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http://www.estripes.com/article.asp?section=104&article=9359 Thursday, July 11, 2002 At U.S. request, local Afghan leader removed By Joseph Giordono, Stars and Stripes European edition, Tuesday, July 9, 2002 BAGRAM, Afghanistan � An Afghan leader near Khost has been relieved of his duties at the request of coalition forces in the area, U.S. military officials said Monday. The incident is an indication that the U.S. reliance on local Afghan commanders is starting to show signs of tension, American officials said Monday. According to military sources, the U.S. special operations forces commander had become increasingly distrustful and disappointed in the performance of the local Afghan commander, who had worked with U.S. troops for months. The Afghan leader was identified as Battalion Commander Sardar. No other information was available. �All I know is that the special operations forces commander cited a �conflict of interest� on the part of the Afghan commander,� said Army Maj. Gary Tallman, a spokesman for Coalition Joint Task Force 180. A high-ranking officer at Bagram, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, also said that more U.S. troops have been sent to the airfield in Khost to discourage sectarian violence in the region. In recent days, several rocket attacks have targeted U.S. positions in the area, though no injuries or damage have been reported. The senior officer said it was somewhat troubling that a force of 1,200 Afghans could not stop the attacks. As a result, he said, the United States will have to shift more troops to the region. Recent U.S. missions in other regions have also led to bad blood between American forces and their Afghan allies. Last week�s disputed airstrike in the Oruzgon province initially had some local Afghan commanders and militiamen saying their cooperation with the Americans would end. Local Afghan officials claim that more than 40 civilians were killed during a U.S. air strike on July 1. The United States has not confirmed those casualties. But on Sunday, Lt. Gen Dan McNeill, top commander of U.S. forces in Afghanistan, visited the region and said that Afghan leaders had requested a greater U.S. troop presence. The governor of the province, Mohammed Jan, said he would welcome troops for both security missions and humanitarian assistance. Elsewhere, elements of the 82nd Airborne continue to arrive in Kandahar, where they will replace troops from the 101st Airborne and 10th Mountain Divisions. According to Tallman, the 82nd Airborne�s 3rd Division Task Force will go through orientation and acclimatization training. Tallman said members of the 20th Romanian Light Infantry Battalion, part of the international coalition, began arriving in Kandahar this week. __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Sign up for SBC Yahoo! Dial - First Month Free http://sbc.yahoo.com --------------------------- ANTI-NATO INFORMATION LIST ==^================================================================ This email was sent to: [email protected] EASY UNSUBSCRIBE click here: http://topica.com/u/?a84x2u.bacIlu Or send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] T O P I C A -- Register now to manage your mail! http://www.topica.com/partner/tag02/register ==^================================================================
