The Afghanistan NGO Safety Office Issue: 47 01-15 April 2010 ANSO and our donors accept no liability for the results of any activity conducted or omitted on the basis of this report. THE ANSO REPORT -Not for copy or sale- Inside this Issue COUNTRY SUMMARY Central Region 2-5 In BAGHLAN major clashes against NGO presence. ties in KUNAR while the Northern Region 6-10 occurred in Pul-i-Khumri In KANDAHAR the IMF withdrawal from Eastern Region 10-12 and Baghlan-i-Jadid as poppy harvest creates a lull Korangal Valley is expected ANSF/IMF attempted to to improve security there. Southern Region 13-15 in activity. Three BBIEDs reclaim some territory from target NDS HQ in an un- In NANGAHAR clashes Western Region 16-18 AOG in those areas to lim- successful attacks while between empowered tribes- ited success. AOG alignment ANSO Info Page 19 other VBIEDs target the men and the ANP continue with the Pashtun side of a compound of a civilian con- in Sherzad and Khogani land dispute in Hussein Khel tractor and an IMF convoy. while land disputes result in area threatens to polarize An IMF Escalation of violence elsewhere. YOU NEED TO KNOW communities there. Force shooting kills four In NURISTAN road work- In KUNDUZ heavy clashes persons on a local bus and ers are abducted and re- • Heavy fighting in Baghlan, occurred in Chahar Dara escalates tension in the city. Kunduz and Jawzjan leased by AOG while and while AOG focussed their In HERAT and FARAH ANSF proposal to renter • Return of AOG to Marjah response on Kunduz City IEDs result in civilian fatali- Kamdesh district is antici- and significant suicide with IED and rocket strikes. ties while in BADGHIS the pated to deteriorate condi- attacks in Kandahar Local militia forces, in ANSF operation in tions there. Khanabad, continue to clash • IMF withdraw fro Koran- Murghab continues. AOG In PAKTYA Mangal and with AOG and each other clash with local militias gal Valley, Kunar while a case of fratricide Zardarn tribesmen con- groups in Jawand, Badghis. tinue to clash over land • Turkey to open PRT in killed 6 ANA in Tut Mazar. In GHOR criminal robbery disputes. Gen. Dostum stronghold Major ANSF operations turn violent and kills one came to inconclusive end in NGO worker. In LAGHMAN province Qushteppa, JAWZJAN while armed AOG enter an ANSO is supported by Multiple AOG arrests keep AOG attempt to consolidate NGO compound, advise KABUL City quiet this pe- the closure of the office and extend their reach in Jan- riod while two events cause gal, TAKHAR. and abduct a staff member concern that womens ac- who remains missing. In HELMAND AOGs re- tivities may be targeted in turn to Marjah to plant IED PARWAN. AOG cause On April 15 Sweden & and kill/intimidate locals co- civilian casualties in Turkey concluded an agree- operating with IMF while KAPISA, including school ment for Turkey to estab- Marjah residents demonstrate children, while heavy fight- lish two new PRT in Sar-i- against a lack of progress. ing continues in WAR- Pul and Jowzjan in a move Eradication efforts contrib- DAK, with IMF airstrikes, that is generally seen as ute to instability in other and LOGAR with a spate being in support of Mr. parts of the province while of IED’s. Abdul Rashid Dostum. the arrest of NGO staff in a AOG mortar and IED Lashgar Gah hospital results strikes cause civilian fatali- in a staged demonstration THE ANSO REPORT Page 2 NGO Incidents KABUL KABUL Year to Date 5 50 This Report Period 1 The regular monthly attack cycle 40 in the capital appears to have been tions. Recent arrest operations will 30 disrupted during the last reporting delay rather than eliminate the 20 AOG threat due to the perceived period as a result of numerous 10 arrests of AOG suspects both in value of striking the capital. A 0 the city and the outer lying dis- high profile attack in Kabul City is tricts of Kabul Province. For the worth several in the provinces due year-to-date there have been 69 the domestic and international AOG suspects arrested in Kabul attention it focuses and the propa- KABUL AOG KABUL ACG City compared to 29 for the same ganda value derived from high- around the area will impose significant delays period in 2009. In addition there lighting the security deficiencies of to travel times. have been several discoveries of the current government and inter- weapons, ammunition, IEDS, national forces. Two incidents in the Taimani Area of PD4, suicide vests, explosives and rock- The Peace Jirga, expected to con- where a large number of NGOs are clustered, ets found both during arrest op- vene at the beginning of May, will served as a reminder that criminality and per- erations as well as in caches, involve several thousand influen- sonal disputes involving the use of violence mainly centred around districts 5, tial tribal, religious, political and occur irregularly. On 3 and 4 April, a grenade 8 and 12 as well as Bagrami, security figures arriving in the was thrown against a private residence and an Paghman and Surobi. The entry capital for several days of negotia- individual was shot walking down street nine. points to Kabul City, especially tions and discussions. Security will No NGOs were involved in either incident. from the south and west, are be a distinct concern for ANSF Surobi hosted three separate AOG ambushes highly vulnerable to hosting AOG with hundreds of ANP, amongst of ANSF and IMF on 5, 11 and 15 April, injur- logistical cells as evidenced by the others, being drafted into the ing one civilian in the area. The attack on IMF number of arrests in those loca- capital prior to and during the was again in the Uzbeen Valley, far from the Jirga. The most obvious manifes- main road between Jalalabad and Kabul. At- KEY THREATS tation of the ANSF presence will tacks on ANSF generally occur on the isolated SVBIED attacks around be in the form of an increased outposts littered along the main road. The highprofile GoA, IMF number of checkpoints around number of AOG initiated attacks have more and foreign representa- tion targets the city. As the main events will than doubled year-to-date to thirteen from ACG abductions take place around the Loya Jirga 2009 levels, however all attacks have targeted Car accidents Tent in the Kabul Polytechnic, it petrol tankers, ANSF, GoA or IMF with no can be expected that security civilian passenger vehicles affected. NGO Incidents PANJSHIR Year to Date 0 This Report Period 0 The usually tranquil province of Panjshir was awoken on 7 April The most likely author of the at- following the detonation of an tack is a local faction attempting to - NO CHART AVAILABLE- IED after an IMF convoy had gain leverage from perceptions of passed in Bazarak, the provincial instability. Local leaders met fol- capital. Various rumours have lowing the incident and reaffirmed circulated since; however it their support for the PRT. Sepa- would be difficult to believe that rately, there have been no further the incident was AOG related. reports of tension following an exchange of SAF between the environment for NGOs with the latest events bodyguards of the former governor having no reported effect on operations. KEY THREATS and ANP at the end of March. Nil Panjshir remains a safe operating THE ANSO REPORT Page 3 NGO Incidents BAMYAN Year to Date 0 This Report Period 0 An attack against an IMF convoy reported casualties and stands in extra checkpoints along the border which are involving RPGs and SAF in Esh- likely to remain in place for the near future. pushta Area of Kharmard again stark contrast to the rest of the province, where occasional land AOG attacks remain occasional and generally illustrated how vulnerable the dis- do not result in civilian casualties. trict is to occasional attacks disputes or petty crime are the against the security forces. The main issues. Other reports suggest Virtually all of the isolated NGO bases in the attack occurred on 9 April with no that AOG are intending to pene- province have been reopened following the trate Kharmard from neighbour- winter stoppages and there have been no re- KEY THREATS ing Tala Wa Barfak to possibly ports of any security concerns. Bamyan hosts ACG/AOG activity in abduct individuals in exchange for numerous NGOs due to the safe operating the Shikari and Ghandak an AOG commander captured environment and local acceptance levels, Valleys during last summer. Since the in- whose number may increase as Yakawlang be- ACG/AOG penetration tra-AOG clashes in Baghlan a comes more accessible. from Tala Wa Barfak month ago, ANSF have created PARWAN NGO Incidents PARWAN Year to Date 2 50 This Report Period 1 40 Although ostensibly a safe operat- 30 ing environment for NGOs, Par- level of criminality that is believed 20 wan is host to a complex security to be derived from the different 10 environment where the delinea- factions competing economically 0 tion between ACG and AOG is rather than militarily. Criminality all but clear. The province was on appears to be the main motivator the front line during the country’s behind most incidents in Chahari- PARWAN AOG PARWAN ACG civil war and hosted various fac- kar; however tenuous links to deaths of two members of the same family as tions whose strengths waxed and AOG may also be a factor. There they exited the compound following seeing a waned during many years of con- have only been five publicly re- lit fuse.