FSA broke its own rules in Keydata probe, judge rules

 

High Court judge found that the Financial Services Authority (FSA) had wrongfully used privileged emails to bring its case against Keydata. A further "relief hearing" will now determine the impact of the ruling, which could de-rail the case altogether. It is the latest in a line of setbacks for the regulator, which has been investigating regulatory breaches at Keydata and millions of pounds of missing retail funds for two years. Keydata invested in "life settlement funds", which buy and sell US life insurance and generate high returns. In June 2009 the FSA applied for Keydata's closure "to protect investors", saying it was concerned about "potentially missing assets". The business was fast-tracked into administration and referred to the Serious Fraud Office (SFO). It emerged that £103m of life insurance policies managed by a Luxembourg business, SLS Capital, and sold to Keydata investors as low-risk bonds might have been "misappropriated".

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US to pressure Iran over 'plot to kill Saudi envoy'

 

US Attorney General Eric Holder says the alleged conspiracy was "conceived, sponsored and directed from Iran" Continue reading the main story Related Stories Clinton hails break-up of 'plot' Middle East rivalries play out in US The US secretary of state has called for a "very strong message" to be sent to Iran, after allegations of a plot to kill the Saudi ambassador to the US. Hillary Clinton said Washington was preparing new penalties against Iran, which is already subject to a variety of international sanctions. Two Iranians were charged over the plot which US officials said implicated Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps. Meanwhile the US issued a worldwide alert about possible anti-US actions. "The US government assesses that this Iranian-backed plan to assassinate the Saudi ambassador may indicate a more aggressive focus by the Iranian government on terrorist activity against diplomats from certain countries, to include possible attacks in the United States," the alert said. It urged Americans residing and travelling abroad to review the information available when making travel plans. Iran has dismissed the allegations as false and baseless. Continue reading the main story “ Start Quote The idea that they would attempt to go to a Mexican drug cartel to solicit murder-for-hire to kill the Saudi ambassador, nobody could make that up, right?” Hillary Clinton US secretary of state 'Well-grounded suspicions' Mrs Clinton praised those involved in the operation to uncover the plot. "It was a terrific achievement by our law enforcement and intelligence communities, and we will be consulting with our friends and partners around the world about how we can send a very strong message that this kind of action, which violates international norms, must be ended," she said at a news conference. "This case will, I think, reinforce the well-grounded suspicions of many countries about what they're up to." Mrs Clinton said the suspected plotters had been trying to involve hired killers from Mexican drug cartels. "The idea that they would attempt to go to a Mexican drug cartel to solicit murder-for-hire to kill the Saudi ambassador, nobody could make that up, right?" she said. US Attorney General Eric Holder said Iran's involvement in the plot was "a flagrant violation of US and international law". Continue reading the main story Analysis Mohammad Manzarpour BBC Persian There is a long history of animosity between Iran and Saudi Arabia which stretches back to before the Islamic Revolution of 1979. Religiously, the Wahhabi rulers of Saudi Arabia and the Shia clerics of Iran reject each other's interpretation of Islam. Geopolitically, the two are staunch rivals, engaged in a seemingly never-ending battle for greater regional influence. They have also been engaged in proxy wars for decades, taking different sides in the Iran-Iraq war, Afghanistan, Lebanon and the Palestinian territories. But it is the Saudis' military intervention in Bahrain which may have prompted the alleged plot. It was little criticised in the West but was seen in Iran as a blatant assault on the Shia majority in Bahrain. In a statement, UK Prime Minister David Cameron's office said: "Indications that this plot was directed by elements of the Iranian regime are shocking... We will support measures to hold Iran accountable for its actions." US officials have said military action was not being considered. The US Treasury Department placed five Iranians, including the two men charged, under sanctions on Tuesday for their alleged involvement in the plot. The two accused were named as Manssor Arbabsiar, a 56-year-old naturalised US citizen with dual Iranian and US passports, and Gholam Shakuri, based in Iran and said to be a member of Iran's Quds Force, a unit of the Revolutionary Guard Corps. The other three were described as high-ranking members of the Quds force. Mr Arbabsiar, who was arrested at New York's John F Kennedy airport on 29 September, has confessed to his involvement in the alleged plot, Mr Holder said. A lawyer for Mr Arbabsiar said he would plead not guilty when he was officially indicted. 'Shocking' Mr Shakuri was said to be in Iran. US officials said that on 24 May 2011, Mr Arbabsiar made contact with an informant for the US Drug Enforcement Agency, who was posing as a Mexican drug cartel member. Manssor Arbabsiar appeared at a court in New York City on Tuesday Over a series of meetings, it is said that details emerged of a conspiracy involving members of the Iranian government paying $1.5m (£960,000) for the assassination of Saudi ambassador Adel al-Jubeir on US soil. Justice department officials said the initial envisaged target was the Saudi embassy. But in conversations secretly recorded for the US authorities, Mr Arbabsiar also allegedly considered having the ambassador killed at a purported favourite restaurant, despite the possibility of mass casualties. The plot would have been carried out with explosives, Mr Holder said. But he added that no explosives were ever put in place and the public was not in danger. Mr Holder said Mr Arbabsiar, with approval from Mr Shakuri, wired $100,000 to a US bank account for the informant as a downpayment. Mr Arbabsiar and Mr Shakuri have been charged with conspiracy to murder a foreign official, weapons conspiracy, and conspiracy to commit international terrorism charges. Continue reading the main story “ Start Quote The choice of ambassadorial target is a direct expression of the acerbic tensions in the Middle East between Saudi Arabia, a key US ally, and Iran” Kim Ghattas BBC News, Washington Alleged plot reflects Middle East rivalries Unnamed US officials also told journalists that the Israeli embassy in Washington was also to have been attacked. Iran's official Islamic Republic News Agency called the charges a "propaganda campaign" by the US government against Tehran. The allegations were "a comedy show fabricated by America", Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast told the semi-official Iranian news agency, Fars. Mr Arbabsiar appeared briefly at a New York City court on Tuesday. He did not enter a plea and was held without bail. He could face a life prison sentence if convicted on all charges, the Department of Justice said.

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US issues travel alert linked to Iran plot

 

The US State Department late on Tuesday issued a worldwide travel alert for US citizens, warning of the potential for anti-US action after the United States accused Iran of backing a plot to kill Saudi Arabia's ambassador to Washington.   Murder Plot Iranians charged over assassination plot / Reuters American authorities uncover plot to bomb Israeli, Saudi embassies in Washington, assassinate Saudi ambassador Full story "The US government assesses that this Iranian-backed plan to assassinate the Saudi ambassador may indicate a more aggressive focus by the Iranian government on terrorist activity against diplomats from certain countries, to include possible attacks in the United States," it said in a statement on its website.   The alert expires January 11, 2012, it said.

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Gunman Kills American at Kabul CIA Office

 

An Afghan employee killed one American and wounded another at Central Intelligence Agency offices in Kabul, Western security officials said Monday, an attack that called attention to U.S. security concerns about reliance on local partners. The two Americans came under fire late Sunday by a lone Afghan employee in an annex of the U.S. Embassy in Kabul, said embassy spokesman Gavin Sundwall. U.S. officials in Washington said the shooting occurred at an annex housing the CIA's offices. A Western security official in Kabul said the Afghan attacker had the trust of CIA employees in the compound, and may have been working for them as an informant, which is why he was allowed into the annex and had access to a gun. The official added that the gunman may have accessed the roof of the CIA building and fired on the nearby embassy building. Mr. Sundwall couldn't comment on whether the gunman fired on the embassy, or was searched before entering the building. In a sign of the often deep distrust between U.S. forces and their Afghan counterparts, CIA-employed guards, believing an Afghan army vehicle near the scene was the source of the attack, fired on the patrol, the Western security official said. Afghan soldiers in the vehicle shot back, wounding a guard; return fire injured two Afghan soldiers. Mr. Sundwall and a spokesman for the Afghan defense ministry declined to comment on the incident. Investigators from the State Department, the CIA, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation are probing the attack. On Monday, U.S. officials said they were trying to determine the role of the Afghan gunman and his motives. Officials say they hadn't turned up evidence of terrorist links. Officials said it wasn't clear whether the gunman was targeting the annex because of its CIA affiliation. Another security official near the scene of the shooting said he heard initial gunfire from an M4-carbine, a weapon popular with the U.S. Army, and that he believed the gunman had access to U.S. weapons and was using an American rifle, as opposed to an AK-47, the firearm of choice for insurgents and many Afghan security forces. Afghan police and intelligence services were deployed to the site of the shooting, witnesses said; Afghan officials say they weren't able to enter the location. One witness said the nearby headquarters of the U.S.-led military coalition deployed a quick-reaction force. A coalition spokesman said the coalition had no role in the response to the attack. Gunfire was heard at about 8:15 p.m. Kabul time, followed by an explosion, more gunfire and then two more explosions about 15 minutes later, witnesses nearby said. A Taliban spokesman said on Monday that he couldn't say whether the insurgent group was responsible for the attack. The attack was the latest in which Afghans have turned on their international colleagues. This year, over two dozen coalition troops have been killed by Afghan police and soldiers in heated disputes and by insurgents infiltration. In December 2009, seven high-ranking U.S. intelligence officials were killed by a Jordanian informant at a major CIA base in eastern Khost province. The informant detonated a powerful bomb while meeting with the intelligence officials. He wasn't searched before entering the compound. With the bulk of international forces slated to withdraw by 2014, the U.S. is striving to buildup an Afghan government and security force that can manage the country independently. But the U.S.-led coalition has struggled to cope with insurgents infiltrating the Afghan army and police. So far this year, Afghan soldiers and police have killed more than two dozen international troops working alongside them, the majority American service members. In one of the biggest incidents, last April an Afghan air force pilot serving for 20 years gunned down eight U.S. Air Force officers and a military contractor at an airport in Kabul. The attacker had no known link to insurgent groups, investigators said. The attack came about a week after an Afghan soldier wearing a suicide vest blew himself up at a military base, killing six U.S. soldiers and four Afghans. An internal coalition report seen by The Wall Street Journal in June said Afghan security force members shooting down and killing their American counterparts is becoming a "rapidly growing systemic threat." The report interviewed some 600 Afghans and concluded that there is a "crisis of trust" within the coalition that was being ignored by top commanders. A spokeswoman for the coalition played down the report, labeling it "sensationalism." Sunday night's attack came less than two weeks after Afghan insurgents fired rocket-propelled grenades at the U.S. Embassy from a nearby building. About a half-dozen rockets penetrated the embassy's fortified walls and several more hit within the U.S.-led military coalition's headquarters in Kabul. The attack lasted for about 20 hours. No U.S. citizens were killed in that attack. Adm. Michael Mullen, the chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, blamed the Haqqani network last week for orchestrating the embassy attack. Speaking before the U.S. Congress, Adm. Mullen called the Haqqani network a "veritable arm" of Pakistan's military spy agency. Pakistan's government denies having any links with insurgents. Mr. Sundwall couldn't comment on whether the Afghan gunman was linked to the Haqqani network and wouldn't speculate on the motivation of Sunday night's attack.

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Pakistan bus attack kills dozens

 

25 Shia Muslim pilgrims have been killed after gunmen opened fire on a bus in western Pakistan, officials said. The pilgrims were going through Mastung district in Baluchistan province, en route to the Iranian border, when the attack occurred, said a senior district official, Saeed Umrani. Two motorcycles blocked the path of the bus and three gunmen stormed the vehicle, opening fire on the roughly 40 pilgrims inside, said a local tribal police officer, Dadullah Baluch, after interviewing survivors and eyewitnesses. At least 25 people were killed and more than a dozen injured in the attack on Tuesday, he added. The dead and wounded were being taken to a hospital in Quetta, about 35 miles to the north, he said. Pakistan is a majority Sunni Muslim state. Although most Sunnis and Shias live there relatively peacefully, extremists on both sides often target each other's leaders and activists. The Sunni-Shia schism over the true heir to the prophet Muhammad dates back to the seventh century.

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Taliban turban bomber kills Afghan ex-president

 

A Taliban suicide bomber with concealed explosives in a turban on Tuesday assassinated former Afghan president Burhanuddin Rabbani, who was leading government peace efforts, police said. The bomber struck during a meeting at the Kabul home of Rabbani, who was last year appointed chief of the Afghan High Peace Council that President Hamid Karzai tasked with negotiating with the Taliban. His death is the most high-profile political assassination since the 2001 US-led invasion ousted the Taliban from power and comes just two months after Karzai's brother Ahmed Wali Karzai was also killed. The attackers arrived at Rabbani's house with Mohammad Massom Stanikzai, Rabbani's deputy, for a meeting before the turban bomber detonated his explosives, according to one source amid conflicting reports of the incident. A member of the High Peace Council, Fazel Karim Aymaq, said the men had come with "special messages" from the Taliban and were "very trusted." Kabul criminal investigations chief Mohammad Zaher said two men "negotiating with Rabbani on behalf of the Taliban" arrived at his house, one with explosives hidden in his turban. "He approached Rabbani and detonated his explosives. Rabbani was martyred and four others including Massom Stanikzai (his deputy) were injured." The bomber struck close to the US embassy, making it the the second attack within a week in Kabul's supposedly secure diplomatic zone. The killing prompted Afghan President Hamid Karzai to cut short his visit to the United States, his spokesman said, adding he was still expected to meet US President Barack Obama as scheduled before leaving. An AFP reporter saw an ambulance at the scene and said police had blocked off surrounding roads. The reporter also heard guards at the house shouting for an ambulance for Rabbani's deputy. Two of the former president's political allies, who did not want to be named and speaking before police confirmed Rabbani's death, wept as they told AFP he had been killed. "Yes, he is dead," said one of the two sources by telephone. The Taliban were not immediately reachable for comment, but the insurgency led by its militia has hit Kabul increasingly hard in recent months. The Pakistani government swiftly condemned the assassination, describing Rabbani as a "friend" with whom Islamabad was working closely on peace efforts. "The people of Pakistan stand by their Afghan brothers and sisters in this moment of grief," a joint statement released by President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani said, just days after the United States accused the Pakistani government of having ties to Taliban faction the Haqqani network. Among the most high-profile attacks was last week's 20-hour siege of the US embassy and the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) headquarters which left 14 people dead. Rabbani was president of Afghanistan from 1992 until the Taliban took power in 1996 and headed a country wracked by civil war. Karzai's brainchild, the High Peace Council was intended to open a dialogue with insurgents who have been trying to bring down his government since the US-led invasion overthrew their regime. The 68-member council, hand-picked by the president, was inaugurated on October 7, 2010, amid mounting reports of secret peace talks with Taliban leaders and key insurgent groups. Delivering his acceptance speech, Rabbani said he was "confident" that peace was possible, according to a statement from the palace. "I hope we are able to take major steps in bringing peace and fulfil our duties with tireless effort and help from God," he was quoted as saying. According to Human Rights Watch, Rabbani is among prominent Afghans implicated in war crimes during the brutal fighting that killed or displaced hundreds of thousands of Afghans in the early 1990s.

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Cheryl Cole | Cheryl Cole Flies To Afghanistan To Boost Troops' Morale

 

British singer Cheryl Cole has flown to Afghanistan to visit U.K. troops serving in the war-torn country. The Girls Aloud star made her way to the country's Helmand Province on Tuesday night (13Sep11) to surprise servicemen and women. Cole underwent special training to prepare for the hostile environment she will tour during her visit, which marks 10 years of British operations in the country. Her morale-boosting trip is being filmed as part of the annual Pride of Britain Awards, which will air on U.K. TV next month (Oct11). A source tells Britain's Daily Mirror, "Cheryl's amazed by the courage of all those serving our country. When she was invited to go out to see them in Afghanistan, she immediately said 'yes'. "She thinks it's such a great cause and they deserve all the recognition they get." Cole has largely been out of the public eye since she was fired from the U.S. version of The X Factor earlier this year (11).

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Insurgents Attack U.S. Embassy In Afghanistan

 

Insurgents are firing rockets towards the U.S. Embassy, NATO headquarters and other official buildings in Kabul, Afghanistan Fox News confirms.  Taliban militants are claiming responsibility for the attacks. Police said the gunmen were firing from a tall office building that is under construction at Kabul's Abdul Haq square, which is about 300 yards from the U.S. Embassy.  Embassy officials confirmed an attack by insurgents firing rocket-propelled grenades and small arms but says no personnel have been reported injured. Embassy spokeswoman Kerri Hannan says staff had been ordered to take cover in hardened structures as gunfire and explosions rocked the area in the heart of the Afghan capital on Tuesday. She says "there are no casualties at this time among embassy personnel." The surge of violence was a stark reminder of the instability that continues to plague Afghanistan nearly a decade after the U.S. invasion that ousted the Taliban in the way of the Sept. 11 terror attacks on the U.S.  The Associated Press reports at least four Afghans were wounded.  Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid reportedly said a number suicide bombers were attacking Afghan and foreign soldiers at the square. He claimed in a text message that suicide bombers using assault rifles were attacking the offices of the Afghan intelligence service.

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US deplores 'cowardly' India bombing

 

The United States on Wednesday condemned the "cowardly" bombing outside a courthouse in New Delhi, and praised the courage of the Indian people "in the face of horrific violence." "The United States condemns in the strongest terms this morning's deadly bombing outside the New Delhi High Court, and extends its deepest condolences to those affected by these cowardly attacks," US State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said in a statement. "The people of India have once again demonstrated remarkable resiliency and courage in the face of horrific violence," Nuland said. Nuland said the United States "stands ready to offer any and all assistance to Indian authorities," and that Washington was monitoring the situation to ensure "the safety and security" of US citizens in India. "Terrorism is a scourge that affects us all and the United States stands with India in confronting this global challenge," she added. Wednesday's powerful bomb, hidden in a briefcase, ripped through a busy crowd outside the court, killing at least 11 people and wounding dozens more. It was the first major attack on Indian soil since triple blasts in Mumbai on July 13 killed 26 people.

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talkSPORt to be broadcast to British troops stationed overseas

 

talkSPORT commentary on the Rugby World Cup 2011 is to be broadcast to British soldiers serving overseas, the British Forces Broadcasting Service has announced. Coverage commences on September 9 and will enable troops stationed in more than 20 countries; including Afghanistan, Gibraltar and the Falkland Islands, to keep up to date with all the games as they are played. England legend Brian Moore, aka The Pit Bull, will be heading up talkSPORT's coverage for the tournament alongside David Campese. He said: “The Rugby World Cup is a massive event and is sure to be a fantastic spectacle – I’m really pleased to be supporting our brave troops abroad.” BFBS Controller Nicky Ness said: “I am delighted that the BFBS and talkSPORT partnership now extends to Rugby World Cup coverage.  This tournament is really important to the armed forces community for whom sport is crucial part of life.  The fact that our troops will be able to listen on the front line and in far flung corners of the world will make a real difference to morale.

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young British officer has been killed by a Taliban bomb just yards outside the gate of his base in Afghanistan.

Lieutenant Daniel Clack, 24, of 1st Battalion The Rifles, was leading a 10-man patrol to meet locals in a nearby village in Helmand Province when he was hit by an improvised explosive device (IED).

Five of his comrades were also injured in the blast, which took place 150 metres from the front gate of their checkpoint.

Lt Clack, from north London, leaves behind his mother Sue, father Martin, brother James and fiancee Amy Tinley.

His family said in a statement: "Dan was a brave rifleman and he died doing the only profession he ever considered. He loved leading his riflemen and was so proud to be an officer in the British Army.

"There are no words to describe our loss. He will be forever missed by his mother, father, brother, fiancee and all those who knew him. He will always be in our hearts."

Lt Clack studied at Exeter University and worked as a driver for a ski chalet company in Switzerland before joining the Army in 2009.

He was a keen sportsman, and represented both the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst and his battalion at rugby.

The soldier deployed to Afghanistan in April as a platoon commander in charge of Check Point Shaparack in the district of Nahr-e-Saraj in Helmand.

He was leading a patrol to the neighbouring village of Dactran to discuss a "shura", or meeting of elders, planned for the next day, when he was killed on Friday

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British soldier shot dead in Afghanistan

The serviceman from 9th/12th Royal Lancers (Prince of Wales's) was killed while conducting a routine patrol with members of the Afghanistan National Army on Saturday, officials said.
Next of kin have been informed.
The MoD said an investigation was under way into reports that the soldier was shot by a member of the Afghan National Army.
The serviceman, who is yet to be named, was part of The Brigade Advisory Group carrying out a routine patrol in the Nahr-e Saraj District, officials added.
He was providing fire support for a unit of comrades from his Jackal vehicle when he was shot, according to the MoD

 

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Taliban claims assassination of Karzai brother

The Taliban claimed responsibility for the assassination of President Hamid Karzai's younger brother on Tuesday, calling it "one of our biggest achievements" in nearly a decade of war.

Taliban spokesman Usuf Ahmadi told AFP by telephone that the group had recently assigned a gunman to kill Ahmed Wali Karzai, a hugely powerful and controversial figure in the Afghan south

 

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British soldier 'captured by Taliban in Afghanistan

The Ministry of Defence said the soldier was reported missing in the early hours of this morning after he disappeared from his base in central Helmand Province.
The soldier's next of kin have been informed and a major search is under way to find him.
A spokesman for the Taliban claimed that the militant group had captured the soldier on Sunday, and even claimed that they had executed him, in the Babaji area of southern Helmand.
"The soldier was captured yesterday evening during a firefight. When the fighting got more intense we couldn't keep him so we had to kill him," Qari Mohammad Yousuf told Reuters.
The Nato-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) and the MoD declined to comment on the Taliban claims.

Afghan police officials in southern Helmand said a British soldier had been kidnapped in the Gereshk area of Nahri Sarraj district.
An MoD spokesman said: "The Ministry of Defence can confirm that a British serviceman is missing in Afghanistan. An extensive operation to locate him is under way.
"The individual was based in Central Helmand and was reported missing in the early hours of this morning.
"His next of kin have been informed and they will be updated as the operation continues."
It is understood that the search for the missing serviceman is being carried out both on the ground and from the air.
The Taliban claimed to the BBC that they captured and killed a foreign soldier in the area after a firefight.
This could not be verified, and the Taliban often make exaggerated claims for propaganda purposes.
He had left the base alone in the early hours of Monday morning, a move which is described as "highly unusual".
Will Calladine, a spokesman for the British embassy in Kabul, said: "Obviously this is a sensitive issue. Our primary concern is for the person's safety."
Most of the troops in that area of Afghanistan are American and British, however, soldiers from other countries also operate in the region.
In June 2009 insurgents captured American soldier Sergeant Bowe Bergdahl in south-eastern Afghanistan and have released videos showing him in captivity dressed in both Afghan clothing and in military uniform.
It is believed that the 25-year-old Army sergeant from Hailey, Idaho, is being held in Pakistan.

 

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Pinned down in a series of "Alamos" across the north of Helmand, British soldiers became magnets for attacks from Taliban, drug gangs and locals

Back in 2005, the Blair government committed itself to rebuilding Afghanistan's Helmand province, with a vision that went far beyond what proved possible as revealed in the original planning document released to the BBC.

Helmand has proved by a long way to be the Afghan war's bloodiest ground.

It is the poorest province in one of the world's poorest countries. But some in Whitehall thought they could transform it into something closer to Belgium when Britain deployed there in the spring of 2006.

The hope was that not even a shot would be fired with troops home in 2009.

Instead, 323 British servicemen and women have so far been killed in Helmand, 9,500 British troops are still there and the vision has been revised to the development level of Bangladesh, at best, in another 20 years.

According to Mark Etherington, the planning team leader, they were confronted with a challenge on the ground of "biblical proportions" that bore no relation to what people in Whitehall had in mind.

It is easy to see why. A declassified copy of the Joint UK Plan for Helmand from December 2005, released to the BBC by the Foreign Office reveals:

"The state is largely absent in Helmand, providing little by way of security, infrastructure or public services."

Joint mission
Instead, Helmand's economy was based largely on heroin production - it provided up to half the global supply.



Profound challenges were identified in the report.
The current governor, chief of police and director of education are illiterate. 70% of the population is estimated to be illiterate.
The dominance of opium fuels a growing internal addiction problem and pervades public life through the influence it buys. Many prominent public figures are alleged to be involved in the trade, including those charged with suppressing it. The chief of the counter-narcotics police in Helmand has 20 staff and two ageing vehicles to cover a province three times the size of Wales with a population of more than one million.
The police force is widely thought to undermine the safety of the population rather than secure it. Reform of the police, perceived by the population as untrained, uneducated, unprofessional, drug-taking and corrupt…will require years to compete.
Provincial government in Helmand is dominated by patronage networks, tribal affiliation and alleged links to the narcotics trade. Interlocutors in the provincial capital of Lashkar Gah complain about the corruption of key government officials and the sale of government land for private gain.
The security situation is perceived to have deteriorated over the last six months. The insurgency has been targeting government officials and Coalition forces. There is collusion between insurgents and narcotics traders. Illegally armed groups proliferate, particularly in inaccessible regions. Afghanistan's porous borders with Pakistan and Iran enable relatively unhindered transit through Helmand of insurgents and drug traffickers alike."
As a result, much of the province was controlled by warring drugs gangs and corruption reached practically every part of the administration.

Helmand was to be a joint military-civilian mission to extend the authority of Afghan President Hamid Karzai.

Protected by troops, civilians would build up the economy and the justice and education systems. The idea was to win the hearts and minds of ordinary Afghans away from the Taliban who were setting up their own shadow local administrations.

But after an initial assessment of the task, the planners returned to London in December 2005 and told Whitehall officials that their vision for Helmand was "not achievable in three years".

We were told that "was not an acceptable conclusion," said Minna Jarvenpaa, the governance adviser to the mission and a member of the planning team.

The vision in Whitehall was for levels of governance, growth in the economy and security occurring "without substantial security support from the international community" - a goal that is still a long way from being realised even today.

When the planners said they did not yet know enough about Helmand to put together a workable plan, a senior member of the secret intelligence service (MI6) is reported to have responded: "We know all we need to know".

Intelligence failure
In fact, the Joint UK Plan for Helmand shows precisely the reverse - in particular just how little was known about the complex dynamics of Helmand's tribal, criminal, religious and political factions.

And the military intelligence assessment failed to anticipate the scale or speed of the violent response from Taliban and other anti-British forces.

But the military momentum was unstoppable. Britain was going to Helmand, come what may.


323 British servicemen and women have so far been killed in Helmand
Because the mission was about reconstruction, only around 800 soldiers of the 3,300 deployment were "bayonets" - or fighters. The rest were mainly admin and logisticians.

So the mission was to be limited to a central area of Helmand around the capital Lashkar Gar and would slowly build out.

Except, that ambition was derailed almost from the start.

The report had highlighted a deteriorating security situation with attacks on government officials and coalition forces and collusion between insurgents and narcotics traders.

From the moment British troops arrived, Helmand's new governor, Mohammed Daoud, warned that his authority was being undermined by gunmen in the north of the province.

He urged Britain to deal with them by setting up extra bases.

Despite an initial judgment that even one extra base was "unsustainable", the military bowed to political pressure and by late June four additional bases had been established in Now Zad, Musa Qala, Kajaki and Sangin.

 

 

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Third British soldier fatally wounded in three days

British soldier has died after being shot in Helmand province.

The serviceman, from the 3rd Battalion the Mercian Regiment (Staffords) was on patrol in the southern Nahr-e Saraj district when he came under fire from insurgents yesterday.The soldier had been sent on a patrol with the Afghan National Army to meet with people who had recently reoccupied the Haji Tor Aga Kalaycorrect area of the district.

He was part of a protective cordon guarding the meeting when he was shot by insurgents and fatally wounded.

His death came as two other British fatalities were named by the MoD. Craftsman Andrew Found, of the Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers, and Corporal Lloyd Newell, from the Parachute Regiment, died in separate incidents on Thursday.

 

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Nine people were killed Saturday when three attackers armed with suicide vests and machine-guns stormed a police station in the heart of the Afghan capital Kabul,

Nine people were killed Saturday when three attackers armed with suicide vests and machine-guns stormed a police station in the heart of the Afghan capital Kabul, officials said.
The militants, at least one of whom was in army uniform, got into a compound housing the police station in the crowded main central market area, near the Afghan presidential palace, defence ministry and other official buildings.
Five civilians were among the dead along with three policemen and one officer from Afghanistan's intelligence agency, interior ministry spokesman Najib Nikzad said. Ten civilians and two police were wounded.
The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack, the latest embarrassing breach at a supposedly secure location in Kabul, which comes weeks before limited foreign troop withdrawals are due to start from Afghanistan.
One of the attackers detonated his explosives at the entrance to the compound, allowing his two accomplices into the building, the interior ministry said.
Once inside, they fired at police, sparking a gun battle which lasted for around two hours before the pair were killed.
"Three suicide attackers with weapons and explosive vests attacked the police station," Nikzad said.
"One of them detonated himself in front of the gate of the station and two others were killed following a firefight with police,".
"In this incident, three policemen, one intelligence officer and five civilians were killed and two police, along with 10 other civilians were wounded." he added.
The finance ministry said two of its employees who worked nearby were among those who died.
Parts of the city centre were sealed off following the attack and hundreds of people were evacuated.
At least one of the men was dressed in Afghan army uniform, according to local television which showed pictures of what it said was his dead body.
The Taliban have carried out similar brazen attacks in the past against Afghan security forces in Kabul.
These have often been committed by attackers in military uniforms, highlighting the problem of Taliban infiltration of the fast-growing Afghan security forces which are taking increasing control as foreign forces start to withdraw.
Six people were killed at a military hospital by a suicide bomber in military uniform last month, while three died in April when another uniformed attacker opened fire inside the defence ministry.
Control of security in Kabul is already the responsibility of Afghan forces but there is a heavy foreign military and civilian presence in the city.
Foreign forces in seven other parts of Afghanistan are expected to start handing control of security and other official functions to their Afghan counterparts from July.
This will allow the start of a limited withdrawal of foreign troops, although the full extent of this is not yet clear.
US President Barack Obama, whose country provides some 90,000 of the 130,000-strong foreign force in Afghanistan, is expected to announce soon how many will leave from July amid mounting pressure for a big withdrawal.
All international combat forces are due to leave Afghanistan by the end of 2014.

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Police Recruits Impose Islamic Tax on Afghans

Ghulam Hazrat should be a poster boy for the peaceful reintegration of insurgents who want to switch sides. Six months ago he was a Taliban commander in the troubled Imam Sahib district of northern Kunduz Province. Now he and 10 of his followers are in the process of becoming police officers, at which point the government will start paying them salaries.
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In the meantime, however, Mr. Hazrat is raising money the same way he did as a Taliban commander, by imposing an “Islamic tax” on people in his district.

“The government is telling me to fight the Taliban and protect your area so we must ask people for help in order to take care of myself and my friends,” he said in an interview. He and other militiamen who have declared for the government and hope to join the local police, a group known as arbakai, insist that people give the money voluntarily.

Judging by the public outcry, however, the donors see things differently. They are often forced to hand over a tenth of their earnings, just as they were when the Taliban ran things. In Kunduz, where the police training program has been operating since late last year, radio talk shows have been flooded by angry callers complaining about the arbakai militias, meetings of elders have denounced their behavior, and even provincial government officials have expressed concern.

The American-financed program aims to convert insurgents into village self-defense forces called Afghan Local Police, distinct from the existing national police force. It is a favorite initiative of the NATO commander in Afghanistan, Gen. David H. Petraeus, who considers it a key part of his counterinsurgency strategy.

Afghan police officials see it as an inexpensive way to beef up their forces, particularly in remote areas. The Afghan Local Police are organized and trained by American Special Forces units in cooperation with the Afghan authorities and, working at the village level, are paid half of what national police officers earn.

So far the program has trained 6,200 officers in 41 districts, and aims to recruit 30,000 in 100 districts in 14 provinces by the end of the year.

But it has aroused concern among aid workers and United Nations officials, who say it risks empowering local warlords who have little regard for human rights or proper behavior.

Many Afghans fear a return to the warlord days of the civil war years, from the late 1980s to the early 1990s, even more than they fear the Taliban, who came to power in large measure because people were fed up with feuding local militias. A recent study by Oxfam and three other nongovernment groups concluded that the program had “in all cases failed to provide effective community policing,” and has instead produced forces that have “generally been feared by the communities they are supposed to protect.”

A United Nations report in March noted that while the program was still too new to render hard judgments, “Concerns have been raised regarding weak oversight, recruitment, vetting and command-and-control mechanisms.”

The controversy in Kunduz arose just as farmers began harvesting their crops, only to find that many of the new arbakai groups, armed and acting as a de facto police force before they had begun the training program, were demanding their tithe.

“We have many times said through local television that no one should give anything to anyone, and arbakai have no right to collect Islamic tax,” said Sarwar Hussaini, the spokesman for the Kunduz Province police chief.

But refusing to pay can have consequences.

The headmaster and assistant headmaster of the Haji Mir Alam girls’ school in the provincial capital, Kunduz city, refused. Two arbakai commanders with 30 armed men stormed the school on Wednesday, beating both men with rifle butts in front of the students until they fell unconscious, according to Muhammad Zahir Nazam, head of the provincial education department.

“The education department strongly condemns this attack, which was a clear attack on education,” he said. Both school officials were hospitalized and are in comas, he said, and the school has been closed.

A group of 100 tribal elders gathered afterward and denounced the attack. “The government should arrest and bring these people to justice,” said a spokesman for the group, Haji Nesar Ahmad. Mr. Hussaini, the police spokesman, said no official complaints had been filed over arbakai abuses.

But Mr. Nazam, the education official, said he reported the attack to security officials several times, and “no steps have been taken and no one arrested.”

 

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15 people have been killed in a US drone strike in the Pakistani tribal area of North Waziristan

15 people have been killed in a US drone strike in the Pakistani tribal area of North Waziristan, officials say.

They told the Associated Press news agency that the attack took place in Shawal region near the Afghan border.

The US says North Waziristan is home to several militant groups involved in attacks on Nato forces in Afghanistan.

Officials say the drone fired five missiles, destroying a fortress-like militant compound in Zoi village.

A vehicle in the area was also reported to have been hit. Officials say the death toll may rise. They said all those killed were militants, but their group affiliations are still unclear.

The media are denied access to the area and independent confirmation of the claims is not possible.

The BBC's M Ilyas Khan in Islamabad says the area is controlled by militants of the Haqqani network as well a group led by Hafiz Gul Bahadur.

Spate of attacks
Shawal is a forested area between North and South Waziristan tribal regions. North Waziristan has been a regular target of drone strikes in the recent past.

But four of the last five drone attacks have targeted South Waziristan - a leading al-Qaeda militant, Ilyas Kashmiri, was reported to have been killed there in a US strike over the weekend.

On Monday three drone strikes killed at least 18 people in South Waziristan.

Militants have vowed to avenge Kashmiri's reported killing, as well as the killing by US forces of Osama Bin Laden last month.

United States officials do not routinely confirm that they have carried out drone attacks, but analysts say that only US forces have the capacity to carry out such strikes in the region.

More than 100 raids were reported last year in tribal areas along the Afghan border.

Many militants, some of them senior, have been killed in the drone strikes, but hundreds of civilians have also died. The strikes are hugely unpopular among the Pakistani public.

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UK soldier killed while on a security patrol in Afghanistan has been named.

Father-of-two Corporal Michael John Pike, 26, of 4th Battalion, The Royal Regiment of Scotland, died on Friday.

His commanding officer described him as "the perfect example of a Highland soldier- loyal and fiercely courageous".

The death of Cpl Pike, who was from Huntly, Aberdeenshire, brings the number of UK MoD deaths in operations in Afghanistan since 2001 to 369.

He had been sent with his unit to Pupalzay, along the Highway 601 in the Lashkar Gah area of Helmand province.

Cpl Pike was taking part in an operation to prevent the insurgents from "intimidating the local population" and attacking an Afghan police checkpoint.

His patrol came under fire from rifles and rocket-propelled grenades.

'Loyal and courageous'
Cpl Pike, who had two children, Joshua and Evelynn, had been deployed to Afghanistan in April.

He joined the Army as a private in 2002. After a tour of Iraq, he served in Helmand province in 2008.

His commanding officer, Lieutenant Colonel A J Aitken, said: "The loss of Cpl Mike Pike has been felt deeply by all ranks of the battalion.

"He was an enormously popular, charismatic and engaging character; a natural leader in every way. As a junior commander he was entirely dedicated to his soldiers, leading from the front with every step and they would follow him anywhere.

"A natural practical joker, his innate sense of fun was a constant source of amusement and relief for the whole platoon."


His death, saving the lives of the men he was devoted to, marks the tragic end of a life that has touched so many, so deeply that it seems almost unreal”

Lieutenant Robert Grant
Platoon commander
"He was marked out by his constant wry smile whether leading his company from the front at PT or pushing his section on when under pressure; simply unflappable," he added.

Eyewitnesses said Cpl Pike "didn't go down without a fight" and was offering covering fire when he was killed.

His platoon commander, Lieutenant Robert Grant, said his loss "strikes deep into the heart and soul of all those who knew him".

He said: "His death, saving the lives of the men he was devoted to, marks the tragic end of a life that has touched so many, so deeply that it seems almost unreal."

Cpl Pike's wife, Ida, said: "He would want everybody to know that he died doing a job he loved and that he loved our children with all his heart and soul."

Defence Secretary Liam Fox, said: "It is clear from the tributes paid to Cpl Pike by his friends and colleagues that he was a talented soldier with a bright future, a loving family man, and a great friend to so many.

"My thoughts are with his family, friends, and colleagues as they come to terms with his loss."

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Suicide bomber kills 13 in attack on Afghan police cadets

A suicide bomber killed 13 people and wounded at least 20 in an attack on a minibus carrying police cadets in the main city in Afghanistan's east on Wednesday, a government spokesman said.

Ahmadzia Abdulzai, a spokesman for the governor of Nangarhar province in Afghanistan's turbulent east, said the bomber had rammed an explosives-packed car into the bus carrying cadets in Jalalabad city. He said the dead and wounded included police and civilians.

 

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Four Canadian soldiers were injured when a helicopter "rolled" Monday during a "hard landing" on a riverbed in Afghanistan.

The Canadian CH-47 Chinook transport chopper accident occurred during night operations by the Quebec-based Royal 22nd Regiment in the Horn of Panjwaii. Insurgents were not blamed in the incident.

None of the injuries were considered serious or life threatening at this time, said Maj. David Devenney, the Task Force Kandahar spokesman. Among several dozen passengers was a Canadian journalist who was uninjured.

Three of the wounded were flown by another helicopter to the U.S. Navy-run Role 3 Hospital at Kandahar Airfield. Canadian and other coalition forces secured the crash site.

"I am extremely happy everybody is in good shape," said Brig.-Gen. Dean Milner, the Canadian commander. "The casualties were very minor. They'll be looked at over the next few days."

"It was a standard operation," Milner explained. "We move Chinooks through that battle space all the time and are very deliberate about where we land. We landed on a piece of turf in a riverbed that is fairly straight. But that little piece wasn't and the wheels went cockeyed. As a result, the helicopter rolled, the blades broke, and it finished the roll ending up on its side."

Devenney said that an assessment was being conducted to decide whether the aircraft was salvageable. Initial reports suggested that it had been heavily damaged.

Milner said that the damaged helicopter would have no impact on military operations.

"There will be no loss of operational tempo as we close in on the fighting season which is about to begin because the poppy harvest is almost over," he said.

Monday's accident was the third involving a Canadian helicopter in Afghanistan. Another Chinook was hit by insurgent gunfire and burned after being forced to make a hard landing on Aug. 5, 2010. Eight soldiers were wounded in the crash.

Thirteen months earlier a smaller Canadian CH-146 Griffon helicopter crashed on takeoff in neighbouring Zabul province. Three on board died and three others were injured.

Those who died were: Master Cpl. Pat Audet, 38, of Montreal, and Cpl. Martin Joannette, 25, of St-Calixte, Que., and a British officer.

Another Canadian, military photographer Master Cpl. Darrell Jason Priede, was killed in 2007 when the U.S. Chinook helicopter that he was flying in was apparently shot down in Helmand province. Six other coalition soldiers died in that crash.

Helicopters are one of the main ways to get around southern Afghanistan's rugged terrain. When available they are often the preferred means of transport because the Taliban often mine the roads with homemade explosives.

Canada acquired a small fleet of Chinooks from the U.S. army after the Manley Panel on Afghanistan recommended to Parliament that helicopters were urgently needed to help troops off Kandahar's dangerous roads.

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Royal Marine from 42 Commando has been killed in Afghanistan

Royal Marine from 42 Commando has been killed in Afghanistan, the Ministry of Defence has said.

The marine was killed by a bomb while involved in an operation to search a compound in the Loy Mandeh Wadi area of the Nad Ali district of Helmand province on Sunday.

The marine's next of kin have been informed.

It means the number of British military deaths in operations in Afghanistan since 2001 now stands at 365.

Lieutenant Colonel Tim Purbrick, a spokesman for Task Force Helmand, said the marine, who was from Plymouth-based 42 Commando, had been involved in an operation which was "investigating suspected insurgent activity" in a number of compounds in the Loy Mandeh Wadi area of the Nad Ali district in Helmand Province when he was fatally injured.

He added: "Our thoughts and prayers are with his family and friends."

Last week, the head of the armed forces said Britain had failed to accurately gauge Taliban resistance to UK troops in Helmand province.

General Sir David Richards told the Commons defence committee UK troops "turned up a hornet's nest" when they moved into south Afghanistan in 2006.

"There was, in some respects, a failure of intelligence despite the efforts to get it right," he said.

About 3,300 British troops took over control of Helmand five years ago.

The government has said it wants all British combat troops to leave Afghanistan by 2015.

In February, Defence Secretary Liam Fox suggested some of the UK 10,000 personnel based there could come home this year if "conditions on the ground" were suitable.

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Afghan Taliban Launches Coordinated Attacks in Kandahar

Taliban insurgents are attacking several locations in the southern Afghan city of Kandahar and have wounded at least 11 people.

Provincial spokesman Zalmay Ayoubi said by phone from inside the governor's building that the compound was under attack.  There also were reports of gunfire and explosions in other parts of the city.

The violence began shortly after midday Saturday with reports of militants using small-arms fire and rocket-propelled grenades.

A Taliban spokesman claimed responsibility for the attacks, a week after the group announced the start of its annual spring offensive.

The attacks in Kandahar city also come a day after the Taliban issued a statement saying that Osama bin Laden's killing in Pakistan by U.S. forces would give a boost to the insurgency.  However, a militant spokesman said Saturday's assault was not a revenge attack.

Kandahar province is a major stronghold of the insurgency in Afghanistan and the birthplace of the Taliban.

 

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Osama bin Laden was killed by a bullet fired by a United States Navy SEAL during a 40-minute helicopter assault on a fortified compound believed to have been purpose-built to hide the al-Qaeda leader.

Osama bin Laden was killed by a bullet fired by a United States Navy SEAL during a 40-minute helicopter assault on a fortified compound believed to have been purpose-built to hide the al-Qaeda leader.

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Osama bin Laden evaded capture for almost a decade thanks to a secretive and ruthless protection system.

Despite being the world's most wanted man, pursued by the most advanced military in history, Osama bin Laden evaded capture for almost a decade thanks to a secretive and ruthless protection system.
In the immediate aftermath of the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, bin Laden is thought to have moved between Kandahar and Kabul, in Afghanistan, arranging the exit and financial backing of allies.
Three months after the attacks, he survived the aerial bombardment by the US air force of the cave complex in the mountains of Tora Bora, in which he was widely assumed to be hiding.
For almost ten years, it had been generally thought that he and a cabal of close aides slipped across the nearest point of the Pakistani border, probably assisted by rogue Pakistani law enforcement officers.
But a report based on intelligence gained from a detainee in Guantanamo Bay, released just last week by Wikileaks, suggested that bin Laden in fact headed in another direction, towards Jalalabad.
The report suggested that he stayed there in a safe house – while a $25 million (£15 million) bounty hung over his head – before heading towards the remote province of Kunar, in north-east Afghanistan.

It was said that bin Laden escaped with help from a Pakistani militant and cleric called Maulawi Nur Muhammad, who provided up to 50 fighters to escort him and Ayman al-Zawahiri, his deputy.
The al-Qaeda chief is thought to have then stayed in Kunar, a violent and generally ungovernable area, before again crossing the border into Pakistan in late 2002.
Since then, the life of bin Laden – and the activities of US forces assigned to capture him – have remained mysterious, with critics baffled that George Bush, and later Barack Obama, failed to find him.
Known to his close followers as "the sheik", and surrounded by 40 bodyguards, bin Laden was said to have moved with utmost care around the tribal-run border regions between Afghanistan and Pakistan.
It was reported that the personnel protecting bin Laden had an agreed code word that, when uttered, would signify that enemy forces were approaching and that they must martyr themselves.
Reports suggested that on at least one occasion, US troops came very close to bin Laden's compound, prompting intense disquiet among the terrorist leader's circle. But they never came close enough.
For all the billions of dollars ploughed into intelligence, high-tech assaults and drone attacks by the US, bin Laden had on his side an intensely loyal following and a biddable local population that was no friend to Washington.
Bin Laden, a wealthy heir flush with jihadists' cash, was reported to have paid millions of US dollars to local tribesmen, who had already promised to help the US military, to instead assist him and al-Zawahiri in their exile.
At the same time, the White House depended on Pakistan – led for much of the period by the erratic Pervez Musharraf – for assistance, despite widespread knowledge that significant portions of its intelligence service was sympathetic to al-Qaeda.
In recent years bin Laden was rumoured to have suffered from serious kidney problems, leading to frequent rumours of his demise. Yet he persistently re-appeared on video to pass comment on US foreign policy and other world affairs.
Last night it appeared that, in the face of longstanding and intense US attacks on the tribal regions, bin Laden had been forced to flee to the town of Abbottabad, north of Islamabad. There, the intense secrecy surrounding his movements would have been far more easily breached.
His apparent hideout was, for instance, close to a cinema, a police station and a hospital for women and children. In the wilds of the tribal regions his operation might have gone largely unnoticed. But it appeared that working from here, apparently in a mansion with no external communications, where residents burned their rubbish, was too much: too many suspicions were aroused.

 

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The Taliban on Saturday declared the start of a spring offensive in Afghanistan

The Taliban on Saturday declared the start of a spring offensive in Afghanistan, warning that insurgents plan to attack foreign troops, Afghan security forces and government officials in coming days.

In a statement, the Taliban warned civilians to avoid public gatherings, military bases and convoys, as well as government buildings.

"All Afghan people should bear in mind to keep away from gatherings, convoys and centers of the enemy so that they will not become harmed during attacks of mujahedin against the enemy," the statement said.

The statement said that in addition to troops, the targets of their operation would be high-ranking officials within President Hamid Karzai's government, members of the Cabinet and lawmakers, as well as businessmen working with NATO forces.

United Nations officials, who lost eight staff members in an attack last month in the northern city of Mazar-i-Sharif, appealed to the Taliban not to target noncombatants.

"Parties to the conflict must not deliberately attack, target or kill civilians," said Staffan de Mistura, who heads the U.N. mission in Afghanistan. "I call on the Taliban to carry out their previously stated decision to avoid civilian casualties. Afghan civilians have paid the price of war for too long. It is more urgent than ever that all parties act to prevent this suffering."

North Atlantic Treaty Organization commanders have trumpeted successes in Afghanistan since 30,000 additional U.S. troops arrived last year, although they also predicted a spike in violence with the arrival of the spring and summer fighting season. On Friday, senior military officials and Western diplomats warned of a surge in militant attacks during the coming week.

Violence across Afghanistan hit record levels in 2010, with civilian and military casualties the worst since U.S.-backed Afghan forces dislodged the Taliban regime in 2001.

The Pentagon said in a biannual report Friday that the increase in violence was attributable in part to increased offensives against insurgent havens and mild winter weather that kept insurgents active.

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U.S.-led coalition said Tuesday it had killed the second-most-wanted insurgent in Afghanistan, a senior al Qaeda leader from Saudi Arabia

U.S.-led coalition said Tuesday it had killed the second-most-wanted insurgent in Afghanistan, a senior al Qaeda leader from Saudi Arabia who was responsible for setting up terrorist training camps and launching attacks on U.S. and Afghan forces.

The Saudi, identified by the coalition as Abu Hafs Al Najdi, also known as Abdul Ghani, operated mostly from the mountainous Kunar province in northeast Afghanistan. A list of the 85 most wanted terrorists released by the Saudi government in 2009 placed him 21st; that list gave his real name as Salef Nayef Eid al Mahlafi, and put his current age at 27.

In addition to Mr. Najdi, the April 13 airstrike in Kunar's Dangam district bordering Pakistan killed another al Qaeda leader, known as Waqas, the coalition said. It said a total of 25 al Qaeda militants have been eliminated in Afghanistan over the past month. Just a few weeks ago, senior coalition officials had estimated the entire al Qaeda presence in Afghanistan at as low as 50 to 100 fighters.

However, earlier this month, The Wall Street Journal reported that al Qaeda, which by and large had moved out of Afghanistan after the Taliban's downfall in 2001, has returned to set up terrorist training camps in Kunar, Nangarhar and Nuristan provinces along the border with Pakistan's tribal areas. U.S. forces have largely abandoned Nuristan and have withdrawn from many parts of Kunar over the past two years, as the coalition focused its efforts on the southern part of the country.

Although the commander of coalition forces, U.S. Gen. David Petraeus, told reporters earlier this month he doesn't believe al Qaeda is resurging in Afghanistan, some senior U.S. military officers disagree, saying the withdrawals from Nuristan and Kunar have created a vacuum for al Qaeda to come back.

The coalition's Afghanistan target list is classified and the military hasn't released the name of the most-wanted militant. Al Qaeda leaders Osama bin Laden and Ayman al Zawahri are believed to be hiding across the border in Pakistan.

Mr. Najdi "was the second-highest priority in our operations to capture or kill insurgents," said U.K. Army Maj. Tim James, a coalition spokesman in Kabul. "Losing such an important member of al Qaeda in Afghanistan will have a significant impact on their ability to operate in Afghanistan and is a blow to the insurgency."

Mr. Najdi, who had been targeted by the U.S.-led forces since at least 2007, operated a network of insurgents throughout Kunar, organizing attacks on Afghan and U.S. bases, plotting kidnappings of foreigners, running militant training camps and providing financing from Pakistan, the military said.

He was an instrumental link between al Qaeda's leadership in Pakistan and its operations in Afghanistan, and his ability to "provide considerably more funding to insurgent fighters" had allowed the insurgency to obtain more weapons and recruits, the coalition said Tuesday.

Separately, the Afghan Ministry of Justice released the results of its initial inquiry into Monday's escape of hundreds of Taliban prisoners from the Sarpoza prison in the southern city of Kandahar. The report faulted coalition and Afghan forces for failing to notice the removal of large amounts of earth during the digging of the tunnel into the prison, and for failing to spot the movement of a large number of vehicles that ferried out the prisoners early Monday morning.

According to the report, a failure to implement regulations allowed the inmates to move freely through the prison block at night, a circumstance that permitted them to escape through a tunnel that opened into an unlocked cell. This showed that some prison officials were implicated in the plot, the report said.

According to a U.S. military official, 61 of the at least 475 Taliban escapees had been rearrested by Tuesday.

The intelligence gathering and airstrike that led to Mr. Najdi's death were conducted by the U.S. military's secretive Joint Special Operations Command, known as JSOC, which has taken the lead in targeting al Qaeda in Afghanistan, a U.S. official said. In contrast, the Central Intelligence Agency leads the campaign of drone strikes that has killed numerous al Qaeda operatives sheltering across the border in Pakistan.

Many American officials say JSOC, which oversees elite units such as the Army's Delta Force and Navy SEAL Team Six, is their most effective tool to combat al Qaeda in Afghanistan, where the U.S. has far more freedom to strike than in Pakistan. But they also fear that JSOC, with a global mission and commitments in Somalia, Yemen, Iraq and other places, is already stretched thin.

Still, JSOC has counted a series of recent successes against al Qaeda in northeastern Afghanistan. An airstrike in September killed two senior leaders and other al Qaeda operatives who had gathered at a training camp in Kunar. Special Operations forces in December captured another senior al Qaeda operative, Abu Ikhlas al-Masri, who had long operated in and around Kunar. Mr. al-Masri has since provided intelligence about al Qaeda's attempts to reestablish Afghan bases, U.S. officials say.

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Brazen Afghan jailbreak may have dire consequences

An audacious jailbreak organised by the Taliban that freed hundreds of prisoners could have a devastating effect on efforts to quell a growing insurgency and underscores the weakness of the Afghan government and its security forces.

The Taliban wasted little time in crowing about how they were able to orchestrate the mass escape from the main jail in Kandahar in Afghanistan's south, freeing about 500 inmates on Monday under the noses of Afghan and foreign security forces.

Analysts now fear the jailbreak will help an emboldened Taliban spread their insurgency despite strenuous efforts by Afghan, U.S. and other foreign troops over more than a year to hit back at militants in their strongholds in the south.

It comes as a blow to both the Afghan government and NATO-led foreign troops who have boasted of recent security gains in Kandahar after months of heavy fighting. The Taliban have said more than 100 of its commanders were among the escapees.

"The jailbreak is likely to have real implications for the upcoming fighting season," said Felix Kuehn, an independent researcher based in Kandahar city.

 

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veteran Afghan air force pilot opened fire inside a military compound at Kabul International Airport early Wednesday, killing an unknown number of Afghan and NATO forces

veteran Afghan air force pilot opened fire inside a military compound at Kabul International Airport early Wednesday, killing an unknown number of Afghan and NATO forces in what might have been another in a series of attacks by Taliban infiltrators, authorities said.

U.S. Master Sgt. Jason Haag, a NATO spokesman, said some NATO forces were killed, but could not say how many.

The pilot, whose identity was not immediately released, began shooting about 11 a.m. after an argument with a foreign colleague, according to a statement released by Afghan Defense Ministry spokesman Gen. Mohammad Zahir Azimi.

"An Afghan officer opened fire on foreigners after an argument," Azimi said. "For the past 20 years, he has been a military pilot."

Azimi could not give a specific number of deaths and injuries but said the gunman was killed. He did not say whether the foreigner involved in the dispute was a member of NATO coalition forces or whether that person was among the casualties.

The Taliban claimed that it sent the Afghan officer to shoot Afghan and foreign troops at the compound and that he had killed several of both, according to spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid. He did not say how he was informed of the number of casualties.

Maj. Michael Johnson, a spokesman for NATO forces, said they were aware of the shooting but had not yet received details.

Reporters were not allowed into the air force compound, where Afghan troops guarded the doors and no NATO forces were visible. Afghan air force officers declined to comment about the shooting.

The Afghan air force, formerly the Afghan national army air corps, was renamed last year after years of training and upgrades by U.S. forces. The U.S.-led Combined Air Power Transition Force has been working to rebuild and modernize the Afghan air force since 2007, and a number of Afghan pilots and trainees have traveled to the U.S. for English language, instrument and undergraduate pilot training.

The air force numbered about 2,400 as of 2009, a year after they inaugurated their new headquarters at the airport. At the time, President Hamid Karzai said they had been reborn, equipped with 26 new or refurbished aircraft, including transport helicopters and Ukrainian military planes bought with U.S. funding.

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A soldier who was injured in Afghanistan while clearing roadside bombs has died, the Ministry of Defence said today.

The soldier was on an operation to clear improvised explosive devices (IEDs) in the Nahr-e Saraj (South) district of Helmand Province
9:39AM BST 20 Apr 2011
The soldier, from 11 Explosive Ordnance Disposal Regiment, Royal Logistics Corps, was on an operation to clear improvised explosive devices (IEDs) in the Nahr-e Saraj (South) district of Helmand Province on Monday when one bomb detonated.
Initially taken to Camp Bastion in Helmand, the soldier was then evacuated to the Queen Elizabeth NHS Hospital in Birmingham, but died on Tuesday, the MoD said.
Spokesman for Task Force Helmand Lieutenant Colonel Tim Purbrick said he announced the death "with much sadness".
He said: "The soldier was neutralising a complex set of improvised explosive devices which had been sown in an alleyway between two compounds when one of the devices detonated.
"Immediate first aid was provided and a helicopter medical emergency response team recovered the casualty to the military hospital in Camp Bastion."

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gunman in Afghan army uniform opened fire inside Kabul's defence ministry Monday, killing two soldiers and wounding seven in an audacious strike at the heart of government claimed by the Taliban

A gunman in Afghan army uniform opened fire inside Kabul's defence ministry Monday, killing two soldiers and wounding seven in an audacious strike at the heart of government claimed by the Taliban.
The attack, which the militants said was aimed at France's visiting defence minister Gerard Longuet, was the third major assault on Afghan security targets in four days and one of the worst security breaches in years.
"A person in Afghan army uniform opened fire on his comrades, killed two soldiers, injured seven others, then was targeted himself and was brought down," Afghan army spokesman General Mohammad Zahir Azimi told AFP.
After his death, the attacker was found to be wearing a suicide vest, he said.
One of those killed was a bodyguard of the deputy defence minister, while those injured included an aide to the defence minister and a secretary to the army's chief of staff, said a senior security official speaking anonymously.
Defence Minister Abdul Rahim Wardak was not injured in the shootout, a Western security source said separately, but it is thought that the suicide bomber was shot dead close to the minister's office.
Earlier, a military source had told AFP on condition of anonymity that three insurgents had managed to enter the building, which faces President Hamid Karzai's palace, and all were killed.
The ambush inside the tightly-secured compound is thought to be the most high-profile security breach since a failed attempt on Karzai's life in 2008.
French defence minister Longuet is currently on a visit to Afghanistan but was not in the building at the time of the firefight.
A French official stressed they had seen "no evidence" that the attack was an attempt to kill Longuet, while his office said he was at Bagram airfield, more than 40 kilometres (24 miles) away, at the time.
The incident is now over and an investigation is under way.
Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid told AFP that Longuet was the target.
"The reason for conducting this attack is the invasion of Afghanistan by the French military," he said, adding that it was not carried out over the controversial banning of the Islamic full-face veil in France.
There are some 4,000 French troops stationed in Afghanistan as part of a roughly 130,000-strong NATO-led international force.
The Islamist militia are known frequently to exaggerate claims in relation to their attacks.
The incident comes amid a string of serious attacks on pro-government security forces in recent days by insurgents wearing military and police uniforms.
On Friday the police chief of Kandahar province in southern Afghanistan, seen as a key battleground in the war, was killed in the police headquarters by an attacker in police uniform.
And on Saturday, five international and four Afghan troops died when a member of the Afghan National Army blew himself up at an army base in Laghman province, eastern Afghanistan.
That was the deadliest single attack against foreign forces since December, while Saturday was the worst day for international troops in Afghanistan since June last year, with a total of eight soldiers killed.
Elsewhere in Afghanistan on Monday, six police officers were killed by a roadside bomb in Ghazni province, central Afghanistan, the provincial police chief said, in an attack also claimed by the Taliban.
In three months' time, Afghan forces are due to start taking control of security from foreign troops in eight more peaceful areas of the country, allowing for limited international withdrawals.
Afghan forces are due to take full control of security in their country in 2014, allowing a full withdrawal of foreign combat troops.
The fighting season in Afghanistan is starting to get under way as spring arrives, and Western officials including US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton have warned it could bring some of the bloodiest fighting yet in the near ten-year war.

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An unarmed British soldier was hailed for his astonishing bravery after capturing a Taliban bombing chief in a fist fight.

Private Lee Stephens leapt off an armoured vehicle to grab the high-ranking Taliban fighter from a motorbike after a chase across the desert in Helmand province.

"I grabbed the geezer," said Gunner Pte Stephens, 30. "It was Mark One left, Mark Two right fists. That was it. No weapons, just my hands."

Soldiers from B Company, 3rd Battalion the Mercian Regiment, based at Durai Junction on Highway One, had pushed into an insurgent hotspot looking to disrupt the enemy.

Shortly after spotting an improvised explosive device, the soldiers saw a motorcyclist approach as they crossed open ground.

Insurgent gunmen then opened fire from behind him pinning the soldiers down and letting him speed off.

Lt Martyn Fulford, 24, from Churchdown in Gloucester, was commanding one of two Warrior armoured vehicles 2km away, which set off to intercept the bike.

He said: "It was a race towards Highway One. If he reached the tarmac he would have been able to outpace us. We just pipped him. I had my rifle out of the turret screaming at him. Pte Stephens ripped his headset off and leapt down."

Pte Stephens, from Solihull, said he grabbed the suspect around the neck and dragged him towards his vehicle. Asked what he was thinking, he said: "My muckers were getting shot at and I thought, 'I'm not having that.' "

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Protests erupted in Afghanistan again Monday against a Florida pastor's burning of the Quran, making four straight days of demonstrations

Protests erupted in Afghanistan again Monday against a Florida pastor's burning of the Quran, making four straight days of demonstrations — some deadly — against the destruction of Islam's holy book in a country struggling to beat back an insurgency led by Taliban religious extremists.
The demonstration in eastern Laghman province briefly threatened to turn into another melee as about 300 protesters brandished sticks and threw stones at police, who in turned started firing shots in the air, according to an Associated Press photographer at the scene.
The protest started in Alingar district and the shouting crowd moved toward the provincial capital of Mihtarlam, where they clashed with officers who wanted to keep them out of the city, said Gen. Abdul Aziz Gharanai, the provincial police chief.
However, the protesters dispersed as officers started firing warning shots and no one was wounded, Gharanai said. The AP photographer also heard no reports of serious injuries.
At least 21 people have been killed in the past three days of protests across the country.
The violence was set off by anger over the March 20 burning of the Quran by a Florida church — the same church whose pastor had threatened to do so last year on the anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks, triggering worldwide outrage.
The protests began Friday when thousands of demonstrators in the previously peaceful northern city of Mazar-i-Sharif poured into the streets after Friday's Muslim prayer services and overran a U.N. compound, killing three U.N. staff members and four Nepalese guards.
The demonstrations have appeared to awaken a simmering anti-foreigner sentiment in the country, where anger about civilian casualties and international contractors making fortunes off the long-running conflict have worn down the welcome for Western forces over more than nine years of fighting.
Meanwhile, NATO said one of its service members was killed Sunday in an insurgent attack in the east. NATO did not disclose other details or the nationality of the dead. The majority of the troops in the east are American.
The latest death makes a total of 102 NATO service members killed so far this year. In the same period of 2010, 129 NATO troops died.

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UN mission in Afghanistan has been thrown into a deep crisis after a furious mob of protesters killed and wounded a number of its staff

UN mission in Afghanistan has been thrown into a deep crisis after a furious mob of protesters killed and wounded a number of its staff in one of the country's most peaceful cities.

One police source in the northern city of Mazar-e-Sharif claimed at least eight foreign UN employees were killed after a demonstration in the thriving commercial hub turned violent. Other officials reported different figures.

Provincial police spokesman Sherjan Durrani said the demonstrators poured out of mosques in the city in the early afternoon, shortly after Friday prayers where worshippers had been angered by reports that a Florida pastor had burned a copy of the Qur'an.

Last year Terry Jones, a US fundamentalist Christian leader, did threaten to burn copies of the Muslim holy book. He backed down after warnings that Islamic opinion around the world could be inflamed and the lives of US troops in Afghanistan and Iraq endangered.

But on 21 March Wayne Sapp set light to a Qur'an with Jones standing by.

Durrani said that while most protesters were peaceful, others were seeking targets to attack, including shops and the UN compound.

Whatever the final death toll, the incident is seen as a disaster for the UN, coming just over a week after the Afghan president, Hamid Karzai, announced that Mazar-e-Sharif would be one of the first areas of the wartorn country to be transferred from Nato to Afghan government security control.

If the number of UN staff killed is high, the organisation will be obliged to consider closing down or dramatically reducing all its operations in the country – something it came perilously close to doing in late 2009 when an attack on a UN guesthouse in Kabul killed five staff.

The UN has already issued a "white city" order, which forces all staff in the country into lockdown in their compounds.

Earlier in the day hundreds of Afghans marched on the US embassy in Kabul.

In a statement the UN confirmed that some of its staff members had been killed. "The situation is still confusing and we are currently working to ascertain all the facts and take care of all our staff. The special representative of the secretary general, Staffan de Mistura, is on his way to Mazar-e-Sharif now to deal with the situation personally on the ground."

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Pakistani official says Islamist militants have attacked a terminal in the country's northwest for trucks carrying supplies for NATO and US troops in Afghanistan, killing three Pakistani guards at the site.

Pakistani official says Islamist militants have attacked a terminal in the country's northwest for trucks carrying supplies for NATO and US troops in Afghanistan, killing three Pakistani guards at the site.
Government administrator Akbar Khan said the guards were killed on Friday in the town of Landi Kotal, close to the Pakistan-Afghanistan border. He says the attackers slit the guards' throats.
Taliban militants often attack NATO supply trucks in Pakistan, though the vast majority of the goods are untouched.
Much of the non-lethal supplies for the war effort in Afghanistan come via Pakistan after being unloaded at the Arabian Sea port of Karachi in the south.

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American female soldiers stationed in Afghanistan are being encouraged to wear a Muslim headscarf when interacting with civilians

In an effort to get closer to the local population, American female soldiers stationed in Afghanistan are being encouraged to wear a Muslim headscarf when interacting with civilians. But some question whether the practice constitutes cultural sensitivity or a form of appeasement that is degrading to U.S. soldiers.

Major Kyndra Rotunda, executive director of the Military Law and Policy Institute and AMVETS Legal Clinic, told The Daily Caller that while the women are not being ordered to wear the head scarf, encouragement is tantamount to a demand.

“They say they are encouraging women to wear the headscarf when they are out and about and on patrol. But the problem is — and I think anyone who has been in the military understands that being encouraged to do something is about the same thing as being ordered — it really puts them in an uncomfortable position when their commander says, ‘We really want you to do this, technically you don’t have to, but we really want you to do this,’” she said.

Lt. Col. Michael Lawhorn, a U.S. Central Command spokesman, stressed to TheDC that while commanders are encouraging American women to wear headscarves while engaging with civilians, they are not having them wear the headscarf in lieu of their kevlar helmets.

“Nobody is saying, ‘Okay as we head out onto this dangerous street, you wear a hijab instead of your kevlar helmet,’” Lawhorn said. “As women are on some of these engagement teams and they are going to go into places where are going to predominantly be dealing with other women, like giving them medical information or finding out their concerns are in the local community. Local commanders are encouraging them — not demanding, but encouraging — if they feel more comfortable — ‘Feel free to wear a headscarf.’”

Rotunda remained unconvinced, telling TheDC that helmets are always the preferred head wear among soldiers.

“Even if it is outreach, you never know what to expect. You really should be wearing your kevlar helmet, it is a safety issue,” she said.

Retired Col. Martha McSally, whose grievance about being forced to wear the Muslim abaya while stationed in Saudi Arabia in the 1990s resulted in 2002 legislation outlawing the practice of making female soldiers wear Muslim religious garb in Saudi Arabia, told The Daily Caller that the sanctity of the uniform should not be sullied with outside accessories like the hijab.

“Another thing that makes this inappropriate is that they are wearing it with their uniform,” she said. “All the services have several-hundred-page regulations about what is appropriate and is not appropriate to wear with the uniform, and we have very strict guidelines … You are representing the United States government. You are wearing the U.S. military uniform, and it confuses what you are representing when you add this to the uniform.”

In mid-February one of the sponsors of the 2002 legislation that outlawed the practice of making female soldiers in Saudi Arabia wear the abaya, Rhode Island Democratic Rep. James Langevin, wrote a letter to Defense Secretary Robert Gates requesting more information about soldiers in headscarves.

“I understand the mission in Afghanistan is drastically different than the situation our female troops faced in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia 10 years ago,” Langevin wrote. “However I am interested to know the precise policies or operating instructions that are currently being employed with regard to the garments worn by female service members in Afghanistan and other Muslim nations.”

Langevin continues to wait for a response.

Female service members are not the only ones concerned. Retired Navy SEAL Scott Taylor told TheDC that he has been troubled by reports of women wearing the headscarves with their uniforms.

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six soldiers killed were Sgt. 1st Class Ofren Arrechaga, Staff Sgt. Frank E. Adamski, Spec. Jameson L. Lindskog, Staff Sgt. Bryan A. Burgess, Pfc. Dustin J. Feldhaus and Pvt. Jeremy P. Faulkner.

large-scale helicopter-borne assault into a remote, insurgent-held sanctuary near the border with Pakistan left six U.S. soldiers dead in heavy fighting with Afghan and Pakistani insurgents, U.S. officials said. The operation, which was continuing Thursday, was designed to drive back the enemy in the remote and mountainous border region. One Afghan soldier was also killed in the assault. In this week’s assault, U.S. forces pushed deeper into the valley and closer to the Pakistan border than they had in years, killing large numbers of enemy fighters and uncovering several significant weapons caches, a U.S. military official said.
Names of the fallen..
The six soldiers killed were Sgt. 1st Class Ofren Arrechaga, Staff Sgt. Frank E. Adamski, Spec. Jameson L. Lindskog, Staff Sgt. Bryan A. Burgess, Pfc. Dustin J. Feldhaus and Pvt. Jeremy P. Faulkner.

Prayers for the families of those lost in the fight.

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female Airmen made history here March 30 when the F-15E Strike Eagles of "Dudette 07" blazed down the runway to provide close air support for coalition and Afghan ground forces.

Afghanistan: A team of female Airmen made history here March 30 when the F-15E Strike Eagles of "Dudette 07" blazed down the runway to provide close air support for coalition and Afghan ground forces.
The two-ship formation consisted of all females, two pilots and two weapons system officers, but more importantly, it marked the first combat mission flown from Bagram to be planned, maintained and flown entirely by females.
This mission represents the first combat sortie on record to involve only female Airmen from the pilots and weapons officers to the mission planners and maintainers, said Lt. Col. Kenneth Tilley, the 455th Air Expeditionary Wing historian.
Although the call sign for the mission may have been lighthearted, the sortie was all business calling for the pilots to travel to the Kunar Valley just west of the Pakistan border in support of a large Army operation that was underway.
"I have flown with female pilots before, but this was the first time I have flown in an all female flight," said Maj. Christine Mau, a 455th AEW executive officer. "This wasn't a possibility when I started flying 11-years ago."
While planning of the mission required support from women at all levels such as Capt. Kristen Wehle, the F-15 liaison officer at the combined air operations center, those involved evoked memories of legendary Women's Army Corps pilots and others for inspiration.
"Women's history means a celebration of the equality we have today in the military," said Capt. Jennifer Morton, a 389th Expeditionary Fighter Squadron weapons officer. "It makes me think back and find inspiration from heroes like Col. Jeannie Flynn."
In 1993, then 2nd Lt. Jeannie Flynn became the first female F-15E pilot. Although the Air Force permitted female pilots to enter pilot training in 1976, Lieutenant Flynn went on to become the first female fighter pilot to graduate from the U.S. Air Force Weapons School.
"Since 1993 we have had Air Force female pilots in combat positions, and because of that today I feel as a woman I can have whatever job I want," Morton said.
While Dudette 07 was set up to as an all female mission in honor of Women's History Month, Major Mau said inspiration for today's Airmen aspiring to great heights can come from many different places.
"I think I get a great deal of inspiration from my grandmother (who was a mother seven kids), but many of my role models today are males," she said.
In addition, the pilots never forget the contributions of the maintainers on the ground,
maintainers like Airmen 1st Class Casiana Curry, who enlisted Sept. 11, 2009, and enables the continued support of the warfighters on the ground.
"The four women officers represents only a portion of the women who supported this mission making it the first all female from tasking to completion combat sortie to date," said Capt. Leigh Larkin, s 389th EFS weapons systems officer.
"I thought it was kind of cool and something that I have never seen before," said Staff Sgt. Tamara Rhone, a 455th Expeditionary Aircraft Maintenance Squadron crew chief. "The women throughout time have paved the way for us today and they made it possible for us to be equal as well as respected as individuals. Females are a rare breed on the flight line. It is my hope that more females step up and join the maintenance career field."

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U.S. intelligence source said the CIA is in the country to increase the "military and political understanding" of the situation.

 

The NATO mission -- called Operation Unified Protector-- includes an arms embargo, a no-fly zone and "actions to protect civilians and civilian centers," the alliance said Thursday.
It follows a U.N. Security Council resolution allowing member states to take all necessary measures -- with the exception of foreign occupation -- to protect civilians under the threat of attack in Libya.
Over the weekend, CNN reported that rebels had taken al-Brega, Ras Lanuf and Bin Jawad and reached a town just east of Sirte. But in the last three days, opposition fighters have been pushed back eastward.
Hoekstra: What may be next in Libya Libyan opposition speaks out on tactics Anderson: Gadhafi opposition badly armed Libyan foreign minister resigns
Rebel forces -- hampered by a lack of organization, training and military know-how when compared to Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi's troops -- have been demanding an end to Gadhafi's almost 42-year rule in Libya.
But they have been facing sustained attacks and have called for the international community to supply them with better and more powerful equipment.
Saddoun El-Misurati, a spokesman for the Libyan opposition in Misrata, described intense fighting and casualties in the city.
"We managed to get two shipments so far of badly needed medical supplies to the hospitals. But obviously we still need more supplies in dealing with the day-to-day casualties and the situation on the ground," he said.
"Our greatest hope will rely mainly on the support of the international coalition forces in the form of change of tactic from the air to (not only) target tanks and heavy artillery of Gadhafi's forces but also take out groups of snipers positioned on buildings and in the city."
Rebel forces have lost Bin Jawad and the key oil town of Ras Lanuf and are backed up to the al-Brega area, opposition member Col. Ahmed Bani said Wednesday.
Ajdabiya, which is east of al-Brega, will be prepared as a "defense point" if the withdrawal continues farther east, he said.
Weather conditions prevented a NATO-led coalition from launching more airstrikes in an attempt to weaken Gadhafi's ability to attack civilians, a U.S. representative said Wednesday.
While U.S. and British officials say no decision has been made about whether to arm the opposition, a U.S. intelligence source said the CIA is in the country to increase the "military and political understanding" of the situation.
"Yes, we are gathering intel firsthand, and we are in contact with some opposition entities," the source told CNN.
But Robert Baer, a former CIA operative, said on CNN's "AC360" Wednesday night the agency's effectiveness might be limited.
Obama's Libya doctrine Gergen: Libya an improvised intervention Libya state TV slams alleged rape victim

Libya
"I would rather see the Defense Department on the ground, if you have to be there, training," Baer said. "The CIA hates covert action. It rarely works. It worked in Afghanistan, but other times it's almost impossible to do."
Paul Wolfowitz, a former U.S. deputy secretary of defense, said he thinks "we should be doing everything we possibly can to support the opposition," and a prolonged stalemate would be bad for both Libyans who continue to suffer and for the United States.

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