Two NATO Service Members Killed By Afghan Soldier

Two NATO service members were shot and killed yesterday in the latest of a series of so-called “green on blue” attacks. These attacks are labeled so because they involve Afghan security forces who are turning their guns on their international colleagues or mentors. They have become more common over the last year, especially after the burning of several Qurans (Muslim holy books) on a U.S. base in February.

So far this year, Afghan soldiers, or militants disguised as soldiers, have killed fifteen NATO service members, including eight Americans.

The governor’s office stated that today’s shooting occurred a little after 11 a.m. at a joint civilian-military base in Lashkar Gah, the provincial capital of Helmland province.

Deputy commander of the Afghan National Army in Helmand, Ghulam Farooq Parwani, stated that the shooter had been in the army for four years, and came from the eastern Nangarhar province. Reports say that the Afghan soldier showed up at the front gate of the base in an armored vehicle.

The only reason troops allowed him so close was because he claimed he was supposed to help provide security at the base, supposedly for a delegation of government officials from Kabul.

Parwani said that, “He got close to the foreign troops…three or four meters (yards)…and he opened fire…then the foreign troops killed him.”

The two soldiers killed were British. Qari Yousef Ahmadi, a Taliban spokesman, claimed that the shooter was an Afghan soldier who was frequently in contact with insurgents, and had already told the Taliban what he planned to do.

These killings come as international troops have stepped up their training and mentoring of Afghan soldiers, in a U.S.-led exit strategy. This latest attack, as well as numerous others that have occurred this year, are threatening that exit strategy.

This attack also comes two weeks after a U.S. soldier reportedly shot and killed 17 Afghan civilians.