Posts Tagged ‘Pakistan’

WIKILEAKS Docs are out – Afghan War Files

Monday, July 26th, 2010

The long awaited Wikileaks files are out with some damning information.

The Obama Admin and top Generals have already come out condemning them. The biggest news from these leaks which has been reported before is that the Pakistani Gov’t is aiding the insurgents. The leaks, 90,000 files, cover the time from 2004 to 2009. Here’s some excerpts from several news sources:

From the NY Times:

“The documents, made available by an organization called WikiLeaks, suggest that Pakistan, an ostensible ally of the United States, allows representatives of its spy service to meet directly with the Taliban in secret strategy sessions to organize networks of militant groups that fight against American soldiers in Afghanistan, and even hatch plots to assassinate Afghan leaders. “

The Daily Beast has The 7 Most Shocking Secrets From the WikiLeaks Files

Among the findings:

1) Pakistan’s spy service, according to revealed documents, is a major supporter of insurgents in Afghanistan, allowing its members to meet secretly with the Taliban, offering strategy advice, organizing groups to fight coalition troops, and plotting the assassinations of members of the Afghan government.

2) A top-secret group of American forces, nicknamed the “black” unit, is specially tasked with hunting down top Taliban leaders and either killing or capturing them on the spot—without a trial. The Obama administration has apparently increased the missions even though some have gone awry, killing civilians.

3) NATO troops are relying on remote-controlled Predator drones more and more heavily, controlling them from a base in Nevada and using them to kill an increasing number of Taliban targets.

4) The Taliban has access to heat-seeking missiles and has used them against American aircraft, a fact never before disclosed publicly. Many of the missiles aren’t successful, but Americans are forced into dangerous retrieval operations when the missiles crash, so that Taliban do not recover them.

5) Several documents detail the frustrating disappearance of money meant for humanitarian aid, such as the case of an orphanage erected with much fanfare and donations in Gardez. A year after its opening, American visitors reported that there we no orphans at the site, and that many had been called home for the holidays. (In Afghanistan, an orphan is defined as having no father, but many still have mothers.)

6) Civilian death tolls are rising consistently, with the Taliban conducting a successfull roadside bombing campaign. As of the writing of the report, one document cited 2,000 civilian deaths from roadside car bombs alone.

7) U.S. forces covered up a 2007 helicopter attack, according to the documents, claiming that Taliban brought down a coalition helicopter with conventional weaponry—when instead they used a missile. A U.S. official at the time said the attack, which killed seven soldiers, “had probably been brought down by a rocket-propelled grenade.”

And for those of you interested in reading the whole file, the Guardian, UK has reproduced full military logs behind more than 200 of the key events from the database – you can navigate around them. But if you want to download this data to play with it yourself, this is the place to come.

The Huffington Post has a Statement from Gen. James Jomes re the Leaks:

The United States strongly condemns the disclosure of classified information by individuals and organizations which could put the lives of Americans and our partners at risk, and threaten our national security. Wikileaks made no effort to contact us about these documents – the United States government learned from news organizations that these documents would be posted. These irresponsible leaks will not impact our ongoing commitment to deepen our partnerships with Afghanistan and Pakistan; to defeat our common enemies; and to support the aspirations of the Afghan and Pakistani people.

The documents posted by Wikileaks reportedly cover a period of time from January 2004 to December 2009. On December 1, 2009, President Obama announced a new strategy with a substantial increase in resources for Afghanistan, and increased focus on al Qaeda and Taliban safe-havens in Pakistan, precisely because of the grave situation that had developed over several years. This shift in strategy addressed challenges in Afghanistan that were the subject of an exhaustive policy review last fall. We know that serious challenges lie ahead, but if Afghanistan is permitted to slide backwards, we will again face a threat from violent extremist groups like al Qaeda who will have more space to plot and train. That is why we are now focused on breaking the Taliban’s momentum and building Afghan capacity so that the Afghan government can begin to assume responsibility for its future. The United States remains committed to a strong, stable, and prosperous Afghanistan.

Since 2009, the United States and Pakistan have deepened our important bilateral partnership. Counter-terrorism cooperation has led to significant blows against al Qaeda’s leadership. The Pakistani military has gone on the offensive in Swat and South Waziristan, at great cost to the Pakistani military and people. The United States and Pakistan have also commenced a Strategic Dialogue, which has expanded cooperation on issues ranging from security to economic development. Pakistan and Afghanistan have also improved their bilateral ties, most recently through the completion of a Transit-Trade Agreement. Yet the Pakistani government – and Pakistan’s military and intelligence services – must continue their strategic shift against insurgent groups. The balance must shift decisively against al Qaeda and its extremist allies. U.S. support for Pakistan will continue to be focused on building Pakistani capacity to root out violent extremist groups, while supporting the aspirations of the Pakistani people.

What I get from skimming this news is that the Pakistani Gov’t and the Afghan Gov’t are working against the US while taking our money and funneling it to the insurgents. Osama is either dead or living off the US funds somewhere and it’s a money pit for the US and other nations. Not to forget all the people that have lost their lives in that hell hole, both military and civilians. The only reason we are there now is because the Pakistani Gov’t has nuclear weapons and we don’t want the crazies in that area to acquire them.

Your comments and more news in comments.

Peanut Butter – Afghanistan Today

Sunday, June 20th, 2010

The longest “War”. There has been so much going on in our little world that we tend to take our eyes off what is happening in Afghanistan. And Iraq as well, but that will be another post. But Afghanistan has been up front in the news lately, not because of the “WAR” or maybe a better word is Incursion, but because of the sudden announcement of what has been known in the past but suddenly brought to the forefront, of Afghanistan’s Mineral Wealth.

All of a sudden Afghanistan is of interest to the powers of the world! And even though the country is very unstable the World powers are lining up and sending messages and Ambassadors to the Karzai gov’t to get a piece of the future action. But Karzai is a crook and there is the Taliban to consider and the War Lords in other areas of the country! How will this play out? The play action has already started and will, in my opinion, change the way we deal with Afghanistan and the Karzai Gov’t. Right now it puts the US in a sensitive position because of the US presence there.

Here’s some recommended reading to understand this new world problem that will effect the economies of the world.

Karzai is taking advantage of the Mineral news to negotiate for Afhganistan and himself: Japan Has ‘Priority’ On Rights To Mine Afghanistan Mineral Deposits, Says Hamid Karzai

Afghan President Hamid Karzai said this week that Japan — not the U.S. — takes priority over other nations when it comes to mining his country’s vast mineral deposits.

Karzai made his proclamation during a five-day visit to Japan. Over that same time period, news reports surfaced that Afghanistan and Pakistan planned to negotiate with U.S.-NATO enemies, the U.N. reported that insurgent violence is surging, and Reuters tried to parse the Pentagon’s mixed messages over U.S. strategy in Afghanistan.

And while the Taliban and War Lords are beginning to catch on to the Minerals report:

UN: Afghan Insurgent Violence Soaring Over Last Year’s Levels »

KABUL, Afghanistan — The United Nations reported Saturday that insurgent violence has risen sharply in Afghanistan over the last three months, with roadside bombings, complex suicide attacks and assassinations soaring over last year’s levels.

The three-month report by U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to the U.N. Security Council appeared at odds with Pentagon assertions of slow but steady progress in Afghanistan – an assessment that was challenged by U.S. lawmakers during recent hearings on Capitol Hill.

And this headlin: “Afghanistan, Pakistan Plan Peace Talks With Insurgents On Fears Of Abrupt US Withdrawal”, is it Just about the US withdrawal or is this thaw between Afghanistan and Pakistan have anything to do with the Minerals which may be in parts of Pakistan as well?

And this headline, Afghan Mineral Wealth Could Exceed $3 Trillion shows that the price is rising. When it was first recently announced about the worth of this Mineral bonanza, it was $1 Trillion.

The US Banks are trying to put their foot in the door as well: JPMorgan Sends Mining Team To Afghanistan

The Contract are already being written: Afghanistan gears up to award contracts for vast iron ore deposits in peaceful province. My question is…is there any peaceful regions in Afghanistan right now? And if there are, is it because of the presence of US troops? And how long would these regions be peaceful if the US were to leave?

There’s much reading about this issue and more to come. But if you think it’s not a problem, think again! It involves money to be made and the greed follows.