Resistance grows to US-led neoliberalism

GLOBAL resistance to the US-led neoliberal empire has intensified over the last few days.

Although the protests in the Islamic world have been sparked by controversy over an anti-Muslim film, the roots are clearly much deeper.

And the momentum caused by the unprecedented wave of fury at the USA and allies like Israel, the UK and Germany, is unlikely to fade fast.

On September 11, an attack on the US consulate in Benghazi, Libya, left the US ambassador dead, while an attack on the American embassy in Cairo saw the Stars and Stripes torn down and an Islamist banner hoisted in its place.

On September 13 protesters broke into the US embassy compound in Sanaa, Yemen, and the next day protesters stormed the US embassy complex in Tunis.  There were seven deaths at protests worldwide, following Muslim Friday Prayers.

Monday's protests included 3,000 protesters in the Philippines burning US and Israeli flags in the southern city of Marawi, and hundreds of protesters facing off with police in Jakarta, Indonesia, throwing stones and petrol bombs. There have been other protests in Lebanon, Kashmir and Pakistan.

Angry demonstrators in the Afghan capital, Kabul, fired guns, torched police cars and shouted anti-US slogans. And 15 Taliban fighters who fought their way on to Helmand's main airbase destroyed six jets worth millions of pounds in an assault that was the start of a bloody weekend for NATO forces – in 48 hours six US and UK troops were killed by Aghan "allies".

And meanwhile the Occupy Wall Street protests are back with a vengeance, with dozens of arrests in New York on Monday, #S17.

 

US veterans back cover-up claim - video

 
 
AMERICAN army veterans have backed claims of a cover-up over the latest massacre of civilians in Afghanistan.

Corporate media have obediently stuck to the official US damage-limitation line that one 'rogue' sergeant carried out the murders of 16 people, including 9 children, totally ignoring eye-witness reports of a group of drunken laughing Americans.

But the Veterans Today site draws attention to a series of inconsistencies in this account, including the fact that a vehicle would have been needed to transport the jerrycan of petrol needed for the reported burning of the victims' bodies.

Senior editor Gordon Duff talks in this video about a 'patsy' taking the blame for what happened and of the US bribing people to keep quiet about the truth.

And he writes on the website that "we can safely assume" the following points.

* More than one American was involved as no single soldier would have been allowed outside the compound, heavily armed with a vehicle.

* Gate security received authorization for the “mission” from the watch officer at the “Combat Operations Center” at the base, the 24 hour nerve center than coordinates both offensive and defensive missions for even the smallest commands.

* No “reaction force” was sent to investigate though this was right outside the gates.  Radio contact would have been attempted, and there would be recorded records of this and all other activities, as required by normal procedures.

Adds one user of the site: "I saw this story first thing this morning as one of the lead stories on my homepage. I spent much of the day looking for additional 'facts'...and of course found none. I believe your assesment is as close to the truth as I, or anyone else will likely encounter.

"There is an 'ill and atrocious wind blowing' around this 'incident'. The propaganda machine is already running at full speed. Sad and demoralizing beyond words."

Says another: "I’ve been out with several…..shit, maybe a hundred Iraq/Afghan vets drinking and also shooting out in the hills of Colorado. Mostly marines, a few Army rangers, 2 Seals and the bravest of the brave….medics.

"Boil them down after a few weeks of talking, they all say the same things. The same things my good buddy tells me his Nam buddies all told him – 'it became addicting, god help me?'.

 "I tend to agree with your assesment however, this happened on purpose. The group supported SF troops and it wouldn’t suprise me if another group was outside the wire conducting 'phoenix' type operations. Same thing with the timing of Iraqi atrocities when we felt we weren’t needed as much and were leaving amidst ‘success’. First reports were a Seal or two, then a nobody, well fed with Psychotics and other scrip meds."

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Update - 'lone' soldier line is a lie

THE AMERICAN claim that only one 'rogue' soldier was behind the massacre in Afghanistan on Sunday is being described as a lie.

The line that a sole deranged individual carried out the murder of 16 civilians, including children, has been repeated by global media and seemingly accepted as true.

Obviously, this version of the story is less damaging to the reputation of the US's army of occupation.

But eye witness reports spoke of a group of American soldiers who were laughing and appeared drunk.

And AP reported on Monday morning: "Afghans are expressing growing skepticism that a shooting rampage that killed 16 civilians was carried out by a single US soldier.

"Abdul Rahum Ayubi, who is a lawmaker from Kandahar province where the tragedy occurred, said Monday it seemed impossible for one soldier to cover the ground between the houses that were attacked — over a mile (2 kilometers) — and also burn the dead bodies.

"Bismullah Afghanmal, a parliament member, said the reports he received from villagers indicate the shooting before dawn Sunday came from several directions."

Bacha Agha of Balandi village told AP: "One man can't kill so many people. There must have been many people involved.

"If the government says this is just one person's act we will not accept it. ... After killing those people they also burned the bodies."

In a statement, Afghan President Hamid Karzai left open the possibility of more than one shooter.

He initially spoke of a single US gunman, then referred to "American forces" entering houses. The statement quoted a 15-year-old survivor named Rafiullah, who was shot in the leg, as telling Karzai in a phone call that 'soldiers' broke into his house, woke up his family and began shooting them.

"This is an assassination, an intentional killing of innocent civilians and cannot be forgiven," Karzai said.

The original news report from Reuters, later modified to include the official US account, said: "Witnesses told Reuters they saw a group of US soldiers arrive at their village in Kandahar's Panjwayi district at around 2am, enter homes and open fire."


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'Laughing' US troops murder children

THE MURDEROUS reality of neoliberal imperialism was further exposed to the world on Sunday, with news of a massacre of innocent civilians in Afghanistan.

Western forces shot dead 16 civilians including nine children in southern Kandahar province on Sunday, in a rampage that witnesses said was carried out by American soldiers who were laughing and appeared drunk, reports Reuters.

"One Afghan father who said his children were killed in the shooting spree accused soldiers of later burning the bodies, " said the agency.


"Witnesses told Reuters they saw a group of US soldiers arrive at their village in Kandahar's Panjwayi district at around 2am, enter homes and open fire."



The US embassy in Kabul was reported as saying one American soldier had been detained over the shooting. It added that anti-US reprisals were possible following the killings, which come just weeks after US soldiers burned copies of the Koran at a NATO base, triggering widespread anti-Western protests.

Reuters later modified parts of its story to reflect the official US line that only one 'rogue' soldier was involved, while retaining the witnesses' accounts.

But AP reported on Monday morning: "Afghans are expressing growing skepticism that a shooting rampage that killed 16 civilians was carried out by a single US soldier.

"Abdul Rahum Ayubi, who is a lawmaker from Kandahar province where the tragedy occurred, said Monday it seemed impossible for one soldier to cover the ground between the houses that were attacked — over a mile (2 kilometers) — and also burn the dead bodies.

"Bismullah Afghanmal, a parliament member, said the reports he received from villagers indicate the shooting before dawn Sunday came from several directions."

As the USA's allies, Israel, continue to murder Palestinians in Gaza, the hypocrisy of the neoliberal/plutofascist claim to the global moral high ground has never looked so utterly exposed. 

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Afghans protest against NATO attack

 

THOUSANDS of Afghans have taken to the streets in the eastern province of Ghazni to show their anger over a US-led night time raid that killed two civilians in the area, Press TV reports.

The protesters staged a rally on Wednesday and strongly condemned the civilian casualties sustained during the deadly NATO airstrike. They also chanted anti-US slogans.

Meanwhile, the Kabul-Kandahar Highway was blocked for hours by protesting local residents.

President Hamid Karzai said on December 24 that Afghanistan will not sign a strategic partnership deal with the United States until NATO night raids and house searches stop.

Karzai said that “arbitrary operations and house searches by NATO have become a serious problem between Afghanistan and NATO forces and that this has been one of the main obstacles on signing the strategic partnership deal with the United States.”

The loss of civilian lives at the hand of foreign forces has dramatically increased anti-American sentiments in Afghanistan.

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Resistance targets phone masts and hubs

 
RESISTANCE fighters in Afghanistan are declaring war on a key element in any system of oppression - its communciations system.

Reports The Guardian: "The Taliban began attacking transmission masts in 2007, but the damage was limited and the attacks were often aimed only at extorting money from companies.

"But since mid-summer attacks have soared, with up to 30 towers being destroyed or damaged in one 20-day period. Previously a loss of five would be considered a bad month.

"Insurgents have also become much more destructive. 'They used to just blow up our fuel tanks,' a senior executive of an Afghan telecoms company said. ''Now they put fuel inside the control room with all the equipment, absolutely destroying everything'.

"Some masts have even been blown completely out of the ground by insurgents wiring them up with huge quantities of explosives.

"And they have focused many attacks on critical hub relay towers, which has the effect of bringing down services in many other locations. In some cases entire provinces have lost all phone services for days on end."

Rebels torch NATO lorries in Pakistan

REBEL fighters in Pakistan have torched at least 15 NATO tankers carrying oil supplies to the US-led occupation army in neighbouring Afghanistan.

The vehicles were set ablaze by gunmen in the Mastung region of the southwestern province of Balochistan.

Reports Press TV: "Militants fired at the trucks and set them ablaze before fleeing the scene. There are no reports of casualties.

"Meanwhile, the Pakistani security forces have sealed the area off and begun a search operation in the troubled region.

"The latest attack came days after several gunmen torched nearly a dozen tankers in the same Pakistani province.

"Hundreds of NATO tankers and containers have been destroyed in different parts of Pakistan during the past three years.

"In response, Pakistani authorities have deployed large contingents of police and military forces on all major arteries in the area in an attempt to curb the attacks.

"Pro-Taliban militants often claim responsibility for such attacks, saying that the assaults are in retaliation for non-UN-sanctioned US drone strikes on Pakistan's tribal regions.

"Despite frequent attacks on NATO supply convoys, the US military has not stopped its unauthorized drone bombings on Pakistani territory."

Afghan rebels down US chopper

AFGHAN rebels have shot down an American Chinook helicopter in one of the most spectactular successes in the long war against neoliberal occupation.

Said a statement from the Afghan resistance: "New reports from Wardag province indicate that a heavy clash unfolded last night at about 11:00 pm local time in Syedabad district of the province between Mujahideen and the invaders resulting from the enemy’s raid on the civilians which was faced with sterner resistances by Mujahideen who fought back the enemy and shot one of the invaders’ helicopters with rockets during the fighting.

"Mujahideen officials said the enemy helicopter fell down Syedabad district killing 38 enemy troops including 31 US-NATO invading troops and 7 of their puppets.

"The reports add the dead and wounded were evacuated by 8 ambulance helicopters, while 8 Mujahideen became martyred in the enemy airstrikes during the fighting.

"The wreckage of the struck helicopter is said to still exist in the area the debris of which is lying scattered at the scene."

Afghans rise up against US empire

MASS resistance against Western occupation is increasing in Afghanistan, nearly ten years after the US-led invasion.

The Voice of America website admits that at least nine people were killed in southern Afghanistan on Saturday in a second day of protests.

The catalyst for the latest uprising has been a Quran burning by a right-wing Christian church in the United States.

Says the report: "Security forces fired shots to disperse an angry group of protesters as they marched through the streets of Kandahar city, setting cars and buildings on fire.

"The riot in Kandahar came a day after protesters stormed the United Nations complex in the northern city of Mazar-i-Sharif, killing seven foreign workers, following a demonstration against the Quran burning.

"Also Saturday, NATO officials say insurgents wearing women's clothing attacked a coalition base in Kabul.

"NATO says three militants - two of them suicide bombers - were killed when they attacked Camp Phoenix in the Afghan capital. Three NATO service members were slightly wounded."

Sick truth about US empire

THE SICK truth about the 'humanitarian' principles at the heart of the American-led neoliberal empire is set to be further exposed.

Whle the US and allies try to seize the moral highground by aiding the anti-Gaddafi rebels in Libya, their image is falling apart elsewhere.

Reports The Guardian: "Commanders in Afghanistan are bracing themselves for possible riots and public fury triggered by the publication of 'trophy' photographs of US soldiers posing with the dead bodies of defenceless Afghan civilians they killed.

"Senior officials at Nato's International Security Assistance Force in Kabul have compared the pictures published by the German news weekly Der Spiegel to the images of US soldiers abusing prisoners in Abu Ghraib in Iraq which sparked waves of anti-US protests around the world.

"They fear that the pictures could be even more damaging as they show the aftermath of the deliberate murders of Afghan civilians by a rogue US Stryker tank unit that operated in the southern province of Kandahar last year.

"Some of the activities of the self-styled 'kill team' are already public, with 12 men currently on trial in Seattle for their role in the killing of three civilians.

"Five of the soldiers are on trial for pre-meditated murder, after they staged killings to make it look like they were defending themselves from Taliban attacks.

"Other charges include the mutilation of corpses, the possession of images of human casualties and drug abuse.

"All of the soldiers have denied the charges. They face the death penalty or life in prison if convicted.

"The case has already created shock around the world, particularly with the revelations that the men cut 'trophies' from the bodies of the people they killed.

"An investigation by Der Spiegel has unearthed approximately 4,000 photos and videos taken by the men."

US firms behind Afghan terrorism, says Karzai

AFGHAN President Hamid Karzai has said US private security firms, including Xe Services LLC, formerly known as Blackwater, are behind terrorism in the country.

Press TV reports that at a press conference in Kabul, Karzai said that US security companies have been behind explosions that have claimed the lives of women and children.

The Afghan president added that they have caused 'blasts and terrorism' in different parts of Afghanistan over the past months.

The Afghan president said his administration cannot even distinguish between the bomb blasts carried out by US security firms and those of the Taliban militants.

"In fact we don't yet know how many of these blasts are by Taliban and how many are carried out by them (US security companies)."

Blackwater has been involved in the murder of several Afghan citizens over the past years. The company has also been struggling with a trail of legal cases and civil lawsuits, including one for killing 17 Iraqi civilians during a Baghdad shootout in 2007.

Earlier in June, the CIA reportedly admitted that Blackwater had been loading bombs on US drones that target suspected militants in neighboring Pakistan.

The Afghan president has also pointed out that American private security firms are corrupt and have fueled nine years of war.

"Deals under the name of private security companies are cut in the hallways of American government buildings. It involves 1.5 billion dollars," he said.

Karzai has accused security companies of running what he called an economic mafia based on crooked contracts.

"The money, 1.5 billion dollars, is being distributed there (in the United States) on Blackwater [sic] and this and that."

The developments come as the notorious Blackwater has been awarded a five-year State Department contract worth up to USD 10 billion for operations in Afghanistan.

In August, Karzai ordered all security firms to disband before the end of the year.

Some diplomats and military officials say Karzai has been under intense pressure to reconsider his decision.

However, Karzai says he is steadfast in his decision to dissolve foreign security firms in the country despite US pressure to reconsider the decision.

The private companies are said to be in charge of providing security for foreign officials and embassies as well as development projects in Afghanistan.

Karzai has blamed mercenaries for civilian deaths and corruption in the troubled region.

Many observers have linked the USA to false flag terror operations in the past, ranging from the notorious Gladio network in Europe to strong connections with al-Qaeda.

Resistance grows against US occupation

RESISTANCE to the American-led occupation of Afghanistan has stepped up over the last few days.

Says The Press Association: "Three explosions just minutes apart have rocked Kandahar, killing up to four Afghan police officers in the nation's largest city in the south.

"Three Nato service members also were killed by bombings in southern Afghanistan and an insurgent attack killed another in the east, raising the coalition's death toll to 11 in the first four days of October."

Meanwhile, as The Independent reports: "The Pakistani Taliban yesterday claimed responsibility for setting fire to more than a dozen oil tankers carrying fuel for Nato troops in Afghanistan.

"The attack on the convoy in the garrison town of Rawalpindi where Pakistan's army is headquartered is the latest in a series by militants and 'would continue until the supplies are completely stopped', said Azam Tariq, a spokesman for the group.

"It was the fourth such attack on a Nato convoy since Pakistan shut down the Khyber Pass crossing in apparent protest over a series of airstrikes by Nato helicopters in Pakistani territory, including one that killed three Pakistani soldiers.

"The shutdown left lorries parked and vulnerable to attack. Before dawn yesterday, a dozen attackers sprayed the vehicles with automatic gunfire. Four people were killed as the trucks were then set ablaze. A further two trucks were in flames hours later."

Killings spark anti-US anger

HUNDREDS of villagers yelled "death to the United States" and blocked a main road in eastern Afghanistan after U.S. forces killed three innocent villagers.

Predictably, NATO forces were in denial, claiming they killed several 'suspected insurgents' and detained a local Taliban commander in the overnight raid.

Reports The Associated Press: "In the first six months of this year, 386 civilian were killed by NATO or Afghan government forces — 41 during search and seizure operations such as night raids, according to the United Nations.

"The raid in question happened before dawn Thursday in Wardak province's Sayed Abad district — a Taliban-heavy area where Afghan police can only go with very tight security, according to district Police Chief Abdul Karim Abed.

"Elders from Zarin Khil village said American troops stormed into a family's house and shot three brothers — all young men — and then took their father into custody, Abed said. Police are investigating the allegations but could not yet confirm or deny the account, he said.

"According to the elders, there was no fighting before the troops entered the house, Abed said.

"Early Thursday morning, men from the village started to gather in the main market of Sayed Abad to protest the alleged civilian killings, Abed said. The men blocked the main highway going through the area and burned two trucks belonging to Afghan private security contractors, Abed said.

"Abed said he did not have more detailed information because he was unable to leave the police compound."

Afghan resistance 'will defeat USA'

THE AFGHAN resistance will defeat the US-led occupation of their country, Pakistan's former intelligence chief has told CNN.

Lt. Gen. Hamid Gul said the United States and its allies won't win the war in Afghanistan and referred to U.S. NATO allies as "pallbearers."

Supply lines through Pakistan are shaky, said Gul, who blamed U.S. ally India for contributing to his country's destabilization.

Combined with what Gul termed poor U.S. intelligence and a home-field advantage for the Taliban, it all adds up to a losing combination for the United States in his estimate.

"Time is on the side of the resistance," he said.

The career military officer, who supported the U.S.-backed Taliban resistance against Soviet occupation during the 1980s, called the U.S. occupation of Afghanistan "unjust" and said he sees legitimacy in the Afghan insurgency against Western forces.

"This is a national resistance movement. It should be recognized as such," he said. "They are Mujahedeen of Afghanistan as they were during the occupation of Afghanistan by the Soviet Union."

The attacks of September 11 were a pretext to a war already under consideration, Gul said. "I think some of the neocons, who were very close to President [George W.] Bush, they wanted that he could embark on a universal adventure of Pax Americana, and they thought that the world was lying prostrate in front of them," he said.

The 2001 terrorist attacks helped win the public support for the neocon plans, he said.

There was no legitimate reason for the United States to attack Afghanistan, Gul said, because the FBI had no solid evidence that Osama bin Laden was involved in the attacks on New York and Washington.

"Why has not a single individual connected to 9/11 been caught in America so far, and why hasn't Osama bin Laden been charged?"

With no evidence anyone in Afghanistan was involved, there is no way to legitimize the U.S. occupation, Gul said.

Gul's comments were also picked up by the informative War in Iraq website.

Anti-American riots in Kabul

RIOTERS in the Afghan capital have set fire to two US embassy vehicles shouting "death to America" after one of the 4x4s smashed into a civilian car killing a number of passengers, reports Aljazeera.

Police fired into the air to disperse the crowd of angry Afghans who threw stones and chanted "death to Karzai" in reference to Hamid Karzai, the Afghan president.

Security forces were concerned that the deadly traffic accident could lead to widespread rioting.

Nato's International security assistance force (Isaf) said it had dispatched a quick reaction force to the area outside the American embassy and near Afghan and US army bases in the centre of Kabul.

Outside of the capital, the guerrilla war of resistance against the US-led occupation continued, with six American soldiers killed in a series of attacks, bringing this month's death toll to at least 66, making July the deadliest month for American forces in nearly nine years.

Afghan insurgents strike at 'doomed' occupation

A WAVE of successful attacks by insurgents has hit the 'doomed' US-led occupation of Afghanistan.

Reports The Associated Press: "Twelve foreign soldiers, including seven Americans, were killed in separate attacks on the deadliest day of the year for Western forces in Afghanistan. A U.S. civilian contractor who trains Afghan police also died in a brazen suicide assault.

"The bloodshed Monday comes as insurgents step up bombings and other attacks ahead of a major NATO operation in the Taliban stronghold of Kandahar that Washington hopes will turn the tide of the nearly nine-year war.

"Half the NATO deaths — five Americans — occurred in a single blast in eastern Afghanistan, U.S. spokesman Col. Wayne Shanks said without giving further details. It was a grim reminder the insurgents can strike throughout the country — not simply in the south, which has become the main focus of the U.S. campaign.

"Two other U.S. troops were killed in separate attacks in the south — one in a bombing and the other by small arms fire.

"NATO said three other service members were killed in attacks in the east and south but gave no further details. The French government announced one of the victims was a sergeant in the French Foreign Legion killed by a rocket in Kapisa province northeast of Kabul. Three other Legionnaires were wounded.

"Also Monday, two Australian soldiers were killed by an improvised explosive device in southern Afghanistan's Uruzgan province, Acting Defense Force Chief Lt. Gen. David Hurley told reporters Tuesday."

Meanwhile, the US-led occupation also seems to be unravelling from the inside.

Reports The Guardian website: "Two of the most internationally respected members of Hamid Karzai's government resigned today over security breaches at last week's "peace jirga" that allowed the gathering of 1,600 national leaders to come under Taliban rocket attack.

"The resignation of Hanif Atmar, the British university educated interior minister, and spy chief Amrullah Saleh will be regarded as a huge setback for foreign-backed efforts to improve security and to reform the corrupt, barely literate and largely untrained police force.

"A western security expert who has worked closely with both men said the double resignation was a 'disaster' and ensured that the international mission in Afghanistan 'was now doomed further'.

"He said: 'These are two of the most important people in the security sector who were finally getting a better reputation for their organs and clearing up corruption within them. If they are replaced by corrupt cronies then we might as well all pack up and go home now'."

Indeed.

Afghan rebels hit US forces

AFGHAN rebels have staged two spectacular attacks on the US-led occupation forces.

A night-time raid on the US Bagram military base followed a car bomb attack on a NATO military convoy (pictured).

Reports Al Jazeera: "Bagram, which is near Kabul, the capital, is one of the biggest military bases in Afghanistan and mainly holds US troops as well as a detention centre where al-Qaeda-linked fighters and 'terror' suspects are held.

"Wednesday's attack follows the Taliban's announcement that they would launch a spring offensiveagainst the Afghan government and foreign forces in Afghanistan in response to Nato's plans for a military campaign on the group's southern stronghold of Kandahar.

"On Tuesday, a suicide car bomber attacked a Nato-led military convoy during rush hour in Kabul,killing at least 18 people and six foreign troops. Five of the troops were Americans and one was Canadian.

"So far this year, 202 Nato soldiers have died, marking January to mid-May period in the Afghan war the deadliest.

"At least 520 Nato troops died in 2009, the deadliest year so far for US-led foreign troops since the 2001 US-led invasion brought down the Taliban regime.

"Since summer 2009, one or two Nato soldiers have died on average each day."

Afghan operation turns to farce

THE LATEST US-led operation in Afghanistan descended into farce this week, with an air strike attacking the wrong side.

Official propaganda has been making much of the fact that the USA and its allies have been fighting alongside Afghan forces in the latest phase of their occupation.

But, having already killed half a dozen innocent locals in one battle, NATO launched a disastrous air strike that "mistakenly killed seven Afghan police and wounded two others on Thursday", according to reports.

Said AFP: "The incident occurred when a joint patrol by the Afghan army and police and NATO forces came under Taliban attack in the Imam Sahib district, Afghan interior ministry spokesman Zemarai Bashary told AFP."

Meanwhile, a group of about two dozen Afghan national police officers may have defected to the Taliban, according to American and Afghan officers in Wardak Province.

Reported the New York Times: "The police officers left their posts in Chak, a remote district of Wardak, just before midnight Wednesday, and on Thursday morning a spokesman for the Taliban claimed that the officers had surrendered to them. 'They left with all their weapons, two trucks and machine guns and heavy weapons,' said Maj. Abdul Khalil, the police chief in the Jalrez district, just north of Chak."

Afghan resistance kills CIA agents

A SPECTACULAR blow has been struck by the Afghan resistance against the US occupying forces in the final days of 2009.

Reported anti-war.com: "More details have emerged in this morning’s perplexing story, in which a suicide bomber attacked what officials called a 'gym' on a military base in Khost Province, killing eight Americans the military identified as 'civilians.'

"Now US officials admit that all eight Americans slain in the attack were actually CIA agents, adding a reason why the Haqqani network was so quickly blamed, as CIA drones have been bombing the Haqqanis in North Waziristan for over a year.

"Moreover, the 'gym' at the Forward Operating Base was actually being used as a CIA 'operations and surveillance center,' explaining the conspicuous lack of military personnel harmed in the attack.

"One former CIA official was quoted as saying the attack was 'the nightmare we’ve been anticipating since we went into Afghanistan and Iraq,' adding that the CIA agents operating in the warzones often lack adequate protection.

"Exactly how the bomber was able to infiltrate the base and reach a secret CIA facility was unclear, and some suggested that the attacker may have been affiliated with one of the Afghan groups working on the base.

"In addition, five Canadians were killed on patrol in Kandahar Province. The five, four soldiers and an embedded reporter were killed when their armored vehicle hit a roadside bomb.

"Finally, though details were not readily available, a Jordanian army captain was slain in Afghanistan, the first death among Jordan’s tiny Afghan contingent since the war began."

NATO forces rocked by scandal

SCANDALS relating to the war in Afghanistan are rocking key NATO countries.

The current situation, with morale spiralling down to disastrous levels, was usefully summarised by the Canadian blog RedBedHead on November 27.

It wrote: "Canada's role in facilitating the torture of suspects - many of them likely innocent - has become a central public issue here. In Britain the revelation that MI6 supported torture against British citizens in Pakistan has become a major issue. And, now in Germany, where anti-war sentiment is very high, the prosecution of the war is causing deep political damage.

"Today the Labour Minister, formerly Defense Minister, Franz Josef Jung was forced to sign his own walking papers after it was revealed by the tabloid Bild that he knew about the killing of numerous civilians resulting from a Kunduz airstrike in September.

"The German army called in NATO fighters to bomb two fuel tankers that had been seized by the Taliban, even though there were numerous civilians taking advantage of the free fuel being provided to them.

"Jung had originally stated that he didn't know there were civilians killed but it has since been discovered that he was told on the day that the bombing took place and that he received a top secret video showing that the carnage included children.

"The German military's chief of staff in Afghanistan has also been a casualty of this cover-up, resigning earlier this week.

"Germany, which has 4,250 troops in Afghanistan has faced significant opposition at home to the deployment. This will, hopefully, further weaken the hand of the government to keep its troops there.

"All of these scandals are simply proof that the occupation of Afghanistan is a criminal operation that involves dehumanizing the locals to the point that bombing civilians, including children, is seen as nothing more than potential bad press that needs to be covered up. Same for torture, as we're seeing so vividly here in Canada. It's time to stop the killing by bringing the troops home."