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News archives for the week ending 9th April 2010

Model mosques used on firing range

The Ministry of Defence has apologised after it emerged that model mosques had been erected at the end of a North Yorkshire firing ranged used by the British Army.

The Bradford Council for Mosques (BCM) was angered by the structures at Catterick Garrison. "Relationships between the Muslim Community and the Army are very fragile at the moment, and this seems like a silly thing for the Army to do," said Ishtiaq Ahmed of the BCM.

An Army spokesman apologised for the offence caused. "It was never our intention for these generic structures to look like or replicate mosques, only to provide a setting similar to operational environments in which our personnel could train," he said.

Independent, 9/4/10

A Great Game playboard

Russian prime minister Vladimir Putin moved quickly today to recognise the new powers-that-be in Kyrgyzstan while disavowing any role in the overthrow of President Kurmanbek Bakiyev's regime.

But if Moscow were found to have had a hand in this latest upheaval, it would hardly come as a shock. Competition with China and the US for control of strategically important energy resources and transit routes is one key motivator. More fundamentally, Moscow still unfashionably insists on regarding this vast region as falling within its sphere of influence.

Evidence of Russian meddling in Kyrgyzstan is not hard to find. Financial and commercial blandishments dangled by Putin during a visit to Moscow by Bakiyev last year, including a $2bn loan, preceded a decision by the then president to evict the US from its Manas air base, a key staging and supply route to Afghanistan. Only some nifty footwork by the Obama administration, and a sudden Bakiyev volte-face, allowed the US to hang on to Manas.

The US has good reason to take stock, too. Otunbayeva, a former foreign minister who fell out with Bakiyev, gave assurances today that the deal on the Manas base would be honoured. But Washington's self-interestedly insouciant disregard for the regime's egregious human rights abuses and disregard of democratic norms earned the US few friends among the opposition groups that now wield power.

What happens next in vulnerable, impoverished Kyrgyzstan depends on whether its new and not-so-new leaders, representing in effect the country's third attempt at a post-Soviet fresh start, prove to be any more enlightened and trustworthy than their predecessors. It would certainly help if Russia and the US, and regional powers like China and Kazakhstan, do not try to exploit the power vacuum, confine themselves to constructive advice and assistance, and stop using the country as a Great Game playboard.

Guardian, 8/4/10

Kyrgyzstan government overthrown

Large-scale protests appeared to overthrow the government of Kyrgyzstan on Wednesday and its president fled before an outbreak of mayhem and violence in the capital of Bishkek and elsewhere in the country, an important Amerian ally in Central Asia.

Government officials said at least 41 people had been killed in fighting between riot police officers and demonstrators.

The upheaval raised questions about the future of an important American air base that operates in Kyrgyzstan in support of the NATO mission in nearby Afghanistan. American officials said that as of Wednesday evening the base was functioning normally.

It also posed a potential embarrassment for the Obama administration, which angered the Kyrgyz opposition last summer by courting Mr. Bakiyev in an ultimately successful attempt to reverse his decision to close the base, angering the opposition.

Tensions had been growing in Kyrgyzstan over what human rights groups contended were the increasingly repressive policies of President Bakiyev, but it appeared that the immediate catalyst for the violence was anger over a reported quadrupling in the prices for utilities.

Mr. Bakiyev easily won another term as president as president last year over Mr. Atambaev in an election that independent monitors said was tainted by massive fraud.

Mr. Bakiyev first took office in 2005 after the Tulip Revolution, the third in what was seen at the time as a series of so-called colour revolutions that offered hope of more democratic governments in former Soviet republics. But since then, he has consolidated power, cracking down on the opposition and independent news outlets.

New York Times, 7/4/10

Video shows US air crew shooting down Iraqi civilians

A secret video showing US air crew falsely claiming to have encountered a firefight in Baghdad and then laughing at the dead after launching an air strike that killed a dozen people, including two Iraqis working for Reuters news agency, was revealed by Wikileaks today.

The footage of the July 2007 attack was made public in a move that will further anger the Pentagon, which has drawn up a report identifying the whistleblower website as a threat to national security.

The release of the video from Baghdad also comes shortly after the US military admitted that its special forces attempted to cover up the killings of three Afghan women in a raid in February by digging the bullets out of their bodies.

The newly released video of the Baghdad attacks was recorded on one of two Apache helicopters hunting for insurgents on 12 July 2007. The Pentagon blocked an attempt by Reuters to obtain the video through a freedom of information request. Wikileaks director Julian Assange said his organisation had to break through encryption by the military to view it.

Initially the US military said that all the dead were insurgents. Then it claimed the helicopters reacted to an active firefight. Assange said that the video demonstrated that neither claim was true.

The Pentagon has been seeking ways to prevent classified material appearing on Wikileaks, including through "criminal sanctions".

The Pentagon report, reflecting the depth of paranoia about where Wikileaks is obtaining its material, speculates that the CIA may be responsible. But perhaps the most embarrassing leak for the US defence department was that of the 2008 report itself which appeared on the Wikileaks site last month.

Guardian, 6/4/10

Troops in Afghanistan losing more limbs

Rising numbers of UK service personnel are losing limbs as a result of serving in Afghanistan, official figures show.

Some 54 lost part or all of a limb in 2009, including 26 who lost more than one, the Ministry of Defence says. That compares with 30 amputees in 2008 and 12 the year before.

The number of "seriously or very seriously" wounded rose from 65 in 2008 to 158 last year.

BBC News, 5/4/10

Karzai stirs more Western unease

President Hamid Karzai's latest anti-Western outburst has triggered unease and dismay among Afghan lawmakers and some in the diplomatic community in Afghanistan.

On Saturday, the Afghan leader told members of parliament that Western meddling in Afghan political affairs was helping the Taliban movement, because it fueled a public perception that the insurgency is a legitimate struggle against foreign occupation.

Karzai then added -- apparently speaking rhetorically, according to several lawmakers who were present at the closed-door talks -- that if that were the case, he would join the Taliban himself.

On Monday, White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs said the accusation of U.S. meddling was "genuinely troubling" and "obviously not true." Gibbs said he didn't think the remarks should jeopardize Afghan war funding.

Los Angeles Times, 6/4/10

41 killed in Iraq bombings

At least 41 people were killed and 237 wounded Sunday in three suicide car bombings targeting the Iranian and German embassies and the Egyptian Consulate in Iraq in a span of 30 minutes.

The bloodshed raises fears that the security situation could unravel before Iraq's next government is formed, as armed groups and political parties look to exploit the uncertain period after last month's national elections.

The conditions are reminiscent of early 2006 when Al Qaeda in Iraq took advantage of the transition between elected governments to blow up a major Shiite Muslim shrine and ignite a civil war between the country's Shiite majority and its Sunni minority, which dominated the government of President Saddam Hussein before he was toppled in the 2003 U.S.-led invasion.

Los Angeles Times, 5/4/10

Accidental German killings cap tense week

The accidental killing of six Afghan soldiers by German allies Saturday marked an unfortunate conclusion to a week of strained relations between the Afghan government and the West.

Although the governor of Kunduz, Mohammad Omar, described the killings as a tragic misunderstanding for which the German commander had apologized, other Afghan officials expressed outrage.

"Only saying 'We're sorry' is not working. It's not enough," said Mahbobullah Mahbob, head of the provincial council in Kunduz.

The killings exacerbated the tension apparent in Kabul since Thursday, when President Hamid Karzai issued an impassioned critique of the foreign presence in Afghanistan. He not only accused the United Nations and foreign embassies of conspiring to perpetrate fraud in last year's presidential election -- allegations the State Department called "preposterous" -- but said there is an easily blurred line between foreign cooperation and occupation.

Washington Post, 4/4/10

US special forces covered up killings

US special forces soldiers dug bullets out of their victims’ bodies in the bloody aftermath of a botched night raid, then washed the wounds with alcohol before lying to their superiors about what happened, Afghan investigators have told The Times.

Two pregnant women, a teenage girl, a police officer and his brother were shot on February 12 when US and Afghan special forces stormed their home in Khataba village, outside Gardez in eastern Afghanistan. The precise composition of the force has never been made public.

The claims were made as Nato admitted responsibility for all the deaths for the first time last night. It had initially claimed that the women had been dead for several hours when the assault force discovered their bodies.

“Despite earlier reports we have determined that the women were accidentally killed as a result of the joint force firing at the men,” said Lieutenant-Colonel Todd Breasseale, a Nato spokesman.

The Times, 5/4/10

'At the moment we are propping up an unstable political structure'

As President Hamid Karzai made more antagonistic statements over the weekend toward the NATO countries fighting on behalf of his government, the West was taking stock of just how little maneuvering room it has.

There are no good options on the horizon, many analysts say, for reining in Mr. Karzai or for penalizing him, without potentially damaging Western interests. The reluctant conclusion of diplomats and Afghan analysts is that for now, they are stuck with him.

Many fear the relationship is only likely to become worse, as Mr. Karzai draws closer to allies like Iran and China, whose interests are often at odds with those of the West, and sounds sympathetic enough to the Taliban that he could spur their efforts, helping their recruitment and further destabilizing the country.

“The political situation is continuing to deteriorate; Karzai is flailing around,” said a Western diplomat in Kabul with long experience in the region. “At the moment we are propping up an unstable political structure, and I haven’t seen any remotely plausible plan for building consensus.”

New York Times, 4/4/10

Obama issues secret directive on India-Pakistan tensions

President Barack Obama issued a secret directive in December to intensify American diplomacy aimed at easing tensions between India and Pakistan, asserting that without détente between the two rivals, the administration's efforts to win Pakistani cooperation in Afghanistan would suffer.

The directive concluded that India must make resolving its tensions with Pakistan a priority for progress to be made on U.S. goals in the region, according to people familiar with its contents.

A debate continues within the administration over how hard to push India, which has long resisted outside intervention in the conflict with its neighbor. The Pentagon, in particular, has sought more pressure on New Delhi, according to U.S. and Indian officials. Current and former U.S. officials said the discussion in Washington over how to approach India has intensified as Pakistan ratchets up requests that the U.S. intercede in a series of continuing disputes.

Pakistan has long regarded Afghanistan as providing "strategic depth"—essentially, a buffer zone—in a potential conflict with India. Some U.S. officials believe Islamabad will remain reluctant to wholeheartedly fight the Islamic militants based on its Afghan border unless the sense of threat from India is reduced.

U.S. and Indian officials say the Obama administration has so far made few concrete demands of New Delhi. According to U.S. officials, the only specific request has been to discourage India from getting more involved in training the Afghan military, to ease Pakistani concerns about getting squeezed by India on two borders.

Wall Street Journal, 5/4/10

India’s eager courtship of Afghanistan

Along a rugged stretch of road in the shadow of the snow-covered Hindu Kush mountains, villagers in mud-brick huts praised the newest addition to their vista: a series of massive steel towers that reach into the clouds.

The towers, part of a $1.3 billion aid package from India, carry electricity to a crippled region that has long gone without. They also represent an intense competition between India and arch-rival Pakistan for influence in whatever kind of Afghanistan emerges from the U.S.-led war.

To blunt India's eager courtship of Afghanistan, Pakistan is pouring $300 million of its own money and resources into a nation it also views as key to the stability of volatile South Asia, as well as a potentially lucrative business partner.

The economic stakes are especially enormous for India, the far richer nation, as it seeks energy to fuel its rise as a global economic power. Afghanistan is a bridge to Central Asia's vast gas and oil reserves, which are coveted by India and Pakistan, both of which have nuclear weapons but barely enough electricity.

Washington is feeling pressure from Pakistan to limit India's role in Afghanistan. Each nation fears that an Afghanistan allied with the other would be a threat to its security.

Pakistan considers Afghanistan, another majority-Muslim nation, a natural ally and is deeply suspicious of India's efforts there. "We don't want to be flanked by hostile elements," said Mansoor Ahmad Khan, deputy chief of mission in the Pakistani Embassy in Kabul, referring to Pakistan's location - sandwiched between Afghanistan to the west and India to the east.

The competition between the two nations can seem silly at times: When India donated a fleet of buses in the western city of Herat, Pakistan began donating buses decorated with painted Pakistani flags.

But the rivalry also has serious implications for the U.S.-led war. Karzai favours attempts to negotiate a settlement with the Taliban, an idea supported by Pakistan. Indian leaders fear that any Afghan settlement with the Taliban would give Pakistan more influence in Kabul, which they view with alarm.

Washington Post, 3/3/10

Twenty-four die in Iraq revenge killings

Gunmen in military uniforms killed 24 people, including five women, near Baghdad in an attack that appeared designed to punish a Sunni militia for confronting Al-Qaeda in Iraq.

The victims were dragged from their homes by about 15 men who arrived in pickup trucks in the village of Albusaifi, south of the Iraqi capital. They were handcuffed, beaten and shot in the head, execution-style.

Some were said to have been “brutalised” beyond recognition. Doctors said many of the victims’ arms and legs had been broken, suggesting torture before their killings. A further seven villagers were found alive with their hands tied behind their backs.

Major-General Qassim al-Moussawi, Baghdad’s security spokesman, said the killings bore “an obvious Al-Qaeda hallmark.”

The killers appear to have targeted members of the awakening councils — former Sunni rebels who joined forces with the US army to fight Al-Qaeda — and their families. US forces armed, trained and paid the former militants, who helped to reduce violence across the country before a handover of security to the Iraqi authorities last year.

The massacre intensified fears of renewed violence as Iraq’s two main political coalitions (led by Iyad Allawi, the former prime minister, and Nuri Al-Maliki, the incumbent prime minister) battle to form a government following elections that left neither with enough seats to rule alone.

A crucial factor will be the support of Moqtada al-Sadr, the hardline Shi’ite cleric who is holding a referendum to decide which leader to back. Observers see this as a ploy enabling him to withdraw support from Maliki, who crushed his Mahdi militia in 2008.

Sunday Times, 4/3/10

Lib Dems call for including Trident in defence review

Britain's Trident nuclear missile system must be debated in the forthcoming strategic defence review, the Liberal Democrats said today.

Given that the defence budget faces up to a £36bn shortfall over the next 10 years, all parties agree that a review must be set up before the summer. But Labour and Tory leaders say the need for a Trident-based nuclear weapons system is absolute and must be excluded from the review.

But Lib Dem defence spokesman Nick Harvey said: "Omitting the single largest procurement project from the strategic defence review makes a complete mockery of the whole exercise."

Under the government's plans, Britain would be committing itself to spending more than £100bn on nuclear weapons over the next 50 years, he added.

Guardian, 3/4/10

German soldiers killed in Afghanistan

Three German soldiers have been killed in Afghanistan, officials say. They died during fierce fighting with Taliban insurgents in the north of the country, the German military said. A number of other German soldiers were seriously wounded in the incident, which happened near Chahar Dara, south-west of the city of Kunduz.

Germany has more than 4,000 soldiers in the country - making it the third-largest foreign contingent after the US and UK.

German participation in the international coalition in Afghanistan has been deeply unpopular with the German public. The German parliament voted in February to increase Germany's contingent by up to 850 troops to a total of 5,350, with deployment expected to start in July.

BBC News, 2/4/10

Karzai calls Clinton on fraud allegations

Afghan President Hamid Karzai sought Friday to quell growing controversy over his accusations that foreigners meddled into Kabul's business, calling US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton to reassure the US.

Karzai expressed to Clinton ''his appreciation for the contributions and sacrifices of the international community,'' according to a statement released by Philip Crowley, a spokesman for the US State Department.

Just days after meeting with US President Barack Obama in Kabul, Karzai on Thursday blamed US and European Union election monitors for orchestrating ''widespread fraud'' in the August presidential election. He said the West was also trying to stop the next round of parliamentary elections slated for September.

Relations between the West and Karzai have steadily deteriorated since the disputed August election. UN monitors exposed massive fraud in the poll and threw out one-third of Karzai's votes, forcing a run- off. Karzai was eventually declared the winner because his chief opponent dropped out of the run-off.

Karzai accused US diplomat Peter Galbraith, the former deputy United Nations envoy in Afghanistan, and French General Philippe Morillon, head of EU's monitoring mission, of leading the vote rigging.

Manila Bulletin, 3/4/10

UK sells fighters to Oman...

The government of Oman wants to buy a number of fighter jets from the UK, according to Downing Street. Number 10 said at this stage it was unable to confirm the number of Eurofighter planes - known in the UK as Typhoons - being bought.

The aircraft are partly being built by BAE systems. The company, which makes the aircraft with European partners, said: "Oman is a country with which we have a long and valued relationship and we stand ready and willing to support any requirement it has."

BBC News, 2/4/10

...but French sales to Pakistan on hold

France's plan to sell 1.2 billion euro ($1.6 billion) worth of military equipment for Pakistan's JF-17 combat aircraft has been held up, a source at President Nicolas Sarkozy's office said on Friday.

Newspaper Le Monde had reported earlier that France decided to suspend the sale of electronics and missiles -- the first section of a 6 billion euro contract -- under pressure from India and uncertainty over Pakistan's finances.

Reuters, 2/4/10

Sadr could pose problems for Maliki

Followers of fiery anti-U.S. cleric Moqtada al-Sadr voted Friday to determine whom they would back to be Iraq's next prime minister, flexing their newfound political muscle and potentially causing problems for incumbent Nouri al-Maliki.

Sadr is emerging as a dominant player in deciding how Iraq's next government will be formed. His followers waged tough military battles with U.S. forces and were eventually driven underground. They have since emerged as an astute political organization, winning at least 39 seats in the new parliament. The group prides itself on resisting the U.S. presence here.

A representative of Maliki's State of Law bloc met this month with Sadr. Maliki, who went after Sadr's Shiite militia in the southern port city of Basra and parts of Baghdad, is seen by Sadrists as a traitor.

Washington Post, 3/4/10

Pentagon boosting 'eyes in the sky'

The Pentagon is intensely focused on getting more trucks, surveillance equipment and other military equipment into Afghanistan to prepare for what will be a critical summer in the war, Defense Undersecretary Ashton Carter said on Friday.

Carter, head of Pentagon acquisition, technology and logistics, said the success of the U.S. war in Afghanistan would depend largely on being able to get weapons and support services to the U.S. troops headed to the land-locked country, which he described as "the last place where you would like to be fighting a war."

As part of that effort, Carter said he was increasing 20-fold the number of airships hovering over Afghanistan, providing "eyes in the sky" to troops on the ground. Equipped with sophisticated cameras and the ability to stream images to U.S. bases on the ground, the airships would help track any activity that could jeopardize the troops, including the burying of roadside bombs.

At the same time, the very visible presence of the airships would keep potential attackers on their guard, Carter said, calling the airships a more affordable way to maintain surveillance than more expensive unmanned airplanes, which are also being deployed in Afghanistan in large numbers.

Reuters, 2/4/10