[Vision2020] 10-29-11: Kabul Suicide Attack One of Deadliest in Afghanistan War

[Ted Moffett]

http://www.csmonitor.com/World/2011/1029/Kabul-suicide-attack-marks-one-of-deadliest-days-in-Afghanistan-war

Kabul suicide attack marks one of deadliest days in Afghanistan war

Thirteen Americans were reportedly killed in the Kabul suicide attack.
If confirmed, the death toll would make the Kabul suicide attack
Saturday the fourth-deadliest day for the US in the Afghanistan war.

By Tom A. Peter, Correspondent / October 29, 2011

American forces in Afghanistan may be facing one of the deadliest days
in the history of the 10-year war here after a car bomb exploded next
to a NATO convoy on Saturday morning.

The bomb targeted a convoy moving on a large road in the southwest
area of Kabul, near the Afghan parliament building. Although NATO has
yet to release the official number of those killed by the blast,
initial reports indicate that as many as 17 people were killed,
including 13 foreign forces, three civilians, and an Afghan policeman.

That so many foreign forces were killed in the capital city, regarded
as one of the most secure areas of the country, will prove a serious
point of concern for security officials and Afghans alike. A recent
wave of attacks and assassinations here has
deepened concerns that security in Kabul is steadily deteriorating.

“For a long time, we haven’t had such attacks in Kabul, especially on
foreign forces,” says Abdul Ghafoor Liwal, director of Regional
Studies Center of Afghanistan. “Insurgents want to show that they can
still manage such attacks on foreign troops. … I think they will be
able to repeat such attacks on foreigners, and on the Afghan
government and forces as well.”

It appears that all 13 foreign forces killed were American, making the
attack Saturday the fourth-deadliest day for the US in the history of
the war. In addition to death toll from the Kabul blast, at least two
but possibly three Australian soldiers were reportedly shot dead by an
assailant wearing an Afghan Army uniform in the south of Afghanistan.
Officials from the International Security Assistance Force have yet to
release the nationality of the victims. If three Australians are
confirmed dead, it would be the worst day for the country since June
2010.

Today’s bombing comes about a month after a complex attack rocked the
US embassy and NATO headquarters in Kabul on Sept. 13. But while the
attack lasted almost 20 hours, seven Afghans were killed by insurgents
and no embassy or NATO personnel were killed or wounded.

On Aug. 6, insurgents inflicted the heaviest single day losses on US
troops in Afghanistan by shooting down a helicopter in Wardak
Province, west of Kabul, killing 31 American service members, mostly
Navy SEALS. The second and third bloodiest days came on June 28, 2005,
and April 6, 2005, when 19 and 15 US service members were killed,
respectively.

Traditionally, record single day losses have come from helicopter
crashes, making Saturday’s heavy losses especially unique as they
resulted from a bombing and a shooting.

“It’s a big blow for the US, but we have to realize that we are in a
conflict zone. Kabul is a calm place, but the hostile elements being
equipped with all sorts of means to attack the American forces are
always out there and waiting for the moment,” says Barry Salaam, an
independent analyst and civil society activist in Kabul. “For a single
attack, it was definitely a big casualty. But this is not the first
time, obviously, that the Americans have suffered heavy casualties in
Afghanistan.”

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Vision2020 Post: Ted Moffett