Troops restore calm to Kabul after rioting

Reuters reports that while order has been restored to the capital, "anger burned inside many Afghans over the behavior of US troops after a fatal road accident involving a US army truck sparked unrest in many parts of the city."

The Associated Press quotes the US military as saying Tuesday that the accident occurred because a military truck's brakes failed and plowed into several cars.

The BBC reports that the Afghan parliament held a special session on Tuesday to talk about why the riot happened and what can be done to prevent similar occurrences in the future. This follows a night-long curfew (the first in four years) with the continued presence of Afghan troops because of fears that emotions are running high and rioting could erupt again. US and NATO troops have adopted a less visible profile in the belief that their presence could ignite fighting again.

The Guardian reports that the rioting was " a serious blow to the authority of the president, Hamid Karzai, who is struggling to contain an escalating insurgency in the south."

05/29/06 US officials suspect military coverup of killings by Marines 05/26/06 Abbas gives Hamas 10 days to accept plan that recognizes Israel 05/25/06 Iran religious badges story 'untrue'

Sign up to be notified daily: Find out more. Subscribe via RSS Feed:   What is this?

The trouble in Kabul was triggered by an accident involving a US military convoy that careered through a busy Kabul intersection yesterday morning, crashing into a dozen vehicles and killing one person, according to a military statement. But accounts differed about whether American troops fired into a large crowd that gathered. A spokeswoman, Lieutenant Tamara Lawrence, said US soldiers only fired shots in the air. But a senior Kabul police office, Sher Shah Usafi, said they fired into the crowd, killing one person.

British Royal Marines, stationed in Afghanistan, rescued EU diplomats after the riots broke out. They escorted 21 people including a baby and a four-year-old child to the headquarters of the Nato-led Isaf peacekeeping force as mobs swept through the city. The marines acted after members of the European Commission to Afghanistan requested evacuation from their compound in central Kabul.

The Washington Post reports that the violence was fed by rumors that US troops had opened fire on civilians, a charge that the US military denies.

[US military spokesman Maj. Matt Hackathorn] said that an angry crowd converged on the scene and threw stones, and that Afghan police tried to push the crowd back to allow U.S. military personnel to leave. He said U.S. forces fired into the air "as a show of force" but no shots were fired into the crowd.

After the accident, rioters smashed shops, ransacked businesses, looted aid agencies, and threw rocks at US humvees. Although President Karzai pleaded with his fellow countrymen to "stand up against these agitators," the Guardian also reports that the reaction to the traffic accident exposes a long simmering anger at the Western presence in the country, in particular the conspicuous wealth of foreigners and the aggressive driving tactics of the US military and private security contractors that have led to traffic deaths in the city. Recent bombing attacks by the US, where dozens of civilians have been accidentally killed, have also fueled resentment.

The Los Angeles Times reports that the military and security forces say they have to drive aggressively in order to avoid threats like suicide bombers and roadside explosives.

The Christian Science Monitor says it remains unclear "whether the riots were orchestrated by Islamic militants or were a spontaneous eruption of unrest." The Financial Times reports that there is some disagreement about who appeared to be leading the melee: Western security firms say it was orchestrated by Islamic militants. But Western diplomats and others who were on the scene said it was criminals, looking for an opportunity to do some looting, who fired up the angry crowd of about 1,000 young men.

The Washington Post reports that the rioting may also have unmasked the deep resentment many Afghan Muslims feel about the growing adoption of a Western lifestyle in the city "that includes high fashion and fast-food shops, sprawling aid compounds, and even rap music."

The violence in Kabul disheartened many Afghans. "Today has set us back 10 years," said a distraught Afghan man who works for the International Security Assistance Force, the NATO-led contingent that patrols the capital. "We have been working so hard to build something here. Now the foreigners will all go away and take their money with them."

One high-profile target, according to the Post report, was the new Serena Hotel, which the government had hoped would attract foreign investors because of its elegant status. Every large display window in the luxury hotel was "riddled with hundreds of bullet holes."

The after-effects of the rioting even spread into neighboring Pakistan. The Daily Times of Pakistan reports that the Pakistani Interior Ministry ordered increased security around foreign diplomats in Islamabad following the events in Kabul.

Also...
• US will reinforce troops in west Iraq (Washington Post)
• Number of brigades may fall, but troops to stay at 133,000 (Washington Times)
• Bush at West Point (Progressive)
• Pentagon seeks new weapon amid concern at nuclear risk (Sydney Morning Herald)
• Feedback appreciated. E-mail Tom Regan .