Monday, July 26, 2010

Pakistani agents 'aiding Taliban'















The documents reveal more detail than previously
released, including about civilian deaths [EPA]


Source: Al Jazeera
http://english.aljazeera.net/news/asia/2010/07/20107265854311217.html


US officials believe that the intelligence agency of ally Pakistan, which receives billions of dollars in aid from Washington, has been secretly supporting the Taliban in Afghanistan, leaked records say.

Wikileaks, the online whistleblower organisation, published more than 90,000 secret US military documentson Sunday, revealing an unedited account of the nearly nine-year-old war in Afghanistan.

The unverified files say that Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) agency, the country's spy service, has been holding strategy sessions with Taliban leaders to aid their efforts in Afghanistan.

An ISI spokesman denied the allegations, saying they were "far-fetched and unsubstantiated," but said the agency would be examining the files.

Wikileaks' documents, which cover a period from January 2004 to December 2009, include descriptions of a covert US special operations unit formed to target high-level al-Qaeda and Taliban figures.


They say more than 2,000 leaders are on a "kill or capture" list, but missions to hunt them down have led to unreported civilian deaths.

Julian Assange, the founder of Wikileaks, said he expected the leaked records would "shape a [new] understanding of the past six years".

"The real story of this material is that it's war, it's one damn thing after another," Assange said at a news conference in London on Monday. "It is the continuous small events, the continuous death of children, insurgents, allied forces, the maimed people."

Taliban dealings

The New York Timesin the United States, Britain's Guardiannewspaper and the German weekly Der Spiegelwere all given about a month's advanced access to the dosier, with each jointly unveiling their findings on Sunday.

According to the Times report, the documents suggest Pakistan "allows representatives of its spy service to meet directly with the Talibanin secret strategy sessions to organise networks of militant groups that fight against American soldiers in Afghanistan, and even hatch plots to assassinate Afghan leaders".

Husain Haqqani, Pakistan's ambassador to the US, called the release of the files "irresponsible" and said it consisted of "unprocessed" reports from the field.

"The documents circulated by WikiLeaks do not reflect the current on-ground realities," Haqqani said in a statement.

"The United States, Afghanistan and Pakistan are strategic partners and are jointly endeavouring to defeat al-Qaeda and its Taliban allies militarily and politically," he said.

The US government also condemned the records' disclosure, saying they could threaten national security and endanger the lives of its forces.

"The United States strongly condemns the disclosure of classified information by individuals and organisations which could put the lives of Americans and our partners at risk," James Jones, the US national security adviser, said.

"These irresponsible leaks will not impact our ongoing commitment to deepen our partnerships with Afghanistan and Pakistan; to defeat our common enemies."

'Grimmer picture'

According to the records, the US has tried to cover up the fact that the Taliban have heat-seeking surface-to-air "stinger" missiles.

The documents also show that the Taliban's widening use of roadside bombs have killed more than 2,000 civilians.

Eric Schmitt, one of the New York Times reporters who worked on analysing the files over the last month, told Al Jazeera that the documents gave an unvarnished view of the war, a "very fine grain, down on the ground level detail that hasn't been revealed before ... whether it's in firefights or drone activities, secret operations performed by commandos of the CIA".

He said they painted "a much grimmer picture and portrayal than either the Bush or Obama administrations have allowed so far".

Included in the many revelations of the leaked documents were also reports that the CIA expanded paramilitary operations in Afghanistan and ran the Afghan spy agency from 2001-2008.

Pakistan's ISI had helped establish the Taliban's government in the 1990s, when Afghanistan was wracked by infighting following the withdrawal of Soviet troops.

The country's leadership reversed course after the September 11, 2001 attacks on the US, agreeing to assist the US against the Taliban, which the US accused of sheltering Osama bin Laden, the al-Qaeda leader.

But US officials and analysts have persistently questioned whether all of Pakistan's security apparatus is on the same page, with some believing that Islamabad's main interest is to ensure continued influence in Afghanistan.

Iraq video

Wikileaks has become one of the biggest and most controversial sources of classified government information, even publishing a document showing that US intelligence had plans to shut it down.

In April, Wikileaks released video footage from a helicopter cockpit showing a deadly 2007 aerial strike in the Iraqi capital that killed 12 civilians, including two journalists from the Reuters news agency.

Army Specialist Bradley Manning, 22, was charged this month with misconduct and putting national security at risk for allegedly leaking the classified video, and has now been implicated in the release of the Afghan documents as well.

Sunday's released records consist largely of classified reports and assessments from junior officers in the field that analysts use to advise policymakers.

The leak is expected to put further pressure on Barack Obama, the US president, to get results in Afghanistan as he send thousands of additional troops to bolster forces already in the country.

2 comments:

  1. One thing that worries me about this breaking story about the last 6 years of military activity in Afghanistan from Wikileaks is the ref to Iran’s and Pakistan’s involvement.

    I suggest that we not jump to any conclusions right away. Sometimes false info can be added with real data to achieve a larger objective, such as sending more troops into Pakistan and going to war with Iran. Or how about giving an excuse to lock down the internet?

    The US Government, the military, the CIA, and the department of homeland security have been fighting against freedom of speech since…I don’t know, The Patriot act? Someone please correct me if I’m wrong.

    Remember how angry they got when a video leaked about the US chopper gunning down innocent civillians and reporters in Iraq?

    What lesson do you think the government learned from it? They sure didn’t prosecute anyone in power linked to what amouts to murder. No they went after the person who leaked the info from inside…and then the story just went away after they got their man! Sounds like an RCMP propaganda piece eh? lol

    The Defense department knows how everyone jumped all over the last big video leak so it is possible that they anticipate complete acceptance of the documents released or leaked to Wiki-leaks.

    Right now, As I listen to the MSM reports, on this story, I find myself wondering why they are actually reporting it, and why they are pushing that the report is accurate, - all the while villainizing the creator of Wikileaks.

    When was the last time the MSM attempted investigative journalism?

    How long before they decide to close down the web because of this leak, or ramp up their military in Pakistan, or attack Iran! I smell a Homeland – CIA military rat here.
    We know the repugnantkins in the house of representatives just introduced resolution 1553 that gives Israel the green light to attack Iran. And lets not forget the latest round of US and now EU sanctions on Iran.

    I am not questioning Mr. Julian Assange of Wiki-leaks fame. He may have indeed retrieved the info and then sent it out to the NY Times and other news medias. I’m asking that we look at the whole picture and not accept the whole thing outright, hook line and sinker.

    Lets not forget that not long ago, The US opened its Cyber Command headquarters during an official ceremony attended by Defense Secretary Robert Gates at Fort Meade Military Base.

    Gates, directed its establishment almost a year ago, and appointed General Keith B. Alexander as the first commander of US Cyber Command. That was May 21st 2010.

    The US defense officials call the Cyber Command headquarters and I quote “a milestone to help conduct full-spectrum operations” But please note the words “Full Spectrum operations” Do you think that General Alexander would like to be looked upon as Alexander the great? He did get a 4th star for his collar last may so maybe he is being pushed for results?

    and lets not forget Gates was a former deputy director of the CIA, think he might know a demon or two?

    I believe that this was Deliberately released info with just enough truth in it for everyone to believe. There is some damning info on the operations in Afghanistan in there that’s for sure, but do you think anyone in the military or government agencies will do anything about seeing justice prevail for the innocent victims of Imperialism? Will the MSM? I don’t think so!

    It will be very interesting to see what direction this story takes. Let’s watch this one unfold shall we?

    Here’s my question to you, Will the fish take the bait? Hmmmmmm…..what do you think?

    ReplyDelete
  2. GUARDIAN EXCLUSIVE- A huge cache of secret US military files today provides a devastating portrait of the failing war in Afghanistan, revealing how coalition forces have killed hundreds of civilians in unreported incidents-

    War Logs-
    http://www.guardian.co.uk/warlogs

    The interactive: key reports mapped-
    http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/datab...

    Logs reveal grim toll on civilians-
    http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/...

    How coalition is losing IED war-
    http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/...

    The investigation: leak exposes real war-
    http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/...

    Biggest leak in intelligence history-
    http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/...

    Civilians caught in UK firing line-
    http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/...

    'Friendly fire' deaths that plagued invasion from the start-
    http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/...

    'Green on green' -- clashes between Afghan police and troops-
    http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/...

    The key incidents-
    http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/datab...

    Secret war along the Pakistan border-
    http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/...

    US covered up missile strike on Chinook-
    http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/...

    Nato feared Taliban could tap phones-
    http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/...

    War logs glossary -- military jargon explained-
    http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/datab...

    Julian Assange on the Afghanistan war logs video-
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WYEUX5...

    Thankyou to The Guardian-
    http://www.guardian.co.uk

    ReplyDelete

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