Rebel Militias Capture Afghan Provincial Capital

[papau]

http://ap.tbo.com/ap/breaking/MGBDV9Y7MVD.html

Rebel Militias Capture Afghan Provincial Capital, 10 Reported Killed
By Stephen Graham Associated Press Writer

KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) - Fighters loyal to several regional warlords stormed a remote provincial capital and forced the governor to flee, one of the group's leaders and a government official said Friday. At least 10 people were believed killed.

The violence presents a fresh security threat for President Hamid Karzai, whose authority is already sapped by factional fighting across a swath of northern and western Afghanistan as well as a spreading Taliban-led insurgency.

Clashes broke out late Thursday in Chagcharan, a small town that is the capital of western Ghor province, 220 miles west of the capital Kabul.

Din Mohammed Azimi, Ghor's deputy governor, said the governor had fled for either Herat or Kabul on Thursday afternoon. <snip>

[jobycom]

1. But...but... Bush said.... Oh never mind. nt

[luaneryder]

2. You beat me to it! n/t

[saigon68]

3. Maybe the Mayor of Kabul can lead his BlackWater USA Army of 250

And retake the capital. They are after all trained mercenaries.

[bobthedrummer]

5. "Elite commandos" = mass murdering criminals for hire.

:grr:

[0007]

9. Very well paid assassins, even better than the uniformed ones.

[saigon68]

10. They go were the money is

Kind of like Halliburton

[AlCzervik]

4. Holy Shyte

That is big news and not good at that. Afghanistan----the forgotten war. Meanwhile Bush is at yet another military base trying to remarket the war in Iraq.

[xchrom]

6. another bush fuck-up

[Barrett808]

7. Sy Hersh: "NATO's falling apart in Afghanistan now"

"NATO's falling apart in Afghanistan now."

And this was one of the most stunning parts. He had just returned from Europe, and he said high officials, even foreign ministers, who used to only talk to him off the record or give him backchannel messages, were speaking on the record that the next time the U.S. comes to them with intelligence, they'll simply have no reason to believe it.... He lamented of his journalistic colleagues, "I don't know whey they don't just tell it like it is."...

He said the people most horrified by the way the war was planned were the military commanders responsible for protecting their troops.... He talked about the horror of the 1000 civilian deaths in Fallujah (but was careful to note the Marines were doing their job, placing the blame with their superiors)....

(more)

http://www.j-bradford-delong.net/movable_type/2004_archives/000987.html

[seemslikeadream]

8. Governor flees Afghanistan rebels

Reports from the area say there had been weeks of factional fighting over positions in the local administration.

Commander Khan had refused to disarm his militia unless he was given a role.



Our correspondent says the slow pace of militia disarmament, which the government and the United Nations are overseeing, is one of the biggest hazards on Afghanistan's path to democracy.

This week, while visiting the United States, President Hamid Karzai urged more international funding for this demobilisation, saying the militias continued to oppress Afghans and challenge law and order
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/3818141.stm


Afghan militia forces governor out
Azimi, who said he was speaking from a village a few miles to the north of the city, said at least 10 of his men were killed and that more than 1,500 fighters were preparing a counterattack.

Ghulam Yahya, a former Ghor police chief who is now one of the warlords opposed to the governor, said he knew of only one person killed, but it was not clear if he was referring only to casualties on his side.

The fighting follows weeks of tension between allies of the provincial military commander, Ahmad Murghabi, and rival tribes over positions in the local administration.

Azimi said a group of rival factions led by Rais Salam launched the attack after rejecting an offer of control of four government departments, including police and intelligence.

He said a delegation from the Kabul government led by Alam Rasekh, an adviser to Karzai, had left Chagcharan on Wednesday.

Once the fighting broke out, Azimi said he appealed in vain to Defense Minister Mohammed Fahim and other officials in Kabul.

"They promised to help but nothing came. The central goverment is very weak, it's useless," he complained, also calling for NATO and the U.S. military to send troops.
http://edition.cnn.com/2004/WORLD/asiapcf/06/18/afghan.raid.ap/

2 NZ soldiers injured in Afghanistan

www.chinaview.cn 2004-06-18 16:22:37

WELLINGTON, June 18 (Xinhuanet) -- Two New Zealand Special Forces soldiers were injured Friday in an operation in Afghanistan, the New Zealand Defence Force said in a brief statement.

The New Zealand soldiers were injured about midday (New Zealand time) in central Afghanistan and were evacuated by helicopter to a medical facility, the statement said.

Their condition was "satisfactory" and their families had been informed, it added.

However, New Zealand Defence Force spokeswoman Commander Sandy McKie refused to make any further comment.

The injuries were a result of an exchange of fire with local people, a New ZeaLand TV report said Friday night.

Prime Minister Helen Clark and Defence Minister Mark Burton announced the deployment of about 50 Special Air Service (NZSAS) personnel to Afghanistan in March, for a term of up to 180 days.

Leaked defense documents reported in the New Zealand Herald in May revealed NZSAS troops would engage in combat missions with theUS forces in Afghanistan.

It was reported that their missions include short-duration strikes and other small-scale offensive operations to seize, destroy, capture, recover or inflict damage on designated personnel or material.

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2004-06/18/content_1534147.htm