Military

SHAPE News Summary & Analysis

12 September 2003

ISAF

• According to AFP, NATO-led peacekeepers in Kabul were on heightened alert Friday as they investigated overnight rocket attacks on their main base in the Afghan capital, the first attacks since the Alliance took over command of ISAF last month. A rocket attack exploded Thursday in the ISAF base, known as Camp Warehouse, housing hundred of troops in east Kabul, causing some damage but no casualties, the dispatch reports. One hour later, it adds, a blast shook another ISAF base used by the Canadian troop contingent in southwest Kabul. The dispatch quotes ISAF saying in a statement that ISAF patrols have been dispatched to investigate both blasts and “soldiers were put on a heightened state of alert.” Noting that initial investigations into the attacks indicated a “small caliber rocket” struck and damaged a shipping container in Camp Warehouse and that bomb disposal experts were examining the site, the dispatch also quotes an ISAF spokeswoman saying: “We’ve got the fragments of the shell and hopefully we’ll soon be able to confirm what it was.” According to the dispatch, ISAF Commander Lt. Gen. Gliemeroth stressed that “the attacks will in no way deter ISAF from its resolve in continuing this mission,” and added: “In fact, this incident reminds us of why we are here—to help the Afghan transitional authority to increase the stability here in Kabul and the surrounding area.” A related AP dispatch says no one claimed responsibility for the attacks. An Afghan intelligence official said it was likely the work of Taliban insurgents an Al Qaeda, but offered no proof. The dispatch notes that shortly after the incident, the ISAF base was in darkness, apparently as a precaution against any further attacks. An armored personnel carrier mounted with a machine gun was reportedly posted outside the perimeter, and soldiers on guard brusquely told reporters to move away.

Based on interviews with two Taliban officials, the New York Times says the resurgent Taliban has embarked on a strategy of small guerrilla attacks intended to frustrate and steadily bleed U.S. forces in Afghanistan and to force the U.S. to expend billions of dollars in military costs.
A man who identified himself as a Taliban commander reportedly said the group’s goal was to tie down the United States in Afghanistan and force it to spend huge sums responding to limited attacks that draw U.S. forces “here to there, here to there.” According to the newspaper, another man, who identified himself as a Taliban spokesman, said the fugitive Taliban leader Mullah Omar was commanding Taliban forces from his hideout in Afghanistan. The two men were reportedly interviewed separately and on the condition that the country where they spoke not be identified. They also asked that their real names not be disclosed. The newspaper observes that their claims could not be independently confirmed, but whatever the men’s role in the Taliban, their accounts offered a rare insight into the developing strategies of the resurgent group.

IRAQ

• According to AP, Turkish media reported Friday that U.S. and Turkish officials had discussed possible actions against Kurdish rebels in northern Iraq, a key Turkish request to send troops to Iraq. A U.S. team headed by Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Pascoe met with Turkish government, military and intelligence officials in Ankara to discuss the issue, CNN-Turk reportedly said. The dispatch also quotes Prime Minister Erdogan saying Friday that a decision on whether to deploy troops would be discussed Sept. 19 at a National Security Council meeting, with the country’s top generals and civilian leaders.