A joint inquiry commission has been planned for the allegations of abuse by American forces in Maidan Wardak Province.
President Karzai on Sunday ordered U.S. Special Operations Forces to withdraw from the province on local allegations of abuse. However, some analysts believe the decision has been hastened without proper investigations. Now when American and NATO officials ask for details from the Government, specifics have not been shared. Governor Majid Khogyani says the allegations include detention and disappearance of nine people, beatings of prisoners, and other abuses. Local Afghan forces allegedly employed by the US Special Forces are directly involved, but officials have not confirmed if they are members of the Interior-Ministry controlled Afghan Local Police. They were allegedly part of a paramilitary force.
The International Security Assistance Force has already said their probes do not show any misconduct of troops. The decision came as a surprise for the US forces. At a critical last phase of the transition and in a sensitive province bordering Kabul, President Karzai’s decision to order withdrawal of troops is not only hasty, but risky.
The US Foreign Secretary Senator John Kerry has said the allegations will be thoroughly investigated. ISAF in Kabul has already agreed to probe the matter by a joint commission. The Government should reconsider the decision and conduct the joint probe. ISAF spokesman Brig. Gen. Gunter Katz admitted that there have been various allegations of Special Forces conducting themselves in an unprofessional manner in Maidan Wardak. He added the investigations so far has not proved the allegations.
The Government should reverse the withdrawal order if the joint investigation finds no proof of the allegations. Taliban must have been waiting for such a hastened decision based on mere allegations without any prior investigation by any delegation from Kabul. Only based on allegations of some elements in Wardak, taking such a decision shows how emotionally the decision-making system of the government works. It could affect the security transition process across the country and impact the process of talks on the security agreement with the US regarding the number of international troops to remain after the bulk of withdrawal in 2014.
If the investigations found abuse by the US Special Forces, American military commanders should be told of a certain gradual framework to be implemented in full until 2014, under which international troops should not be allowed to pick up anyone without permission of the Afghan Forces.