VZCZCXRO7034
OO RUEHDBU RUEHPW
DE RUEHBUL #2919/01 2470523
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
O 040523Z SEP 07
FM AMEMBASSY KABUL
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 9960
INFO RUCNAFG/AFGHANISTAN COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RHEHAAA/NATIONAL SECURITY COUNCIL WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY
RHMFISS/HQ USCENTCOM MACDILL AFB FL PRIORITY
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY
RHEFDIA/DIA WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY
RUEKJCS/OSD WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY
RUEKJCS/JOINT STAFF WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 KABUL 002919 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT FOR SCA/FO DAS GASTRIGHT, SCA/A 
STATE PASS TO USAID FOR AID/ANE, AID/DCHA/DG 
NSC FOR AHARRIMAN 
OSD FOR SHIVERS 
CENTCOM FOR CG CJTF-82 POLAD 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/10/2017 
TAGS: PGOV PREL PTER PHUM MARR AF
SUBJECT: INSURGENCY AND ETHNIC TENSIONS FLARE UP IN WARDAK 
 
Classified By: Charge d'affaires Christopher Dell for reasons 1.4 (B) a 
nd (D) 
 
------- 
SUMMARY 
------- 
 
¶1.  (C) Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF) have 
not been able to reverse a spike in insurgent attacks 
on provincial government and foreign contractors in 
Wardak province, 20 miles from Kabul, since late May. 
The MOD reports that as many as 750 armed "enemy" 
combatants are operating in the province.  The 
Ministry of Interior (MOI) responded to Governor 
Naimi's request for help by replacing the police chief 
and deploying 140 stand-by police to the province. 
Combined Joint Task Force (CJTF-82) has moved in a 
Task Force Fury platoon to conduct patrols along 
Highway 1.  Governor Naimi has said the Taliban, Hizb- 
i-Islami Gulbuddin (HIG), and local warlord Ghulam 
Mohammed are behind the violence.  He discounts the 
importance of ethnic tensions between the Hazara and 
Kochi communities in the province, describing their 
dispute as fundamentally political.  Governor Naimi 
is also asking Coalition Forces for increased aid to 
Wardak's 127 religious schools to stave off 
recruitment efforts by the Taliban.  END SUMMARY. 
 
INSURGENT ACTIVITY INCREASES IN KABUL'S BACKYARD 
--------------------------------------------- --- 
 
¶2.  (C) Since late May, there have been at least 20 
attacks against provincial officials, the Turkish PRT, 
or foreign contractors working in Wardak.  These 
include attacks on several district subgovernors (two 
of which have since resigned from post), the 
Provincial Council chief, two district police 
headquarters and numerous police checkpoints.  Foreign 
contractors have borne the brunt of the insurgent 
activity, including a DynCorp convoy attacked by a 
VBIED, two separate attacks against German 
contractors, and the kidnapping of two Germans in 
late July.  Insurgents have also turned their ire 
against the Turkish Civilian PRT, launching two rocket 
attacks against the PRT compound.  The PRT Civilian 
Director emerged unscathed after his convoy was also 
attacked by a suicide bomber on July 18.  Separate 
rocket attacks in Jeghatu district killed one of the 
French ANA mentors working in Wardak. 
 
¶3.  (C) Most of the violence has centered around the 
provincial capital, Maidan Shar, and the districts of 
Jalrez, Nirkh and Sayed Abad, where insurgents 
have reportedly infiltrated most heavily.  The MOD has 
assessed that as many as 750 armed "enemy" combatants 
are operating in the province, divided into 
approximately 47 groups.  The MOD believes the 
objective is to disrupt a road construction 
project between Wardak and Bamyan, as well as target 
Coalition Forces and Afghan government officials 
traveling along the highway from Kabul to Ghazni. 
Given Wardak's proximity to Kabul, senior Afghan 
officials have expressed concern about the affect 
of continued attacks on general morale. 
 
GOVERNOR NAIMI HIGHLIGHTS CONCERNS TO THE AMBASSADOR 
--------------------------------------------- ------- 
 
¶4.  (C) Governor Naimi used his July 17 meeting with 
the Ambassador to reiterate concerns about the 
security situation in Wardak.  Naimi stressed the 
importance of Wardak province to the security of the 
capital.  He appealed for a strong security presence 
and lamented that, unlike the former U.S. PRT in 
Wardak which had been involved in all sectors, the 
civilian-led Turkish PRT is only focused on 
development.  It has no security presence.  Naimi said 
he understood the Turks are not likely to do more in 
Wardak in the near future.  He had raised the issue 
with Defense Minister Wardak, who had been willing to 
 
KABUL 00002919  002 OF 003 
 
 
discuss the possibility of military operations in the 
province as well as assistance. 
 
WHO IS BEHIND THE VIOLENCE? 
--------------------------- 
 
¶5.  (C) Naimi blamed three different groups in Wardak 
for the current violence: the Taliban, HIG, and local 
warlord Ghulam Mohammed.  Naimi has reported that the 
Taliban and HIG were largely based in the southern 
district of Sayed Abad.  While the groups do not 
necessarily coordinate, they often rely on the same 
network of thugs and petty street criminals to carry 
out their activities at the local level in Wardak. 
Naimi claimed HIG was responsible for distributing 
several night letters around the province that 
threatened district administrators. 
 
¶6.  (C) According to Naimi, there are two groups of 
Taliban in Wardak:  those that have infiltrated 
from areas outside the province (from Helmand and 
Pakistan), and locals from Wardak who are being 
recruited out of the province's madrassas.  (Note: The 
Governor has previously shared with Poloff his ongoing 
campaign to counter Taliban recruitment efforts by 
reaching out and pressuring local elders, fathers, and 
mullahs not to allow their sons to join the Taliban. 
Naimi's staff has registered each of the 127 madrassas 
and 7,178 religious students in the province.  End 
note.) 
 
¶7.  (C) Naimi pointed to local warlord Ghulam Mohammad 
as a third source of violence in the province. 
According to Naimi, Ghulam Mohammad enjoyed great 
influence in Wardak during the mujahideen period and 
is now actively working to undermine the establishment 
of central government authority in Wardak so that he 
can reassert his influence.  UNAMA claims that 
Ghulam Mohammad and his brother Haji Mohammad Hassan 
(a member of Parliament) have met with President 
Karzai and may be campaigning to have Mohammad 
appointed as a police chief (perhaps in Kapisa) or a 
district administrator. 
 
PROVINCIAL POLICE CHIEF REPLACED 
--------------------------------- 
 
¶8.  (C) Following six months of lobbying by Naimi, 
Wardak's inept and corrupt provincial police chief 
General Mahboob Amiri was removed in July -- only to 
be replaced by his cousin, Brigadier General Aiwaz 
Khan.  Amiri reportedly maintained a payroll for 
approximately 1,000 police officers, but had only 300- 
400 ANP actually working under his command.  Prior to 
Amiri's removal, there was concern that if dismissed, 
he would take the 300 active ANP deployed in Wardak 
(most of whom were also from Badakhshan) with him. 
The MOI deployed 140 stand-by police to Wardak just in 
case.  UNAMA, Naimi and the PRT have expressed serious 
concern about Aiwaz Khan's ability to deal with the 
security challenges Wardak currently faces. 
 
KOCHI AND HAZARA COMMUNITIES CLASH IN BEHSOOD 
--------------------------------------------- 
 
¶9.  (C) Recent clashes in Behsood District between the 
resident Hazara population and the Kochi nomads 
passing through their lands during their seasonal 
migration are another cause for concern.  Media have 
described the Kochi group as pro-Taliban and alleged 
that they have closed 24 schools, four clinics, and 
all local mosques and flown pro-Taliban flags 
throughout Behsood.  UNAMA, the Afghanistan 
Independent Human Rights Commission (AIHRC), 
and a commission appointed by President Karzai have 
each sent delegations to investigate the claims. 
UNAMA's investigation revealed no Taliban links to the 
conflict.  The AIHRC noted that both sides were armed 
and assessed the conflict as a recurring problem that 
needed a long-term policy response from the central 
 
KABUL 00002919  003 OF 003 
 
 
government in order to avoid future violence. 
 
¶10.  (C) Governor Naimi maintains that the situation 
was blown out of proportion by the media and Hazara 
parliamentarians who want to focus donor attention on 
their community, which they feel has been overlooked 
due to international and IROA focus on the South.  He 
suggested that the United Front was also capitalizing 
on the incident to discredit the IROA's ability to 
govern.  Hazara community activists, in turn, 
have complained that Naimi, who is Pashtun, is 
unsympathetic.  Echoing comments from the AIHRC, 
Hazara community activists believe this is a recurring 
problem that requires more leadership and engagement 
from the IROA and international community.  Otherwise, 
they maintain, things will get significantly more 
violent next year when the Kochis attempt to pass 
through the district again. 
 
USG RESPONSE: TF FURY EXTENDING PATROLS TO WARDAK 
--------------------------------------------- ---- 
 
¶11.  (C) The Policy Action Group (PAG) chaired 
by National Security Advisor Rassoul has discussed the 
security situation in Wardak.  COMISAF committed to 
RC-E carrying out key leadership engagement activities 
and conducting more patrols in Wardak.  ISAF is 
studying the idea of building a Forward Operating Base 
(FOB) in Wardak.  In the meantime, Task Force Fury has 
been given responsibility for assisting with security 
in Wardak.  It has already begun coordination with the 
Governor and local leaders and is moving a platoon to 
Camp Airborne in Maidan Shar, in the vicinity of the 
Turkish PRT.  The priority will be patroling the 
districts along Highway 1, using a platoon 
from the Polish Battle Group.  There will be the 
option of responding to other concerns, depending on 
the situation.  The Turkish PRT will remain 
responsible for governance and development and 
will continue to report to RC-E. 
 
¶12.  (C) To combat the recruiting efforts of the 
Taliban, Governor Naimi has requested a USG assistance 
program directed towards the 127 religious schools he 
has registered.  He referred to one of his recent 
community meetings, during which he was able to 
convince elders and mullahs to continue supporting the 
international community by pointing to previous CERP 
projects to rebuild local mosques when U.S. forces ran 
the PRT in Wardak.  We have reminded him that there 
are restrictions on USAID providing aid to religious 
institutions that do not apply to U.S. military CERP 
funding. 
DELL