Analysis: Germans targeted in Afghanistan

Analysis: Germans targeted in Afghanistan

(NSI News Source Info) Berlin - September 4, 2008: The security situation in Afghanistan's northern provinces and around Kabul has deteriorated, which means trouble for the roughly 3,500 German soldiers stationed there.No wonder Germans are increasingly wary of the mission in Afghanistan: Since the start of the Afghanistan mission, 28 German soldiers have been killed; that's a small figure compared with the U.S. (580) or British (116) death toll, but for a country that had its first post-World War II fighting experience in 1998, when a handful of German bombers took part in NATO's Balkans campaign, it poses a significant public problem.

The situation in Afghanistan's northern provinces is tense: Last week two cars approached a roadblock secured by German Bundeswehr troops. A pair of soldiers stopped both cars with laser pointers and fired warning shots. All of a sudden, one car accelerated and started heading for the roadblock. After a series of warning shots, the German soldiers, expecting a terrorist attack, fired into the car, killing three people inside -- a woman and two children. This is the official account by German authorities of an incident that happened Thursday near Kunduz, in northern Afghanistan. It could be a sign that nerves are shot with German soldiers, who, once in charge of a relatively harmless region, are now securing provinces where the Taliban has regrouped and increasingly become a serious threat to ISAF troops. Before and after the roadblock incident, a series of terrorist attacks targeted Germans in northern Afghanistan. Three weeks ago three German troops were severely injured in a terrorist attack. On Aug. 22 a group of insurgents attacked a German patrol near Fayzabad, but the Germans were able to ward off the ambush, killing one terrorist. On Aug. 27 one German soldier was killed and three injured when a Bundeswehr convoy of eight vehicles was bombed near Mazar-i-Sharif. It was the first German casualty in Afghanistan in more than a year. Insurgents attacked German patrols twice again, on Aug. 31 and Sept. 1, both times near Kunduz, but no one was injured. No wonder Germans are increasingly wary of the mission in Afghanistan: Since the start of the Afghanistan mission, 28 German soldiers have been killed; that's a small figure compared with the U.S. (580) or British (116) death toll, but for a country that had its first post-World War II fighting experience in 1998, when a handful of German bombers took part in NATO's Balkans campaign, it poses a significant public problem. The German contribution to ISAF is up for parliamentary renewal in October, and parts of the opposition have long called for Germany to pull out its troops. The increasingly volatile security situation hands the opposition further arguments. Of course German Defense Minister Franz Josef Jung doesn't see it that way. While he admits that the security situation in northern Afghanistan has "deteriorated," Jung is a strong proponent of Germany's Afghanistan mission, and he has the backing of German Chancellor Angela Merkel. On Tuesday Jung in a surprise visit traveled to Afghanistan to meet with soldiers on the ground and get a firsthand update on the situation in Kunduz, Mazar-i-Sharif and Kabul, where the German are stationed. Kabul is being increasingly threatened by the Taliban, who are apparently closing in on the capital, according to observers' statements. On Aug. 18-19, a group of insurgents attacked a French military unit in the Surubi district of Kabul province, killing 10 and wounding 21. The proximity of such a major Taliban operation to the capital has officials concerned. The German defense minister has advocated beefing up the German mandate from 3,500 to 4,500 troops to help defeat the Taliban and prevent the country from becoming a safe haven for terrorists once again. That's why by securing Afghanistan, the Bundeswehr is also securing Germany, Jung was quoted as saying by German daily Die Welt. He added that the increased number of terrorist attacks was geared at influencing the German parliamentary decision this fall -- that's why he was "shocked by those who are now calling to pull out from Afghanistan."