Violence has almost doubled in Afghanistan, notes Pentagon

Washington, April 29 (IANS/AKI) Violence in Afghanistan is up nearly 90 percent, according to a new Pentagon report submitted to the Congress late Wednesday that tracked progress in the country from October of last year to March.

The overall increase in violence is attributed to more NATO-led offensives into Taliban strongholds, as well as Taliban efforts to retake areas that had been cleared by allied troops, according to the report.

The report describes problems inside the Afghan police force with individuals not on the payroll doing law enforcement work in some districts, as well as “ghost police” who are on the payroll but don’t actually show up for duty.

The entire police force has begun to be drug tested, and the most recent results found nearly 14 percent of the force tested positive.

The report also details a severe shortage of trainers to build the Afghan forces to sufficient size and quality and indicated that the recent capture of some Taliban leaders over the border in Pakistan has been demoralizing to some Afghan Taliban fighters.

The fighters are under more pressure than ever, the report says, but they are still able to get money for their fight from Islamic states outside Afghanistan.

–IANS/AKI