Our Tax Dollars At Work- US-funded program to arm Afghan groups begins

[Orwellian_Ghost]

US-funded program to arm Afghan groups begins

Jan 31, 2009 6:41 AM (17 hrs ago) By RAHIM FAIEZ, AP

KABUL, Afghanistan (Map, News) - A U.S.-funded program to train and arm community members in Afghanistan's most dangerous regions as a way to defend against the Taliban has begun, the country's interior minister said Saturday.

The U.S. will provide funds to arm the community force with the same weapons used by Afghan police - Kalashnikov rifles, said Interior Ministry Mohammad Hanif Atmar.

The program has already begun, but Atmar refused to say where, citing security concerns. Other officials have said the program will begin in Wardak, an increasingly dangerous province on the southwest side of Kabul.



"I should say that these units are not militias, they are not guards," Atmar said. "They are official units of the Interior Ministry. We shouldn't use any other names for these units. We don't have in mind anything like a militia or arming militias."

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http://www.examiner.com/a-1825775~US_funded_program_to_arm_Afghan_groups_begins.html

[Oregone]

1. Sweet. Operation Cylcone Redux (now in surround sound, HD)

Hope it works as well as the first time.

[leftstreet]

2. Kalashnikov sales are up!

"U.S. Ambassador William Wood, at a news conference in late December, said the U.S. was interested in promoting Afghan communities, and noted Afghan villagers have defended themselves throughout history.

Wood at the time denied the U.S. would be providing weapons for the program. The U.S. Embassy had no immediate comment on Saturday."

:eyes:

And so it begins...

[Orwellian_Ghost]

3. Afghanistan, Another Untold Story

http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/HL0812/S00106.htm

[IDemo]

4. US taxpayers have been paying protection money to "Concerned Local Citizens" in Iraq, too

http://www.alternet.org/waroniraq/71662/

The controversial move of the U.S. military to back Sunni "Awakening" forces has created another wedge between Sunni and Shia political groups.

Following disputes between the tribal groups assembled into Awakening forces and the Iraqi government, the creation of these forces has become also a political issue.

U.S.-backed Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, who heads a Shia political bloc, has adamantly opposed the U.S.-military policy of backing tribal groups and former resistance fighters.

To date, the U.S. military has paid more than 17 million dollars to these fighters, whose groups it calls "Concerned Local Citizens" and "Awakening Forces." Each member receives around 300 dollars monthly. Many are former resistance fighters who used to attack occupation forces.