Army Times: ‘Trigger-happy’ private security undermines Afghan mission

[RamboLiberal]

As the United States prepares to escalate its troop commitment in Afghanistan, the frequently counterproductive role played by private security contractors in that combat is drawing fresh scrutiny.

The Army Times reported on Tuesday that "ill-disciplined private security guards escorting supply convoys to coalition bases are wreaking havoc as they pass through western Kandahar province ... and undermining coalition efforts to bring a greater sense of security to the Afghan people, particularly because the locals associate the contractors with the coalition."

According to one Afghan security official, private security guards have killed or wounded more than thirty civilians over the past four years in just the Marwand district, and the district chief there claims that "most of them are addicted to heroin."

"Although the convoys sometimes carry U.S. military vehicles and represent a vital lifeline for the coalition effort," the Times explains, "no Afghan, U.S. or other coalition military forces accompany them. Instead, each convoy is protected by Afghan security guards armed with AK-series assault rifles and rocket-propelled grenades in sport utility vehicles."

The problem is not new. A Congressional Research Service report (pdf) obtained last summer by Secrecy Times revealed that as of March 2009 there were more private contractors working in Afghanistan for the Department of Defense than there were US military personnel. The report further warned that "abuses and crimes committed by armed private security contractors and interrogators against local nationals may have undermined U.S. efforts in Iraq and Afghanistan."

http://rawstory.com/2009/12/army-times-triggerhappy-private-security-undermine-afghan-mission/