Australia: US sending counterintelligence agents to Afghanistan

The Sydney Morning Herald

US aims to stem rising toll of Taliban infiltration
Ray Rivera and Eric Schmitt

CONCERNED over the growing pattern of Afghan soldiers and police officers attacking their coalition counterparts, the US military is sending 80 counterintelligence agents to Afghanistan to help stem the threat of Taliban infiltration in the Afghan National Security Forces, US military officials said.

These intelligence specialists will enhance the vetting of recruits, review profiles of soldiers who are being trained and generally tighten the procedures to identify individuals who might be vulnerable to extremists' appeals, officials said.

Some of the agents have already arrived, and the rest are expected soon, said Lieutenant-Colonel David Simons, a spokesman for the NATO Training Mission in Afghanistan.
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Since March 2009, at least 57 people, including 32 US troops, have been killed in at least 19 attacks in which Afghan service members have turned their weapons on coalition forces. Another 64 were wounded. Those killed include Australian soldier Lance Corporal Andrew Jones, 25, who was shot dead by an an Afghan soldier on May 30. His funeral was held yesterday.

More than half of the casualties occurred in the first five months of this year, signalling an escalation in the number and intensity of the attacks. But while the Taliban often takes credit for these attacks, NATO officials say most of the episodes stem from disagreements and arguments that escalate into violence. The attacks are increasing as NATO forces race to train and build the Afghan army and police to a force of 395,000 by 2014.

The build-up is critical to US and NATO exit strategies, which include turning over all combat and security duties to the Afghan forces over the next three years. But the pace is also putting strains on Afghanistan's intelligence agents to screen the flood of recruits.

One of the worst attacks was in April, when an Afghan army pilot shot and killed eight US service members and a contractor during a meeting of foreign and Afghan officers on the military side of Kabul International Airport. At least three NATO soldiers have been killed in two attacks since then. The attacks have continued despite efforts to improve screening of recruits and crack down on the illegal sales of police and army uniforms.

Afghan intelligence officials could not say how many of these attacks have occurred. But the list is long and on the rise, said Lutfullah Mashal, a spokesman for the National Directorate of Security, the main Afghan intelligence agency. Many of the attacks involved insurgents using army or police uniforms and fake government identifications.

Source: The New York Times

http://www.smh.com.au/world/us-aims-to-stem-rising-toll-of-taliban-infiltration-20110611-1fy72.html