"Afghanistan, I can't quit you"

An ex-Marine combat camera (the military press wing) revisits Afghanistan as a freelance journalist. Not only a look at being on both sides of civ and mil, but a glimpse at the publicity spin machine within the military.

Hey! Just wanted to say that I love your blog! Keep up the good work :) — Asked by Anonymous

Thanks!

We were treated to a “spectacular” coordinated, complex attack yesterday in Kabul and a number of other places in Afghanistan. Seemingly a Taliban/Haqqani joint effort, it was the start of their “Spring Offensive” that had been expected for a while by many of us thinking it was just too quiet around here these days.

At HQ ISAF, in the heart of Kabul’s diplomatic zone, my first indication something was up was the number of US force protection and infantry soldiers (unlike the mixed-up forces of Macedonian, US army and Marines I saw having fun last September) who rushed to the sentry posts.

Then we were treated to a series of explosions in the distance, which was the precursor to hours of RPG fire around the city, incoming and outgoing small arms fire and a few more suicide bombs going off.

One RPG came inside the base, about 25m from my office, where I was filming from the window (in full pro-gear, obv). Luckily, it landed in a concrete-lined cesspit, so no-one was injured from the impact or the fallout.

Around town, we heard reports of a location near us being used as a base for attack- opposite the Iranian embassy and near the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Presidential Palace, German embassy, UK embassy, basically as many targets as you can shake a rocket at.

Also, the Afghan parliament in the west of Kabul came under attack. We heard reports of one Afghan MP (from bad-ass Kandahar province, naturally) getting on the roof and fighting the attackers alongside his bodyguards and Afghan Security Forces. The attackers took 35 hostages from a nearby bank.

Additionally, there were attacks in Paktia, Logar and Jalalabad (on an ISAF airbase).

My Afghan and western journo friends were around town filming their hearts out - you’ll see a lot of their footage on the TV. The above photos are from Jake Simkin and David Gilly from the excellent Kabul At Work. Check their facebook page and the full album.

The attacks in Kabul took 18 hours to put down fully, as commandos carefully took the buildings where the insurgents were holed up floor-by-floor. It’s being trumped as a triumph for Afghan forces, as their didn’t officially request ISAF help. If we’re going to be accurate, though, ISAF Special Forces from Norway and New Zealand were there with the Afghan Commandos mentoring (you can see these in David Gilly’s album). And anyone who was up after midnight will have heard the black hawk helicopters strafing the building in Wazir Akbar Khan. So not completely a solely Afghan operation, although, as my friend Paddy Smith observed from a location only 100m away, the first man up the ladder into the building was Afghan,

     “He knew there were live bad guys in there and after 3 or 4 people refused, he climbed the ladder, pistol in hand and made the entry.”

Our footage wasn’t as sexy as last year, but my interview with ISAF spokesperson, B-G Carsten Jacobson did make BBC and Al-J.

Edit: casualty figures still unclear. Chief of Police, Gen Salangi made the following statement on Twitter:

“ANSF killed 16 attackers in 3 locations. Sadly 5 civilians injured&6 police killed. Proud to say Kabul police rescued 35 civilians hostage”

I heard yesterday, though, on the Afghan grapevine, that 12 students were killed near to the Kabul Star hotel, where the W-A-K attackers were based. This remains unconfirmed for now.

SBS’s Yalda Hakim, reporting for CNN on the Panjway shootings, interviews survivors. The case remains extremely murky.

A Gathering Menace

Neil Shea describes the behaviour of a platoon of soldiers he was embedded with.

The unnecessary disclaimer is, of course, that for every platoon like this, there are ten doing things by the book in terms of treating civilians with respect, even if they hate every moment of it.

But, naturally, in my time in Afghanistan, I’ve witnessed searches almost exactly like this and encountered characters like “Sgt Givens”. Of course, I’ve found them threatening and felt the urge to assimilate and outwardly approve of their actions - it’s a survival skill, especially if you’re under their protection.

I believe it’s too easy to condemn behaviour like this from afar. Like Shea says, there’s always that hope it’s just bravado.

Shea doesn’t reveal the location, but I would guess it was somewhere like rural Ghazni, which hasn’t seen NATO troops on the ground until the US arrived a year and a half ago. Until now, the Taliban have been acting as local government.

It is a matter of great regret that the throwing of bombs by Zeppelins on London was denounced as a most savage act and the bombardment of places of worship and sacred spots was considered a most abominable operation, while now we see with our own eyes that such operations were a habit which is prevalent amongst all civilized people of the West.
Amir Amanullah Khan in 1919 on the use of British RAF to launch airstrikes during the third Anglo-Afghan war.

Round-up of reactions to Kandahar shooting in Kabul

via Al-Jazeera.

What seems to be playing out among my Afghan and international friends is nicely summarised in the following: 

“The actions of the US soldier is horrendous, no doubt, but where is the “symbol of protest and sympathy on Face Book and Twitter” for when the Taliban kill civilians, of which most are killed by the Taliban each year?”

“I think such symbols of have always been there when ever their has been civilian casualties. For Example during the Ashora Bombing many people started using pictures of the little girl with the grean scurf who was crying in the middle of a pile of dead bodies. Or when the a taliban shooter killed over 30 people in a Kabul bank brunch in Jala Abad Afghan and twitter Users were circulating his pictures with hateful comments. Taliban are known as mass murderers and terrorists and one can not expect them any thing else but beheading, bombing and terrorizing. On the other hand we have the American solders who claim to be the good guys, liberators, defenders of human rights, women, children and oppressed. Where is all those values?”

US soldier kills Afghan civilians

The awful news appeared over the wires first this morning of a US soldier leaving a Kandahar base in Panjway, walking to a nearby village and indiscriminately shooting a number of Afghan civilians in the middle of the night.

Even if we try to understand the soldier’s actions, linking it to PTSD or comparing them to similar atrocities in Iraq; even if we try to compare his actions to equally horrific things the Taliban do, there’s really no way to come back from this for the international community.

The eruption of protests from the Koran burning shows that this is a country easily ignited and, in the mire of conflicting sources and rumour, truth and moderation sink below the visible.

Here are a few of the reports and reactions:

WSJ -  “A U.S. service member walked off his base in southern Afghanistan and opened fire on local civilians early Sunday morning, killing at least 10 people, according to Afghan officials.”

Massoud Hossani, Photographer for AFP -  “RT: @Massoud151: All info comes from #kandahar event is so wierd. How that US guy went inside a house and did that? in 3 am for sure no one is in streets.”

Taliban Official Website calling it “genocide” - “the American terrorists and their puppets shot the household members at point blank range and so far 50 bodies have been found and recovered by the villagers.”

Quentin Sommerville, BBC - “16 dead according to security sources in including eleven killed in one house.”

ISAF official press release - “I cannot explain the motivation behind such callous acts, but they were in no way part of authorized ISAF military activity.  An investigation is already underway and every effort will be made to establish the facts and hold anyone responsible to account.”

My feature on Darulaman Palace

And next, one about the heavy snowfall in Afghanistan.