Makkah police arrest Yemeni and Egyptian suspects of fake Hajj campaign    400-800 year old giant coral colony discovered within AMAALA waters in the Red Sea    HR Ministry launches 'Ajeer Al-Hajj' service for seasonal work during Hajj 2025    Kafalah grants 1,900 loan guarantees worth over SR4.8 billion to SMEs during 1Q 2025    Council of Senior Scholars reaffirms performing Hajj without a permit is a sinful act    Syria thanks Saudi Arabia and Qatar for settling World Bank dues    King and Crown Prince offer condolence to Iranian president over the deadly port explosion    stc reports strong first-quarter 2025 results with 11% rise in net profit    Virgin Atlantic celebrates one month of nonstop service between London and Riyadh    Saudi Awwal Bank records SR2.1 billion net profit after zakat and income tax for 1Q25    Mahmoud Abbas appoints Hussein Al-Sheikh as PLO vice president in key succession move    Duran leads Al Nassr past Yokohama Marinos into AFC Champions League Elite semi-finals    Al Ahli cruise past Buriram into AFC Champions League Elite semi-finals    Saudi Arabia offers condolences to Iran following deadly Bandar Abbas port explosion    Saudi orchestra to perform at Sydney Opera House in May    Al Hilal thrash Gwangju to reach AFC Champions League Elite semi-finals    Saudi Theater Commission launches its Work and Learn Project in UK    The season has begun — and one comment shook us all    Average life expectancy in Saudi Arabia rises to78.8 years    Famed Philippine film star Nora Aunor dies at 71    Pakistani star's Bollywood return excites fans and riles far right    Veteran Bollywood actor Manoj Kumar dies at 87    Bollywood actress vindicated over boyfriend's death after media hounding    Grand Mufti rules against posting prayers and preaching in mosques on social media    Exotic Taif Roses Simulation Performed at Taif Rose Festival    Asian shares mixed Tuesday    Weather Forecast for Tuesday    Saudi Tourism Authority Participates in Arabian Travel Market Exhibition in Dubai    Minister of Industry Announces 50 Investment Opportunities Worth over SAR 96 Billion in Machinery, Equipment Sector    HRH Crown Prince Offers Condolences to Crown Prince of Kuwait on Death of Sheikh Fawaz Salman Abdullah Al-Ali Al-Malek Al-Sabah    HRH Crown Prince Congratulates Santiago Peña on Winning Presidential Election in Paraguay    SDAIA Launches 1st Phase of 'Elevate Program' to Train 1,000 Women on Data, AI    41 Saudi Citizens and 171 Others from Brotherly and Friendly Countries Arrive in Saudi Arabia from Sudan    Saudi Arabia Hosts 1st Meeting of Arab Authorities Controlling Medicines    General Directorate of Narcotics Control Foils Attempt to Smuggle over 5 Million Amphetamine Pills    NAVI Javelins Crowned as Champions of Women's Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO) Competitions    Saudi Karate Team Wins Four Medals in World Youth League Championship    Third Edition of FIFA Forward Program Kicks off in Riyadh    Evacuated from Sudan, 187 Nationals from Several Countries Arrive in Jeddah    SPA Documents Thajjud Prayer at Prophet's Mosque in Madinah    SFDA Recommends to Test Blood Sugar at Home Two or Three Hours after Meals    SFDA Offers Various Recommendations for Safe Food Frying    SFDA Provides Five Tips for Using Home Blood Pressure Monitor    SFDA: Instant Soup Contains Large Amounts of Salt    Mawani: New shipping service to connect Jubail Commercial Port to 11 global ports    Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Delivers Speech to Pilgrims, Citizens, Residents and Muslims around the World    Sheikh Al-Issa in Arafah's Sermon: Allaah Blessed You by Making It Easy for You to Carry out This Obligation. Thus, Ensure Following the Guidance of Your Prophet    Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques addresses citizens and all Muslims on the occasion of the Holy month of Ramadan    







Thank you for reporting!
This image will be automatically disabled when it gets reported by several people.



Kabul should brace for more assassinations, says US envoy
Published in The Saudi Gazette on 20 - 04 - 2011

DARBISHAN: Afghanistan's government and foreign troops should prepare for the Taliban to step up urban suicide attacks and assassinations as they shift tactics to “very focused” terrorism, the US ambassador said.
Karl Eikenberry told Reuters in an interview that three insurgent attacks in just four days pointed to a change in strategy following setbacks against international and Afghan security forces.
“Our sense is that in the course of the spring and the summer that we could see continued suicide attacks, perhaps at a higher level than we saw last year,” Eikenberry said on his aircraft during a fleeting visit to restive Kandahar province.
“It seems to us now that they can't hold forces in the field and they can't fight head-on. They have shifted and they have begun now a very focused terrorist campaign.”
An insurgent strike on Monday killed two people in the Afghan Defense Ministry in the third attack on supposedly high-security installations in just four days.
On Friday, a suicide bomber wearing a police uniform killed Gen. Khan Mohammed Mujahid, the Kandahar police chief, while another uniformed suicide bomber on Saturday killed five NATO service members in one of the worst attacks in months.
Eikenberry, a former US general, visited Kandahar city on Monday for private talks with provincial governor Tooryalai Wesa in the wake of the police chief's killing, as well as visiting US special forces soldiers and local leaders in the strategically vital district of Khakrez, to the northwest.
Eikenberry went without body armor and jumped on an open special forces buggy with a minimal escort to visit a newly built girls' school and bazaar in Darbishan village, where the turquoise dome of Afghanistan's third holiest shrine glimmered against the crags behind.
But US troops admit the relationship with around 2,500 local people is still fragile, with many having close ties and even extended family bonds with the Taliban.
Much of the area, including shops and the Sufi shrine of Shah Maqsood Agha, was also shattered by US air strikes in 2001 as American troops tried to drive out the Taliban and al Qaeda fighters, prompting an intensive rebuild.
“There are no hard-core Taliban here any more. But they are still unsure about us. They are still not sure how long we are going to stay and if the Taliban will come back,” said one special forces soldier who could not be named.
To improve the relationship, the special forces command in Kandahar has just extended rotation of elite troops from six months to a year, to better solidify ties with local elders.
“The focus is on relationships. That's the most important counter-intelligence strategy,” a senior officer told Reuters in the marble courtyard of the shrine.
Eikenberry, in a flurry of Shoura meetings with local people in Khakrez and Kandahar, heard pleas for new schools, teachers and health clinics, but also worries about security after a transition to fully Afghan security in 2014.


Clic here to read the story from its source.