Top Afghan Official Praises US for Killing Pakistani Soldiers

'Best Thing America Has Done in 10 Years'

Those who have been insisting that Pakistan’s traditionally close relations with Afghanistan haven’t changed with the Karzai government has some serious explaining to do today, as the Washington Post has quoted a top member of the Afghan police force, identified only as a “police general” as praising the Friday night US attack on a Pakistani military base.

That’s the best thing America has done in 10 years here,” the general insisted. The late night attack killed 24 Pakistani soldiers, and continued for nearly two hours despite repeated calls for a ceasefire.

Afghan officials have been claiming that the Pakistani forces attacked the US troops on the ground, prompting the air strike. US officials haven’t made any such allegations, however, and the Pakistani government says the troops at the post were sleeping when the attack began.

The latest comments come as President Karzai is attempting to convince the Pakistani government to reverse its decision to boycott a conference on Afghanistan. Prime Minister Gilani says they won’t reconsider because Pakistan can’t possibly play a role in the Afghan situation so long as the US continues to ignore their sovereignty with such attacks.

Author: Jason Ditz

Jason Ditz is Senior Editor for Antiwar.com. He has 20 years of experience in foreign policy research and his work has appeared in The American Conservative, Responsible Statecraft, Forbes, Toronto Star, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Providence Journal, Washington Times, and the Detroit Free Press.