Talk Radio News Service Embedded Correspondent Richard Miller interviews Captain Shanda Smith, a staff psychiatrist with the Combat Stress Unit out of Bagram Air Force Base, about the psychological stress sustained in combat and post traumatic stress disorder. (15:04)
Talk Radio News Embedded Correspondent Richard Miller, speaks with Major Noah Cloud, a financial operations and support officer in Afghanistan, who works on restoring value and confidence in Afghan currency (10:12)
The British Cemetery in Kabul occupies a dusty, almost forgotten corner of this city. Overgrown with weeds, many of its tombstones have, over too many years been stolen, vandalized or have simply disappeared into the hard earth. Its care is entrusted to a pious Muslim, an octogenerian (if a day) who quietly opens its ancient wooden doors and solemnly escorts visitors along its rough stone paths. The entire lot is about the size of a sandlot baseball field.
It is thought that at least 150 soldiers from Britain’s First Afghan War (1838-1842) are buried here; it is known that many other British casualties of the Second Afghan War (1878-1880) rest here as well as some Russians who died during the brutal Soviet occupation of Afghanistan. The British Cemetery may be no better place to reflect on Afghanistan as a metaphoric graveyard of imperial aspirations. This is certainly the story conveyed by the broken stones and weed choked plots.
But the plaques on the walls tell another tale. These contain lists of names, some lists longer than others but all representing men and women killed from a fraction of the countries composing the current International Security Assistance Force (ISAF.) British, Italian, German, Canadian and South African names are found there. The accompanying memorials do not speak of kings, empires of ideologies but instead proclaim more recent sentiments:
“…for Peace and Solidarity Among People….”
“…Who gave their lives helping Afghanistan hold the democratic elections of 4 October 2004 and thereby promote and era of peace for the Afghan people.”
“…Who gave their lives in the service of ISAF….”
ISAF casualites are up at least 16% in the last year; presumably, this figure does not include civilians who have died in greater numbers from both “friendly” fire as well as the shift in Taliban tactics from open confrontation to indiscriminate terror. Complaints have also increased that Nato contributes too few troops, that coordination among U.S. and other forces is poor and the perpetual complaint in all wars but certainly true in this one, that too few forces are tasked with too much work. Anxiety is the spirit of our age and there is certainly reason to be anxious about Afghanistan.
Nevertheless, the ISAF remains a functioning force here, something which does not exist in Iraq. And the ISAF, whatever the complaints, does represent worldwide forces of civilization. This is something new.
In a sense, what is at stake in Afghanistan is not the fate of kings, empires or ideologies, but perhaps something of civilization itself. It is for this reason that Afghanistan does not deserve the name, often deservedly given it, of the “forgotten war.”
Reviewing stand where President of Afghanistan Hamid Karzai was attacked
Building from which attack on Karzai was launched
Kabul, Afghanistan…. Muhammed Usman, 27 years old, is a thin, wiry, clean-shaven young man with nervous eyes that dart towards loud sounds and sudden movements. He works as a guide and interpreter for the Afghan Tourist Organization, part of the government’s Ministry of Information. He is careful, streetwise, and smart. He is a survivor in a region that values survivors.
This reporter still waits in Frankfurt for the flight to Kabul. The Afghan national airline does not yet have daily service, so the road east remains hurry-up and wait.
However, most TRNS website readers have by now heard about yesterday’s attempted assassination attempt of Afghan President Hamid Karzai as he attended ceremonies honoring Mujahedeen Day, which honors Afghans who resisted the 1980s Soviet occupation. To some, the attack stirred nasty memories of the assassination of Anwar Sadat, murdered in 1981 while reviewing troops near Cairo. Fortunately for Karzai (and U.S.-Nato policy), the Taliban missed.
This attack is the essence of so-called Fourth Generational Warfare (4GW): it may fail in its ultimate object (to assassinate Karzai) but it succeeds merely by having happened. Thus, several hundred rounds of machine gun fire and a few mortars shells produce the perception of profound instability, at a fraction of the cost of a traditional military operation.
FourGW is aimed at media and news consuming elites. Thus, this morning’s International Herald Tribune appropriately gave the story right front billing: “Karzai Survives Attack At Parade/Assassination Attempt on Aghan Leader is First in the Capital.” Score one for the Taliban.
FourGW is also the quintessence of political war and in Afghanistan, this is a political year with Hamid Karzai standing again for the presidency. If the Taliban can reinforce the meme that Karzai’s authority–which in Afghanistan is always entwined with the ability to provide security–does not extend even within the city limits of Kabul, it might weaken him in favor of an opposition that just might develop a harder line on Coalition forces in-country and a softer line on the Taliban itself.
Stay tuned.
On 6 February, I wrote a piece excoriating Al Queda Iraq (”AQI”) for their use of two female homicide bombers, both of whom were believed to have had Down Syndrome. In particular, I took to task Prof. Juan Cole, who several days earlier had expressed his doubts that AQI would use such impaired individuals as its weapons.
It now appears that Prof. Cole was correct. According to recent statements coming from Baghdad CPIC, the women did not have Down Syndrome, although the claim now is that the pair had “had undergone psychiatric treatment.” What this means is unclear but the fact remains that Cole’s doubts were in order and my reliance on earlier official statements was misplaced.
My apologies to Prof. Cole.
—Richard F. Miller, TRNS Military Affairs Correspondent
