, killing more than 6,000 people. A 5.3 quake that hit Baghlan province next to Samangan in 2002 killed about 1,000 people.
The temblor hit just before 1 a.m. (2030 GMT Sunday) in Samangan province, about halfway between Kabul and the northern city of Mazar-i-Sharif, according to the province's deputy governor, Kulam Sakhi Baghlani.
Roads and communications are sparse in the area, and casualty reports take time to reach authorities. The quake was felt in Kabul as well as the neighboring countries of Uzbekistan and Tajikistan.
Baghlani said three districts of scattered mud-walled villages were affected, with more than 300 homes damaged and dozens of head of livestock killed. Landslides sparked by the quake had blocked roads, making even more arduous what was already an eight-hour drive along winding mountain trails from the provincial capital of Aybak.
"The quake would have been felt much more intensely up in the mountains," Baghlani said. He said three civil defense units had been dispatched to check on the damage and casualties.
The Hindu Kush region is capable of producing large earthquakes along faultlines where India slammed against the Asian continent millions of years ago.
In 1998, a pair of quakes measuring 5.9 and 6.6 struck along Afghanistan's border with Tajikistan, killing more than 6,000 people. A 5.3 quake that hit Baghlan province next to Samangan in 2002 killed about 1,000 people.
Sunday, April 18, 2010
Continuing Saga -- Visa Renewal
I am trying a different tack today to get my Visa renewed. My local national friend has hooked my up with (Ahmad the Terrorist)to process my Visa. Paid him up-front -- hope I see him again. Got to have my Visa renewed before I leave in June 2010. He said it will take 2 weeks. He supposedly has connections (father) at the Passport Office -- we'll see.
Papa Smurf's Big Adventure
I have been having my local national friend working on getting me a new Visa. He had his father working the process at the Ministry of Interior -- passport office today. His father called and said that the MOI official wanted to see me to make sure I was who I said I was. So off I went to the MOI with my interpretor. We got there and there was a line way out the door -- probably 20 people waiting. I was told to go to the front of the line. I could tell the people in line didn't like that idea, but worked my way through the line in full battle rattle. Got inside and the guy said my request was for a 1 month Visa not 6 months. He said I had to go to the Ministry of Finance and have it corrected. So off we went in a taxi and walking the last part because taxis can go down some streets. You should have seen the people look at me. You don't normally see Americans walking down the street without security. Anyway when we got to the MOF they said I had to start the paperwork all over again since the first request said I wanted a one month Visa and they couldn't change it even though it was theri error. So I will start the process all over agian. So we walked back to the Camp Eggers. Boy was I tired after walking around in 60 lb battle rattle in 70 degree heat. But arrived safe and sound no worse for the wear. Needless to say I don't plan on doing that again.
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