afghanistan

A shooting at Camp Qargha happened after a dispute broke out on Tuesday, around lunch time. It involved several Afghans and an armed Afghan soldier. The attacker was recruited 3 years ago and acted alone, according to Pentagon sources. He opened fire from a guard post in the military training academy, aiming at a group of Afghan and international troops. At least 15 people were reported as wounded, among which two British, several US, German an Afghan soldiers. US General Harold Greene was part of them. He was the deputy commanding general for the Combined Security Transition Command and was in charge of preparing the withdrawal of coalition troops at the end of the year. The Afghan soldier was shot dead and it will not have an impact on the trust between coalition soldiers and their Afghan counterparts.

Two things make this event even more noticeable: first, it is the first time a US soldier is killed since the Vietnam War; and second, he is the highest ranking US military official to have been killed since the operations in the region began. However, government officials say they don’t think US General Harold Greene was specifically targeted and neither do they think it was a sign that Taliban planned the attack. The reasons for this attack remain thus unknown, but the Pentagon reported “insider attacks” of that kind as a “pernicious threat.” It is a reminder that security is not yet insured in the region.

Officials said 10,000 American troops will remain in Afghanistan, and all troops will be withdrawn by the end of 2016. Pentagon spokesman, Admiral Kirby, underscored the progress Afghan forces have made over the past years. As an exemple, he cited the security the Afghan military was able to provide to the last presidential election.

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