Young Afghans being coerced into joining jihad with threats of violence and promises of martyrdom The Taliban gave Noor Mohammad a simple choice – either they would cut off his hand for stealing or he could redeem himself and bring glory on his family by becoming a suicide bomber. Held in Taliban custody in a different village from his parents, after allegedly stealing mobile phones during a wedding party in his village, the 14-year-old boy went for the second option. He was soon being given basic lessons in how to use a handgun, which he would use to shoot the guards at a nearby US military base in Ghazni, a province in south-east Afghanistan which is considered the most violent in the country. He was also fitted with a suicide vest that covered his torso with explosives. He was told that when inside the base he should touch two trailing wires together, killing himself and as many US and Afghan soldiers as possible. Having kitted the soon-to-be martyr out in his jihadi outfit, the insurgents took photos and sent him on his way. Such is one method by which the Taliban recruit a growing number of children used for suicide missions. A tactic pioneered by al-Qaida but almost unheard of in Afghanistan until 2005, suicide bombing is becoming more popular with insurgents attempting to meet the massively intensified Nato campaign with their own surge of violence. In one recent case a 12-year-old boy in Barmal district in Pakitika province, which borders Pakistan, killed four civilians and wounded many more when he detonated a vest full of explosives in a bazaar. “They are relying more and more on children,” said Nader Nadery, from the country’s Independent Human Rights Commission, who thought the Taliban were struggling to recruit enough adults. “When somebody runs out of one tool they go to use the second one.” Mohammad, who talked to the Guardian on Tuesday at a children’s prison in Kabul, is awaiting trial after surrendering to the Americans rather than going through with the attack. He says he was left by his Taliban handlers to walk the last few miles to the base in Andar district two weeks ago. Instead he sat down and thought about his predicament. “It is a sin to kill yourself and to kill others,” he decided. “So I took off the vest and threw it away.” Surrendering proved tricky as the guards he had been supposed to kill were slow to raise the alert and he was questioned only after sleeping outside the camp for a night. He later led the Americans to the village where the Taliban members lived, identifying a house where the Americans recovered weapons and homemade explosives. Two Taliban from the village were also killed during a shootout after he identified them, Mohammad said. He knows that because he will never be able to go back to his village and will probably never see his family again. Not all bombers are coerced. Some are tricked, like a group of four children who were recently arrested after travelling alone across the border from Pakistan into Afghanistan. Lutfullah Mashal, the spokesman for the National Directorate of Security (NDS), said his spy agency’s informants in Peshawar had raised the alarm that the four were on their way. The boys had confessed during questioning, telling the security forces they believed only American soldiers would die when they detonated their bombs and that they would escape unscathed. But, speaking on Tuesday, they claimed they were forced into making a confession after being beaten and threatened with rape by police. Their new account is hard to believe, however, and at times contradictory. According to Fazal Rahman, a tearful nine-year-old made all the more distressed by the loss of two teeth at the dentist, the idea to travel to Afghanistan came from Maulavi Marouf, the mullah in charge of the Spin Jumad madrasa in the town of Khairabad. They say an “uncle” in Kabul phoned Marouf asking him to send some physically weak children for a couple of days of manual labour, unloading a delivery of car batteries from lorries. None of the boys, who are Afghans but have lived in Pakistan all their lives, has an address or phone number for the man. Nor did they think it necessary to tell their parents they were going to Kabul. “Our family is very poor,” said Niaz Mohammad, a nine-year-old who said he used to help his father beg. “When I was promised 50,000 rupees [£360] to go to Afghanistan, I went immediately.” But they all describe the madrasa as an institution that cultivated in them a hatred for American soldiers in Afghanistan. “All the time in Friday prayers the maulavi talked about the Americans in Afghanistan and he told us that we should do jihad, especially on Fridays,” he said. It is feared that hundreds of children may have been radicalised and turned into bombers in what Haneef Atmar, Afghanistan’s former interior minister, describes as “hate madrasas”. Suicide bombing has also developed a sinister glamour among the youth of the Pakistan’s tribal areas. A video in which a group of children enact a suicide bombing has circulated widely in Pakistan in February, sparking public alarm at how jihad appears to have reached the playground . It also seems to have reached the Kabul juvenile detention centre where staff are trying to give the mix of criminals and would-be jihadists a proper education. “When I told my cellmates I refused to do a suicide attack, none of them could understand why I didn’t do it,” said Mohammad. Taliban Afghanistan Global terrorism Children Jon Boone guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …
IMF head apologised over affair with married subordinate Piroska Nagy but denied he abused his position The arrest of Dominique Strauss-Kahn on sexual assault and attempted rape charges has prompted fresh scrutiny of the International Monetary Fund’s dismissal of accusations that its director abused his power to pressure a subordinate into sleeping with him three years ago. The charges against Strauss-Kahn for allegedly assaulting a hotel chambermaid have brought fresh revelations about the French former finance minister’s treatment of women, including his alleged assault of a journalist in 2002. They have added weight to claims by Piroska Nagy, a Hungarian-born economist, that the fund’s director engaged in sustained harassment when she was working at the IMF that left her feeling she had little choice but to agree to sleep with him at the World Economic Forum in Davos in January 2008. In a letter to investigators, she described Strauss-Khan as “a man with a problem that may make him ill-equipped to lead an institution where women work under his command”. Strauss-Kahn, who is being held at the notorious Rikers Island penal complex in New York, was denied bail on Monday at a court appearance when prosecutors successfully argued he was a flight risk. The head of the IMF denies the charges against him. Nagy has accused Strauss-Kahn of abusing his position to make advances to her. She said there were several occasions when he called her with “inappropriate suggestions”. She alleged he persistently called and emailed on the pretext of asking questions about Ghana’s economy but then used sexual language and asked her out. Nagy, who now works for the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development in London, expressed her concern about Strauss-Kahn’s behaviour in an October 2008 letter to Robert Smith, a partner at the law firm of Morgan Lewis & Bockius, which led an investigation on behalf of the IMF after the affair became public. “Despite my long professional life, I was unprepared for the advances of the managing director of the IMF. I did not know how to handle this; as I told you, I felt ‘I was damned if I did and damned if I didn’t’,” she wrote. Nagy said that, under the sustained pressure, she made the mistake of letting herself be dragged into a brief affair. She wrote that she had no doubt Strauss-Kahn abused his position to gain access to her. Nagy wrote that she had a high regard for Strauss-Kahn as a leader and a man with a vision of how to tackle the global financial crisis, but she feared he was a man with a problem, making him unsuited to head an institution in which he had authority over women. Strauss-Kahn admitted the affair after Nagy’s husband found out about it and told the IMF. He apologised, described it as an “error of judgment” but added that “I firmly believe that I have not abused my position”. The investigation concurred and the IMF took no action against Strauss-Kahn other than to say that he had shown poor judgment. But Nagy vigorously disagreed with that conclusion, accusing the law firm investigators in a letter of sidestepping the central issue of sustained harassment by Strauss-Kahn. Nagy ended the affair after her husband became aware of it and left the IMF shortly afterwards. Nagy clearly feels bruised by the investigation, not only because her claims that Strauss-Kahn abused his position to pressure her into sex were not taken seriously but because there was a series of leaks intended to favour the IMF director’s version of what happened. Nagy said she was reluctant to co-operate with an internal IMF investigation because she feared publicity would hurt her family as well as Strauss-Kahn. But after Smith was hired as an independent investigator, Nagy said she overcame her hesitation. However, leaks to the press backed Strauss-Kahn’s claim he had not put pressure onNagy. She expressed disquiet that the leaks were intended to steer attention away from Strauss-Kahn’s abuse of power. Dominique Strauss-Kahn IMF New York United States Chris McGreal guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …IMF head apologised over affair with married subordinate Piroska Nagy but denied he abused his position The arrest of Dominique Strauss-Kahn on sexual assault and attempted rape charges has prompted fresh scrutiny of the International Monetary Fund’s dismissal of accusations that its director abused his power to pressure a subordinate into sleeping with him three years ago. The charges against Strauss-Kahn for allegedly assaulting a hotel chambermaid have brought fresh revelations about the French former finance minister’s treatment of women, including his alleged assault of a journalist in 2002. They have added weight to claims by Piroska Nagy, a Hungarian-born economist, that the fund’s director engaged in sustained harassment when she was working at the IMF that left her feeling she had little choice but to agree to sleep with him at the World Economic Forum in Davos in January 2008. In a letter to investigators, she described Strauss-Khan as “a man with a problem that may make him ill-equipped to lead an institution where women work under his command”. Strauss-Kahn, who is being held at the notorious Rikers Island penal complex in New York, was denied bail on Monday at a court appearance when prosecutors successfully argued he was a flight risk. The head of the IMF denies the charges against him. Nagy has accused Strauss-Kahn of abusing his position to make advances to her. She said there were several occasions when he called her with “inappropriate suggestions”. She alleged he persistently called and emailed on the pretext of asking questions about Ghana’s economy but then used sexual language and asked her out. Nagy, who now works for the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development in London, expressed her concern about Strauss-Kahn’s behaviour in an October 2008 letter to Robert Smith, a partner at the law firm of Morgan Lewis & Bockius, which led an investigation on behalf of the IMF after the affair became public. “Despite my long professional life, I was unprepared for the advances of the managing director of the IMF. I did not know how to handle this; as I told you, I felt ‘I was damned if I did and damned if I didn’t’,” she wrote. Nagy said that, under the sustained pressure, she made the mistake of letting herself be dragged into a brief affair. She wrote that she had no doubt Strauss-Kahn abused his position to gain access to her. Nagy wrote that she had a high regard for Strauss-Kahn as a leader and a man with a vision of how to tackle the global financial crisis, but she feared he was a man with a problem, making him unsuited to head an institution in which he had authority over women. Strauss-Kahn admitted the affair after Nagy’s husband found out about it and told the IMF. He apologised, described it as an “error of judgment” but added that “I firmly believe that I have not abused my position”. The investigation concurred and the IMF took no action against Strauss-Kahn other than to say that he had shown poor judgment. But Nagy vigorously disagreed with that conclusion, accusing the law firm investigators in a letter of sidestepping the central issue of sustained harassment by Strauss-Kahn. Nagy ended the affair after her husband became aware of it and left the IMF shortly afterwards. Nagy clearly feels bruised by the investigation, not only because her claims that Strauss-Kahn abused his position to pressure her into sex were not taken seriously but because there was a series of leaks intended to favour the IMF director’s version of what happened. Nagy said she was reluctant to co-operate with an internal IMF investigation because she feared publicity would hurt her family as well as Strauss-Kahn. But after Smith was hired as an independent investigator, Nagy said she overcame her hesitation. However, leaks to the press backed Strauss-Kahn’s claim he had not put pressure onNagy. She expressed disquiet that the leaks were intended to steer attention away from Strauss-Kahn’s abuse of power. Dominique Strauss-Kahn IMF New York United States Chris McGreal guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …
Bank of America, Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs among those questioned by attorney general Eric Schneiderman Wall Street banks are facing fresh high-level scrutiny of their role in the credit crunch as New York’s attorney general opens an investigation into the packaging of mortgage loans into securities. Eric Schneiderman has called for meetings with several major institutions including Bank of America, Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs, according to reports in the US. The attorney general is not commenting on the investigation, which is believed to be in its very early stages. The banks and others have been blamed by politicians for worsening the financial crisis by encouraging the sale of high-risk financial instruments tied to mortgages. Schneiderman is reportedly interested in discussing the securitisation of mortgage loans and other mortgage related practices with the bankers. Schneiderman was appointed attorney general last November and follows Andrew Cuomo and Eliot Spitzer, both of whom led crackdowns on Wall Street. This month he reached a $90.8m (£55.9m) settlement with UBS over the “fraudulent and anti-competitive” sale of municipal bonds. The inquiry comes as banks continue to struggle with the legal fallout from the credit crisis. Civil suits have been filed by federal and state regulators since the financial crisis erupted in 2008 and private shareholders have also filed cases against the banks. In a sign of ongoing public anger towards the industry, eight people were arrested during protests outside JP Morgan Chase’s annual meeting in Columbus, Ohio, where demonstrators, greeted by a heavy police presence, chanted “make banks pay” and wielded placards with slogans such as “Chase gets rich, we lose homes, jobs and services”. Last year the Securities and Exchange Commission, the US financial regulator, levied a $550m on Goldman Sachs over claims the investment bank misled investors in collateralised debt obligations linked to subprime mortgages. It was the largest ever fine on a Wall Street bank. Banks packaged thousands of home loans into bonds known as mortgage-backed securities during the housing boom and sold them to investors around the world. Many of these bonds were given triple-A credit ratings, a grade supposedly denoting a safe investment, even though they were backed by high risk loans. The collapse of the US property market triggered a massive collapse in the value of the bonds, often to junk status. US officials have alleged banks, including Goldman Sachs, deliberately misled investors by encouraging them to invest in mortgage-backed securities they knew to be junk. The allegations are also being investigated by the SEC and the Justice Department. Schneiderman, like his predecessors, has a powerful legal tool at his disposal: the 1921 Martin Act. The act gives the prosecutor sweeping powers of investigation, allows him to subpoena any document he wants, and makes it easier for the attorney general to bring prosecutions. It was most extensively used by Spitzer after the stock market crash at the turn of the millennium. During his election campaign Schneiderman pledged to tackle Wall Street over the credit crisis. “The mortgage fraud crisis is devastating working families in every corner of New York State – it’s upending our economic recovery upstate and downstate,” he said. The broad nature of Schneiderman’s investigative powers make it uncertain where his investigations may lead but the attorney general has said he is interested in scam lenders and foreclosure practices as well as Wall Street investments. According to the New York Times, Schneiderman recently issued subpoenas to two investment firms linked to a paperwork-processing firm. The firm, Pillar Holdings, handled nearly 40% of all foreclosure cases filed in New York. The inquiry is believed to be unrelated to efforts by attorneys-general from all 50 states to reach a multibillion-dollar settlement with banks over allegations of improper foreclosure practices. Securities and Exchange Commission Banking Financial crisis Morgan Stanley Bank of America Goldman Sachs Dominic Rushe guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …
Bank of America, Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs among those questioned by attorney general Eric Schneiderman Wall Street banks are facing fresh high-level scrutiny of their role in the credit crunch as New York’s attorney general opens an investigation into the packaging of mortgage loans into securities. Eric Schneiderman has called for meetings with several major institutions including Bank of America, Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs, according to reports in the US. The attorney general is not commenting on the investigation, which is believed to be in its very early stages. The banks and others have been blamed by politicians for worsening the financial crisis by encouraging the sale of high-risk financial instruments tied to mortgages. Schneiderman is reportedly interested in discussing the securitisation of mortgage loans and other mortgage related practices with the bankers. Schneiderman was appointed attorney general last November and follows Andrew Cuomo and Eliot Spitzer, both of whom led crackdowns on Wall Street. This month he reached a $90.8m (£55.9m) settlement with UBS over the “fraudulent and anti-competitive” sale of municipal bonds. The inquiry comes as banks continue to struggle with the legal fallout from the credit crisis. Civil suits have been filed by federal and state regulators since the financial crisis erupted in 2008 and private shareholders have also filed cases against the banks. In a sign of ongoing public anger towards the industry, eight people were arrested during protests outside JP Morgan Chase’s annual meeting in Columbus, Ohio, where demonstrators, greeted by a heavy police presence, chanted “make banks pay” and wielded placards with slogans such as “Chase gets rich, we lose homes, jobs and services”. Last year the Securities and Exchange Commission, the US financial regulator, levied a $550m on Goldman Sachs over claims the investment bank misled investors in collateralised debt obligations linked to subprime mortgages. It was the largest ever fine on a Wall Street bank. Banks packaged thousands of home loans into bonds known as mortgage-backed securities during the housing boom and sold them to investors around the world. Many of these bonds were given triple-A credit ratings, a grade supposedly denoting a safe investment, even though they were backed by high risk loans. The collapse of the US property market triggered a massive collapse in the value of the bonds, often to junk status. US officials have alleged banks, including Goldman Sachs, deliberately misled investors by encouraging them to invest in mortgage-backed securities they knew to be junk. The allegations are also being investigated by the SEC and the Justice Department. Schneiderman, like his predecessors, has a powerful legal tool at his disposal: the 1921 Martin Act. The act gives the prosecutor sweeping powers of investigation, allows him to subpoena any document he wants, and makes it easier for the attorney general to bring prosecutions. It was most extensively used by Spitzer after the stock market crash at the turn of the millennium. During his election campaign Schneiderman pledged to tackle Wall Street over the credit crisis. “The mortgage fraud crisis is devastating working families in every corner of New York State – it’s upending our economic recovery upstate and downstate,” he said. The broad nature of Schneiderman’s investigative powers make it uncertain where his investigations may lead but the attorney general has said he is interested in scam lenders and foreclosure practices as well as Wall Street investments. According to the New York Times, Schneiderman recently issued subpoenas to two investment firms linked to a paperwork-processing firm. The firm, Pillar Holdings, handled nearly 40% of all foreclosure cases filed in New York. The inquiry is believed to be unrelated to efforts by attorneys-general from all 50 states to reach a multibillion-dollar settlement with banks over allegations of improper foreclosure practices. Securities and Exchange Commission Banking Financial crisis Morgan Stanley Bank of America Goldman Sachs Dominic Rushe guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …Bank of America, Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs among those questioned by attorney general Eric Schneiderman Wall Street banks are facing fresh high-level scrutiny of their role in the credit crunch as New York’s attorney general opens an investigation into the packaging of mortgage loans into securities. Eric Schneiderman has called for meetings with several major institutions including Bank of America, Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs, according to reports in the US. The attorney general is not commenting on the investigation, which is believed to be in its very early stages. The banks and others have been blamed by politicians for worsening the financial crisis by encouraging the sale of high-risk financial instruments tied to mortgages. Schneiderman is reportedly interested in discussing the securitisation of mortgage loans and other mortgage related practices with the bankers. Schneiderman was appointed attorney general last November and follows Andrew Cuomo and Eliot Spitzer, both of whom led crackdowns on Wall Street. This month he reached a $90.8m (£55.9m) settlement with UBS over the “fraudulent and anti-competitive” sale of municipal bonds. The inquiry comes as banks continue to struggle with the legal fallout from the credit crisis. Civil suits have been filed by federal and state regulators since the financial crisis erupted in 2008 and private shareholders have also filed cases against the banks. In a sign of ongoing public anger towards the industry, eight people were arrested during protests outside JP Morgan Chase’s annual meeting in Columbus, Ohio, where demonstrators, greeted by a heavy police presence, chanted “make banks pay” and wielded placards with slogans such as “Chase gets rich, we lose homes, jobs and services”. Last year the Securities and Exchange Commission, the US financial regulator, levied a $550m on Goldman Sachs over claims the investment bank misled investors in collateralised debt obligations linked to subprime mortgages. It was the largest ever fine on a Wall Street bank. Banks packaged thousands of home loans into bonds known as mortgage-backed securities during the housing boom and sold them to investors around the world. Many of these bonds were given triple-A credit ratings, a grade supposedly denoting a safe investment, even though they were backed by high risk loans. The collapse of the US property market triggered a massive collapse in the value of the bonds, often to junk status. US officials have alleged banks, including Goldman Sachs, deliberately misled investors by encouraging them to invest in mortgage-backed securities they knew to be junk. The allegations are also being investigated by the SEC and the Justice Department. Schneiderman, like his predecessors, has a powerful legal tool at his disposal: the 1921 Martin Act. The act gives the prosecutor sweeping powers of investigation, allows him to subpoena any document he wants, and makes it easier for the attorney general to bring prosecutions. It was most extensively used by Spitzer after the stock market crash at the turn of the millennium. During his election campaign Schneiderman pledged to tackle Wall Street over the credit crisis. “The mortgage fraud crisis is devastating working families in every corner of New York State – it’s upending our economic recovery upstate and downstate,” he said. The broad nature of Schneiderman’s investigative powers make it uncertain where his investigations may lead but the attorney general has said he is interested in scam lenders and foreclosure practices as well as Wall Street investments. According to the New York Times, Schneiderman recently issued subpoenas to two investment firms linked to a paperwork-processing firm. The firm, Pillar Holdings, handled nearly 40% of all foreclosure cases filed in New York. The inquiry is believed to be unrelated to efforts by attorneys-general from all 50 states to reach a multibillion-dollar settlement with banks over allegations of improper foreclosure practices. Securities and Exchange Commission Banking Financial crisis Morgan Stanley Bank of America Goldman Sachs Dominic Rushe guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …
Inquest hears police officers were open to corruption, sometimes lacked commitment and were high on drugs while on duty A rogue Afghan police officer opened fire on British soldiers, killing five and injuring six, after a row over a hat he turned up in for duty, an inquest heard. The man, known only as Gulbuddin, shot soldiers who were mentoring Afghan police officers at a checkpoint in Helmand province. Earlier in the day he had turned up in a “brown Afghan hat” and went off “in a strop” after being told by a British soldier to wear his police issue headgear. The inquest heard claims that Afghan police officers were open to corruption, sometimes lacked commitment and were high on drugs while on duty. In one episode outlined during the hearing an Afghan police officer gave ammunition to the Taliban in exchange for narcotics. It also emerged that the British men were posted at the checkpoint after a “blood feud” between an Afghan police officer and a local Taliban commander. Lance Corporal Liam Culverhouse, who was shot in the eye in the attack, told the inquest at Trowbridge in Wiltshire that he was reading a magazine when the shooting began and saw a “flash of red”. “I realised I’d been shot. I heard a rifle going off in automatic bursts and Gulbuddin shouting something that was like a war cry. I felt the pain and my eye was blind.” “Gulbuddin was screaming. I decided it was time to get out of there so I crawled around the corner and I decided to play dead, close my eyes and hold my breath. All I could hear inside was gunfire, scream, gunfire, scream. From then on I fell unconscious for a period of time. What woke me up was a helicopter going past.” Gulbuddin fled and his motives remain unclear, but Culverhouse described how on one occasion the Afghan police officer had grabbed him by the head and on another had “barged” him off a platform. “It wasn’t just me. He was always trying to wind up members of the platoon and he had been warned about his behaviour,” Culverhouse said. “The police at the checkpoint were a ragged bunch.” On the morning of the shooting he turned up for a patrol not wearing his police hat. He was told to wear his uniform. “He went off with a little strop on, rifle over his shoulder,” said Culverhouse. Warrant Officer Class 1 Darren Chant, Sergeant Matthew Telford and Guardsman James Major, all of the 1st Battalion Grenadier Guards, died alongside Corporal Steven Boote and Corporal Nicholas Webster-Smith from the Royal Military police on 3 November 2009. The men were “relaxing in the sun” at Blue 25 checkpoint in the Nad-e-Ali district and were not wearing body armour or carrying weapons. Lieutenant Colonel Charles Walker, commanding officer of the 1st Battalion Grenadier Guards, insisted the Afghan police force was full of men determined to do good for their country. But he said that Blue 25 had been beset by problems when his troops arrived in the area. A shura – meeting – was arranged with village elders and it was discovered that there was a blood feud between the local police officer in charge of Blue 25 and a Taliban commander. Walker decided to use his own security detachment – which usually helped guard him as he moved around the area – to mentor the local police at the checkpoint. Questioned by the Wiltshire and Swindon coroner, David Ridley, Walker accepted there were problems within the Afghan police force, giving the example of a checkpoint commander who traded ammunition for drugs with the Taliban. He said some of the officers later got high on the drugs and their police station was attacked by the Taliban that day. Walker said such a series of events was “not untypical”. He said Afghan police officers were poorly paid and so were “susceptible to the influence of money”. Walker told the inquest that after the shooting he made a number of recommendations including setting up separate recreation areas for British and Afghan men and making sure rest areas were better protected. He also suggested that sidearms were carried as a deterrent against “irrational action”. The inquest continues. Afghanistan Military Steven Morris guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …
Inquest hears police officers were open to corruption, sometimes lacked commitment and were high on drugs while on duty A rogue Afghan police officer opened fire on British soldiers, killing five and injuring six, after a row over a hat he turned up in for duty, an inquest heard. The man, known only as Gulbuddin, shot soldiers who were mentoring Afghan police officers at a checkpoint in Helmand province. Earlier in the day he had turned up in a “brown Afghan hat” and went off “in a strop” after being told by a British soldier to wear his police issue headgear. The inquest heard claims that Afghan police officers were open to corruption, sometimes lacked commitment and were high on drugs while on duty. In one episode outlined during the hearing an Afghan police officer gave ammunition to the Taliban in exchange for narcotics. It also emerged that the British men were posted at the checkpoint after a “blood feud” between an Afghan police officer and a local Taliban commander. Lance Corporal Liam Culverhouse, who was shot in the eye in the attack, told the inquest at Trowbridge in Wiltshire that he was reading a magazine when the shooting began and saw a “flash of red”. “I realised I’d been shot. I heard a rifle going off in automatic bursts and Gulbuddin shouting something that was like a war cry. I felt the pain and my eye was blind.” “Gulbuddin was screaming. I decided it was time to get out of there so I crawled around the corner and I decided to play dead, close my eyes and hold my breath. All I could hear inside was gunfire, scream, gunfire, scream. From then on I fell unconscious for a period of time. What woke me up was a helicopter going past.” Gulbuddin fled and his motives remain unclear, but Culverhouse described how on one occasion the Afghan police officer had grabbed him by the head and on another had “barged” him off a platform. “It wasn’t just me. He was always trying to wind up members of the platoon and he had been warned about his behaviour,” Culverhouse said. “The police at the checkpoint were a ragged bunch.” On the morning of the shooting he turned up for a patrol not wearing his police hat. He was told to wear his uniform. “He went off with a little strop on, rifle over his shoulder,” said Culverhouse. Warrant Officer Class 1 Darren Chant, Sergeant Matthew Telford and Guardsman James Major, all of the 1st Battalion Grenadier Guards, died alongside Corporal Steven Boote and Corporal Nicholas Webster-Smith from the Royal Military police on 3 November 2009. The men were “relaxing in the sun” at Blue 25 checkpoint in the Nad-e-Ali district and were not wearing body armour or carrying weapons. Lieutenant Colonel Charles Walker, commanding officer of the 1st Battalion Grenadier Guards, insisted the Afghan police force was full of men determined to do good for their country. But he said that Blue 25 had been beset by problems when his troops arrived in the area. A shura – meeting – was arranged with village elders and it was discovered that there was a blood feud between the local police officer in charge of Blue 25 and a Taliban commander. Walker decided to use his own security detachment – which usually helped guard him as he moved around the area – to mentor the local police at the checkpoint. Questioned by the Wiltshire and Swindon coroner, David Ridley, Walker accepted there were problems within the Afghan police force, giving the example of a checkpoint commander who traded ammunition for drugs with the Taliban. He said some of the officers later got high on the drugs and their police station was attacked by the Taliban that day. Walker said such a series of events was “not untypical”. He said Afghan police officers were poorly paid and so were “susceptible to the influence of money”. Walker told the inquest that after the shooting he made a number of recommendations including setting up separate recreation areas for British and Afghan men and making sure rest areas were better protected. He also suggested that sidearms were carried as a deterrent against “irrational action”. The inquest continues. Afghanistan Military Steven Morris guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …
Inquest hears police officers were open to corruption, sometimes lacked commitment and were high on drugs while on duty A rogue Afghan police officer opened fire on British soldiers, killing five and injuring six, after a row over a hat he turned up in for duty, an inquest heard. The man, known only as Gulbuddin, shot soldiers who were mentoring Afghan police officers at a checkpoint in Helmand province. Earlier in the day he had turned up in a “brown Afghan hat” and went off “in a strop” after being told by a British soldier to wear his police issue headgear. The inquest heard claims that Afghan police officers were open to corruption, sometimes lacked commitment and were high on drugs while on duty. In one episode outlined during the hearing an Afghan police officer gave ammunition to the Taliban in exchange for narcotics. It also emerged that the British men were posted at the checkpoint after a “blood feud” between an Afghan police officer and a local Taliban commander. Lance Corporal Liam Culverhouse, who was shot in the eye in the attack, told the inquest at Trowbridge in Wiltshire that he was reading a magazine when the shooting began and saw a “flash of red”. “I realised I’d been shot. I heard a rifle going off in automatic bursts and Gulbuddin shouting something that was like a war cry. I felt the pain and my eye was blind.” “Gulbuddin was screaming. I decided it was time to get out of there so I crawled around the corner and I decided to play dead, close my eyes and hold my breath. All I could hear inside was gunfire, scream, gunfire, scream. From then on I fell unconscious for a period of time. What woke me up was a helicopter going past.” Gulbuddin fled and his motives remain unclear, but Culverhouse described how on one occasion the Afghan police officer had grabbed him by the head and on another had “barged” him off a platform. “It wasn’t just me. He was always trying to wind up members of the platoon and he had been warned about his behaviour,” Culverhouse said. “The police at the checkpoint were a ragged bunch.” On the morning of the shooting he turned up for a patrol not wearing his police hat. He was told to wear his uniform. “He went off with a little strop on, rifle over his shoulder,” said Culverhouse. Warrant Officer Class 1 Darren Chant, Sergeant Matthew Telford and Guardsman James Major, all of the 1st Battalion Grenadier Guards, died alongside Corporal Steven Boote and Corporal Nicholas Webster-Smith from the Royal Military police on 3 November 2009. The men were “relaxing in the sun” at Blue 25 checkpoint in the Nad-e-Ali district and were not wearing body armour or carrying weapons. Lieutenant Colonel Charles Walker, commanding officer of the 1st Battalion Grenadier Guards, insisted the Afghan police force was full of men determined to do good for their country. But he said that Blue 25 had been beset by problems when his troops arrived in the area. A shura – meeting – was arranged with village elders and it was discovered that there was a blood feud between the local police officer in charge of Blue 25 and a Taliban commander. Walker decided to use his own security detachment – which usually helped guard him as he moved around the area – to mentor the local police at the checkpoint. Questioned by the Wiltshire and Swindon coroner, David Ridley, Walker accepted there were problems within the Afghan police force, giving the example of a checkpoint commander who traded ammunition for drugs with the Taliban. He said some of the officers later got high on the drugs and their police station was attacked by the Taliban that day. Walker said such a series of events was “not untypical”. He said Afghan police officers were poorly paid and so were “susceptible to the influence of money”. Walker told the inquest that after the shooting he made a number of recommendations including setting up separate recreation areas for British and Afghan men and making sure rest areas were better protected. He also suggested that sidearms were carried as a deterrent against “irrational action”. The inquest continues. Afghanistan Military Steven Morris guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …After Revealing He Is Gay, CNN’s ‘Objective’ Don Lemon Asks Network to Support Others ‘Who Choose to Come Out’
May 17, 2011 No Comment
CNN anchor Don Lemon grabbed headlines over the weekend with his twitter announcement that he is gay. On Monday his co-workers provided plenty of time for him to share his story and his own views on the issue, and showered him in sympathy. As if that wasn't enough, he asked them in turn to do the same for others “who choose to come out.” “I really appreciate all the support, and I hope you continue to support not only me, but other people who choose to come out,” Lemon told afternoon Newsroom host Brooke Baldwin. In the past, Lemon has himself provided a podium for gay rights activists to makes themselves heard though he claims objectivity on the issue.
Continue reading …