A Coalition special operations forces member scans an area for insurgent activity as an AH-64 Apache helicopter provides air support during an operation to destabilize insurgent drug trade near Kajaki village, Afghanistan on June 2, 2011. US Air Force photo by Staff Sergeant Ryan Whitney.
Air-Support Ban Blamed For Afghan Troop Casualties -- Stars and Stripes/Deutsche Presse-Agentur
KABUL – A senior Afghan commander on Monday blamed heavy causalities suffered in a battle last week on President Hamid Karzai's ban against calling for NATO airstrikes.
At least 18 soldiers were killed in Warduj district of Badakshan province when their convoy was ambushed.
“The Afghan soldiers called for air support when they were ambushed by the Taliban. We spoke to the NATO troops for help but they told us that the president had banned air support for Afghan troops,” the officer based in northern Afghanistan told dpa on condition of anonymity.
Karzai last month decreed the limitations on NATO air support after one such attack had killed several civilians in Kapisa province.
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My Comment: Expect even more stories like this one when the Afghan fighting season starts in two months.
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