Karzai Questions Allies' Willingness to Act on Pakistani Terror Havens

VOA News
29 July 2010

Afghan President Hamid Karzai is questioning the willingness of Western allies to go after terrorist sanctuaries in neighboring Pakistan.

Mr. Karzai said Thursday that the war against terrorism is "not in Afghanistan's homes and villages" but in the sanctuaries and training centers that lie outside the country.

The Afghan leader told reporters in Kabul that only international forces have the ability to tackle such insurgent forces. After the news conference, a spokesperson for President Karzai, Sediq Sediqqi, said the president's comments about Afghanistan's allies were misinterpreted.

Earlier this week, the website WikiLeaks released thousands of classified U.S. military documents that allege Pakistan's intelligence agency was actively collaborating with Afghan Taliban militants.

Pakistan has dismissed the allegations. Pakistani foreign ministry spokesman Abdul Basit called Mr. Karzai's remarks "incomprehensible." He said Pakistan's ambassador in Kabul was seeking clarification, noting the neighboring nations have been closely cooperating against terrorism.

President Karzai on Thursday also condemned WikiLeaks' release of the military documents and said their leak endangers the lives of Afghans who worked closely with NATO forces. He said he has ordered a government review of the files. The 91,000 documents also contain details of civilian casualties allegedly caused by coalition forces.

U.S. officials have also condemned the documents' release and launched an investigation into the source of the leak.

Also Thursday, Afghan officials say the body of a second US Navy sailor, who disappeared in eastern Afghanistan last week, has been recovered.

Officials say the remains were found by locals on Wednesday in a river in the Baraki Barak district of Logar province. The body was later recovered by NATO personnel.

The two sailors were reported missing Friday, after they entered an area known to be an insurgent stronghold. The body of one of the men was recovered on Sunday.

The Taliban said previously that it had killed one sailor in a firefight and captured the other.

Some information for this report was provided by AP, AFP and Reuters.