Mazar-i-Sharif, June 23
Many Afghans are wary of President Barack Obama’s order on phased withdrawal of US troops, saying they might be better off with the devil they know.

In the northern city of Mazar-i-Sharif, relatively stable compared with the insurgent-ridden south and east, many Afghans said the withdrawal of troops could lead to more Taliban violence with the Afghan army and the police unable to keep order.

The US pullout will coincide with the first phase of a gradual handover of security control to the Afghan police and army, who are due to take responsibility for all of Afghanistan by the end of 2014. But critics warn that may be too soon.

“We are concerned about foreign countries’ plans to withdraw troops from Afghanistan and leave us to our own fate,” said Mohammad Reza, a Mazar-i-Sharif shopkeeper.

“We are scared of more violence and fighting once they leave and our lives and little business will be in ruin. I think Afghan forces are not able to take care of the Taliban alone, they definitely want foreign support,” he said.

Afghans are wary of international powers abandoning their country ever since a 1989 victory, supported by arms from the United States, over the Soviets led to civil war and rise of the Taliban as Washington largely ignored Afghanistan’s plight.

US forces are deeply unpopular with many Afghans for the deaths of civilians in mistaken bombing attacks and for night-time raids, something that has strained ties between President Hamid Karzai and Washington.

“There is not much wrong with the foreigners if they don’t kill civilians and harass people and give us peace and security,” said Dr Humayoun Sakhizada in Mazar-i-Sharif. “The Americans and their allies have been here for some 10 years. Our living conditions have changed a little but there are more bombs and incidents.”

“If the bombs and suicide attacks and killings are going to stop after the foreigners leave then yes-please leave,” he said. “But if things become worse and people experience mass killings, then it is not the right time to abandon us.”

Many Afghans say their own army and police-widely seen as corrupt and inept-are worse than US troops. “The Americans and British with sophisticated weapons and planes couldn’t defeat the Taliban, how can the Afghan army or police?” said Nooruddin, a farmer in Ahmad Shahee village near Lashkar Gah, capital of Helmand province in southern Afghanistan where much of the war had been centred.

“We are scared that once the foreigners leave, Afghan forces, especially the police, will treat us worse, and will loot our homes,” Nooruddin said.

US officials recognised this ambivalent feeling. “The Afghans want their sovereignty back. In their hearts they do want their sovereignty. They want us to leave,” said one senior US official, who asked to remain anonymous. — Reuters

Tripoli, June 23
NATO’s chief today slapped down a call from Italy for a suspension of hostilities in Libya and tried to reassure wavering members of the Western coalition that Muammar Gaddafi can be beaten.

Italy’s ceasefire call exposed the strain on the NATO alliance, nearly 14 weeks into a bombing campaign that has so far failed to dislodge Gaddafi but is causing mounting concerns about its cost and about civilian casualties.

Gaddafi himself sounded a fresh note of defiance with an audio recording, broadcast on Libyan television, in which he called NATO states murderers of innocent civilians and vowed to avenge their deaths.

Asked about Italy’s ceasefire call, NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen said in a newspaper interview: “No, on the contrary. We shall continue and see it through to the end.” “The allies are committed to making the necessary effort for a sustained operation,” he told France’s Le Figaro newspaper.

“We will take the time needed until the military objective is reached: end all attacks against Libyan civilians, return armed forces to barracks and freedom of movement for humanitarian aid.”

NATO says it is operating under a United Nations mandate to protect civilians from Gaddafi’s forces as he tries to crush an uprising against his 41-year rule. Gaddafi says NATO’s real aim is to steal the country’s plentiful oil.

The US, British and French leaders have said they will keep up the pressure until Gaddafi leaves power, but the rebels opposing him have been unable to break through his defences and advance on the capital.

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said progress was being made. There is no doubt that Gaddafi’s forces have “their backs against the wall,” she said at a conference in Jamaica.

At the weekend, NATO acknowledged for the first time in the campaign that it may have caused multiple civilian casualties, when an air strike hit a house in Tripoli. That opened up cracks inside the alliance that had already been starting to appear because of the length of time the campaign had been under way without producing a decisive breakthrough. — Reuters

Beijing, June 23
Prominent Chinese dissident Ai Weiwei, who was released on bail last night, will be confined to virtual house arrest and could not leave his home “without permission” as he was still under investigation.

Ai’s bail period would last for 12 months and during this period he will not be allowed to leave the place without the permission of the Public Security Agency (PSA), which is investigating into his case, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei told a media briefing here today.

The 54-year-old dissident should answer the summons of the court in a timely manner, Hong said, defending the stringent conditions to prevent him from threatening witnesses and tamper with evidence.

The maverick artist, who co-designed the famous Birds Nest stadium for the 2008 Beijing Olympics, has emerged as the most vociferous critic of the ruling Chinese Communist Party in the recent years. — PTI