CAMP ARENA: The target is behind a slope, the advance is unprotected: crawl, fire! Italian instructors in western Afghanistan have been using the relatively quiet winter to bolster Afghan troops against the Taliban.
The war-torn country’s security forces are being killed in horrific numbers as they grapple with a militant resurgence, raising questions about how much more they can endure.
But under the banner of NATO’s Resolute Support mission, Italian forces at Camp Arena in Herat province are racing the coming spring to give their Afghan counterparts a fighting chance.
The Taliban are the main enemy in Herat, which borders southern Helmand, apex of Afghanistan’s opium production and most of which is controlled by insurgents. The strategic district of Sangin fell on March 23, another setback underscoring the militants’ growing strength.
Criminal gangs masterminding trafficking and smuggling operations to neighboring Iran are equally feared.
Confidence, says Camp Arena base commander Gen. Claudio Minghetti, is key. “The main message to the soldiers is that they are in much better condition and better equipped than the enemy, which is of paramount importance for their morale.”
According to US watchdog SIGAR, casualties among Afghan security forces soared by 35 percent in 2016, with 6,800 soldiers and police killed.
Even the winter, when there is usually a lull in fighting, brought only a measured respite: According to the latest UN report released in early March, the number of clashes increased by a record 30 percent in January 2017 compared to 2016.
One challenge is the shortcomings of the military command. The 207th Brigade stationed in Herat was without a commander for almost two months, until Gen. Ziarat Abed arrived in January after training in Rome and Paris.
Gen. Abed “is on the ground with his men every day, it’s new,” confirms Col. Tomaso Capasso, watching the training from the sidelines on Camp Arena’s firing range.
“This new generation is not like the previous generation, who spent their time in the office,” he adds, watching the men crawl in line.
“They know how to shoot but not fight together. We have to create a team spirit, we have a month to do it.”
Moral support and military counseling are what the Italians offered in Farah, one of the four western provinces assigned to them under Resolute Support, when its harassed governor called for help in tackling the insurgency. He wanted NATO to conduct a few strikes to drive the insurgents away, the colonel who led the operation told AFP.
“It’s easy, but it keeps them in a state of dependency,” the colonel, who asked not to be named, said.
Instead, the governor got an Italian deployment of 120 men whose goal was to boost spirits within a week.
“In Farah, we found demoralized troops, very young soldiers, ill-trained, ready to surrender,” the Italian colonel said, pointing to the “lack of leadership even at the lower levels” of the Afghan army.
Resolute Support spokesman Gen. Charles Cleveland confirms that a broad movement is under way at all levels that will continue throughout 2017 to “replace the leaders, those who are corrupt and those who did not properly deliver what was expected last year.
“It’s going to take some time, institutional changes can’t happen overnight,” he said.
For Gen. Minghetti, the lightning Farah operation exemplifies Resolute Support’s mandate of training, advising and assisting Afghan forces.
“Just the fact that one is present at their side enabled the Afghans to regain control. With a few tips, they were able to show their abilities,” he said.
NATO withdrew its combat forces at the end of 2014, and under Resolute Support there are 11,000 troops — including 8,400 Americans — still in the country.
Camp Arena hosts 900 Italian officers and soldiers, including a detachment of the prestigious Bersaglieri, the elite regiment whose helmets are adorned with moiré feathers, a 200-year-old tradition meant to provide shade.
US Gen. John Nicholson, head of Resolute Support, warned last month that he would need “a few thousand” more troops to finally defeat the Taliban and the increasing threat posed by Daesh.
For Captain “Luca,” who could not give his real name as he is part of the Italian special forces, the Afghanistan’s National Directorate of Security (NDS) and police must be trained together.
After all, they often find themselves fighting side by side, as during an insurgent assault on a military hospital in Kabul on March 8.
But time is short. The NDS is rarely available — “they are always mobilized,” he says — and the weather is getting warmer, heralding the arrival of spring and Afghanistan’s traditional fighting season.
“As soon as the weather turns to beautiful, it is over,” says Luca. “We will lose them.”
NATO troops race winter to give Afghan forces a morale boost
NATO troops race winter to give Afghan forces a morale boost
China says top military official Miao Hua suspended, under investigation
- Latest senior apparatchik to fall in a sweeping crackdown on graft in the country’s armed force
- Unconfirmed reports say defense minister Dong Jun was also placed under investigation for corruption
The ruling Chinese Communist Party “has decided to suspend Miao Hua from duty pending investigation,” Wu Qian, spokesman of China’s Ministry of Defense, told a press briefing.
Wu did not provide further details about the charges against Admiral Miao, a member of Beijing’s powerful Central Military Commission.
But “serious violations of discipline” are commonly used by officials in China as a euphemism for corruption.
The announcement follows reports, unconfirmed by Beijing, that Defense Minister Dong Jun has been placed under investigation for corruption.
If confirmed, Dong would be the third Chinese defense minister in a row to be probed for graft.
India’s parliament suspended temporarily after row over allegations against Adani group
- The problem is that India’s states are unprepared for the rapid rise in renewable generating capacity, lack adequate transmission infrastructure and storage
NEW DELHI: Both houses of Indian parliament were suspended temporarily on Thursday within minutes of opening as opposition lawmakers disrupted proceedings for the third day this week seeking a discussion on allegations against the Adani Group.
US authorities have accused Gautam Adani, his nephew Sagar Adani and managing director of Adani Green, Vneet S. Jaain, of being part of a scheme to pay bribes of $265 million to secure Indian solar power supply contracts, and misleading US investors during fund raises there.
“We want a discussion on this in parliament. It is going to be the third day that we are demanding a reply from the prime minister” on the Adani issue, Manickam Tagore, a lawmaker from the main opposition Congress party, which has been leading the protests against the business group, told news agency ANI.
Many of India’s opposition parties accuse Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of favoring Adani and blocking investigations against him in India, accusations both have denied.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, who has been a vocal critic of Adani, said Gautam Adani, 62, should be arrested.
While the government has not made any comment on the indictment, Modi’s BJP has said it had no reason to defend Adani, adding that the party was not against industrialists and considered them partners in nation-building efforts.
“Let him defend himself,” BJP spokesperson Gopal Krishna Agarwal said on Tuesday, adding that the law would take its course.
Landslides in Indonesia’s Sumatra kill at least 27, rescuers search for missing
- Torrential rain in the province since last week had caused flash floods and landslides in four different districts
- Extreme weather is expected in Indonesia toward the end of 2024, as the La Nina phenomenon increases rainfalls across the tropical archipelago
JAKARTA: Indonesian rescuers are searching for passengers trapped in a minibus buried in mud after flash floods and landslides hit several locations in North Sumatra province, killing at least 27, an official said on Thursday.
Torrential rain in the province since last week had caused flash floods and landslides in four different districts, Indonesia’s disaster agency has said.
A landslide in a village in Deli Serdang on Wednesday killed seven and injured 20, Hadi Wahyudi, North Sumatra police spokesperson told Reuters.
Rescuers were looking for missing people, including those trapped in a minibus and other vehicles on a hilly interprovince road hit by a mudslide, he said, adding he could not give an estimate for the number of affected people.
In other places, rescuers have found 20 dead during a search that started over the weekend. They are still searching for two missing.
“Today, we’re focusing our search to find missing people and clearing the roads affected by the landslides,” said Hadi, adding excavators were deployed.
The landslides and flash floods damaged houses, mosques, and rice fields.
Heavy rains also triggered floods in the provincial capital of Medan, forcing a delay in votes for a regional election in some polling stations.
Extreme weather is expected in Indonesia toward the end of 2024, as the La Nina phenomenon increases rainfalls across the tropical archipelago, the country’s weather agency has warned.
The Australian Senate debates the world’s first social media ban for children under 16
- The bill that would make social media platforms liable for fines of up to $33 million for systemic failures to prevent young children from holding accounts
MELBOURNE: The Australian Senate was debating a ban on children younger than 16 years old from social media Thursday after the House of Representatives overwhelmingly supported the age restriction.
The bill that would make platforms including TikTok, Facebook, Snapchat, Reddit, X and Instagram liable for fines of up to 50 million Australian dollars ($33 million) for systemic failures to prevent young children from holding accounts.
It is likely to be passed by the Senate on Thursday, the Parliament’s final session for the year and potentially the last before elections, which are due within months.
The major parties’ support for the ban all but guarantees the legislation will become law. But many child welfare and mental health advocates are concerned about unintended consequences.
Unaligned Sen. Jacqui Lambie complained about the limited amount of time the government gave the Senate to debate the age restriction, which she described as “undercooked.”
“I thought this was a good idea. A lot of people out there thought it was a good idea until we looked at the detail and, let’s be honest, there’s no detail,” Lambie told the Senate.
Opposition Sen. Maria Kovacic said the bill was not radical but necessary.
“The core focus of this legislation is simple: It demands that social media companies take reasonable steps to identify and remove underage users from their platforms,” Kovacic told the Senate.
“This is a responsibility these companies should have been fulfilling long ago, but for too long they have shirked these responsibilities in favor of profit,” she added.
Sen. David Shoebridge, from the minor Greens party, said mental health experts agreed that the ban could dangerously isolate many children who used social media to find support.
“This policy will hurt vulnerable young people the most, especially in regional communities and especially the LGBTQI community, by cutting them off,” Shoebridge told the Senate.
The House of Representatives on Wednesday overwhelmingly carried the bill 102 votes to 13.
Communications Minister Michelle Rowland urged senators to pass the bill which she said reflected the Australian community’s view.
“The ... government is on the side of supporting parents and protecting young people,” Rowland told the House.
Once the legislation becomes law, the platforms would have one year to work out how they could implement the ban before penalties are enforced.
The platforms complained that the law would be unworkable, and urged the Senate to delay the vote until at least June next year when a government-commissioned evaluation of age assurance technologies made its report on how young children could be excluded.
Critics argue the government is attempting to convince parents it is protecting their children ahead of general elections due by May. The government hopes that voters will reward it for responding to parents’ concerns about their children’s addiction to social media. Some argue the legislation could cause more harm than it prevents.
Criticisms include that the legislation was rushed through Parliament without adequate scrutiny, is ineffective, poses privacy risks for all users, and undermines parental authority to make decisions for their children.
Opponents of the bill also argue the ban would isolate children, deprive them of the positive aspects of social media, drive them to the dark web, discourage children too young for social media to report harm and reduce incentives for platforms to improve online safety.
Explosions heard in Ukraine’s Odesa, Kropyvnytskyi – media reports
- Odesa regional governor Oleh Kiper urged residents to stay in shelter in a message on the Telegram app
Explosions were heard in the Ukrainian Black Sea port city of Odesa and the city of Kropyvnytskyi in central Ukraine on Thursday morning amid reports of a Russian cruise missile attack, Ukrainian news outlet Zerkalo Tyzhnya and other local media reported.
Odesa regional governor Oleh Kiper urged residents to stay in shelter in a message on the Telegram app.
