Afghanistan: Insecurity Grows

Situation is not under control in Afghanistan

The silence of the western press about Afghanistan leads to a false sense of security. Unfortunately the real situation inside the country is anything but secure, with attacks against foreign aid workers or troops being carried out on a weekly, if not daily, basis.

Russian security sources have been stating for some time that the situation is gradually slipping out of control, reverting to the scenes which led to the withdrawal of the Soviet Armed Forces after the Mujaheddin were unleashed by the CIA and Bin Laden.

There are rocket attacks and ambushes against armed convoys, causing a growing casualty list which is impossible to enumerate accurately due to the fact that the coalition armed forces in Afghanistan do not respect a free press and to the fact that almost all reports of casualties are hearsay.

However, one can assess the situation through incidents. After two rocket attacks last week, there was an ambush of a convoy of de-miners on 5th may in Zabul province in southern Afghanistan. The convoy was clearly marked as being from an NGO, Afghan Technical Consultants, who were performing a de-mining mission.

A group of six armed men stopped the convoy, seizing the last vehicle, an ambulance, looking for international personnel. When told there were no non-Afghans in the group, they opened fire on the vehicle’s three occupants, wounding them seriously.

A similar incident took place two days before on another de-mining team, Afghan development Association, in which one man was killed and another seriously injured.

Lakhdar Brahimi, the UN Special Envoy to Afghanistan, has called the attacks "barbaric" and stated that they are perpetrated by those who are the enemies of Afghan farmers and children who want to play safely in the fields.

Due to the worsening situation, no UN missions are allowed to travel between 06.00 and 18.00 and not at all in Zabul, Uruzgan and Upper Helmand.

Threats and physical attacks against westerners are increasing in Afghanistan, where the taleban and Al Qaeda melted away into the countryside, where they are regrouping and reogranising.