Afghans blame Haqqani network for attacks
Baku, April 17 (AZERTAC). A complex terror attack that was beaten down Monday after paralyzing Kabul has raised fears among some Afghans that the country`s forces are not ready to stand up to insurgents.
"Not just me, but the entire nation is worried about the future," said Ali Ahmad, whose refrigerator repair shop is next door to a building that was taken over by terrorists Sunday. "The foreigners are responsible for this. They have the latest technology. We Afghans have nothing."
Afghan Interior Minister Besmillah Mohammadi said Monday that the assault was the work of the Haqqani network, a terrorist group with close ties to the Taliban that the Pentagon says gets help from Pakistan`s intelligence agency. The network has strongholds in provinces along the Pakistan border, which the U.S. military has said will be the target of ramped up offensives this year.
"One of the terrorists who has been arrested in Jalalabad has confessed that they were trained and equipped outside of our borders," Mohammadi said. "He has confessed that they were in one of the branches of the Haqqani network. We have his confession."
The attack involved dozens of gunmen who took up positions in central Kabul and three other provinces Sunday. In Kabul, the attackers fired at the U.S. Embassy and other buildings for 18 hours before Afghan troops wiped out the last pocket of attackers with the help of NATO gunships Monday.
Thirty-six of the attackers were killed as were 11 others that included civilians and police, according to the Interior Ministry. President Hamid Karzai praised the performance of the Afghan military but complained that NATO and Afghan intelligence should have prevented the attack.
U.S. forces are at the lead of fighting in outlying provinces to root out Taliban influence, while security in Kabul is headed by the Afghan National Army and police. The heavily armed insurgents were able to penetrate Kabul`s numerous security checkpoints leading into some of the city`s most secure areas where government agencies are located.
"We found mobile phones and documents, and the telephone numbers showed that there was contact between a remote area in Afghanistan and the Pakistani side of the border," he said. "The Haqqani network was behind the attack."
"To get out before the Afghans have a full grip on security, which is a couple of years out, would be to invite the Taliban, Haqqani and al-Qaeda back in and set the stage for another 9/11. And that, I think, is an unacceptable risk for any American," Crocker said.
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