Afghanistan: Targeting foreigners
Paul | 13.09.2004 17:15 | Oxford
A personal account of the deteriorating security situation in Afghansitan. Previously it was rare for non military foreigners to be specifically targeted but that has changed.The blurring of military and aid workers can not have helped.
Afghanistan: Foreigners specifically targeted
Three members of IOM (International Organization for Migration), who I work for, have just been evacuated to Kabul from Heart. They say the violence yesterday in Herat and the burning of the UN offices was definitely orchestrated by the war lord Ismail Khan. The demonstrators started with Kalashnikovs and systematically broke into UN and international NGO buildings, looted them and then burnt them down. They were also specifically looking for foreigners to kill. When the violence began to get out of control the IOM staff, two women and a man, sent the national staff home. The armed police on the gate had of course disappeared at the first sign of trouble and are loyal to Ismail Khan anyway. UNSECORD, the UN security agency were ineffective. IOM staff called them and waited three hours. They then called again and waited an hour after which they took action themselves. They could have stayed in the office bunker but decided to get out. They climbed over a wall with a ladder and the national staff came back with a vehicle and got them to the airport. They said that some people from other organizations who stayed in the bunker with people looking for them and smoke coming in from the building burning overhead were not in the best frames of mind. It is going to be very difficult for the UN to have a presence in Herat again as they have no buildings and can only stay in buildings which pass the security regulations. It remains to be seen what this means for the elections there. I do not think it will be hard to find a job as a polling station officer there but being run over by a bus is more appealing. I wonder if it was the right time to dismiss Ismail Khan from his post of governor. Also it might not have been particularly prudent of the head of UNAMA there to state that he agreed with his dismissal.
As for Kabul there are a number of security alerts a day. Today magnetic mines and the planned killing of foreigners in certain areas of the city were the main alerts. I will be putting some supplies in the bunker tonight. The security of other areas of the country is deteriorating also. I administer projects in about 9 provinces but can only visit two or three. For the others we have a local NGO which goes to areas we are not allowed to and monitors projects. They go in an unmarked car and vary it with taxis to avoid attention. However, there are an increasing number of areas I can not even send them to now. When the local commander and police get out of a district it is not wise for anyone to go there.
Three members of IOM (International Organization for Migration), who I work for, have just been evacuated to Kabul from Heart. They say the violence yesterday in Herat and the burning of the UN offices was definitely orchestrated by the war lord Ismail Khan. The demonstrators started with Kalashnikovs and systematically broke into UN and international NGO buildings, looted them and then burnt them down. They were also specifically looking for foreigners to kill. When the violence began to get out of control the IOM staff, two women and a man, sent the national staff home. The armed police on the gate had of course disappeared at the first sign of trouble and are loyal to Ismail Khan anyway. UNSECORD, the UN security agency were ineffective. IOM staff called them and waited three hours. They then called again and waited an hour after which they took action themselves. They could have stayed in the office bunker but decided to get out. They climbed over a wall with a ladder and the national staff came back with a vehicle and got them to the airport. They said that some people from other organizations who stayed in the bunker with people looking for them and smoke coming in from the building burning overhead were not in the best frames of mind. It is going to be very difficult for the UN to have a presence in Herat again as they have no buildings and can only stay in buildings which pass the security regulations. It remains to be seen what this means for the elections there. I do not think it will be hard to find a job as a polling station officer there but being run over by a bus is more appealing. I wonder if it was the right time to dismiss Ismail Khan from his post of governor. Also it might not have been particularly prudent of the head of UNAMA there to state that he agreed with his dismissal.
As for Kabul there are a number of security alerts a day. Today magnetic mines and the planned killing of foreigners in certain areas of the city were the main alerts. I will be putting some supplies in the bunker tonight. The security of other areas of the country is deteriorating also. I administer projects in about 9 provinces but can only visit two or three. For the others we have a local NGO which goes to areas we are not allowed to and monitors projects. They go in an unmarked car and vary it with taxis to avoid attention. However, there are an increasing number of areas I can not even send them to now. When the local commander and police get out of a district it is not wise for anyone to go there.
Paul
