ZCZC
BFF-18
US-AFGHANISTAN-UNREST-MILITARY
US army general wounded in Afghanistan attack
WASHINGTON, Oct 22, 2018 (BSS/AFP) – A US army general was among those
injured in a Taliban attack on top US and Afghan security chiefs inside a
highly secure compound last week in Kandahar province, a military spokesman
confirmed.
US Army Brigadier General Jeffrey Smiley, in charge of NATO’s military
advisory mission in Afghanistan, suffered at least one gunshot wound in
Thursday’s attack, the Washington Post reported Sunday.
A gunman wearing an Afghan security forces uniform opened fire on a group
including General Scott Miller — the top US and NATO commander in
Afghanistan — and powerful Afghan police chief General Abdul Raziq as they
ended a meeting in the southern city of Kandahar.
Raziq, an anti-Taliban strongman and key US ally who was credited with
keeping a lid on the insurgency in the south, was killed along with
Kandahar’s provincial intelligence chief and an Afghan journalist.
Colonel David Butler, spokesman for US forces in Afghanistan, initially
confirmed on Twitter that three unidentified people were injured: one US
service member, one US civilian and a coalition contractor.
Later, in tweets discussing US media reports that named Smiley, he
confirmed he was wounded.
That the Taliban could mount a deadly insider assault in such a secure
location rattled Afghanistan, a country long used to high-profile targeted
killings and violence.
It was also an unusual incident for the US military, whose generals seldom
face attack and are rarely wounded.
BSS/AFP/GMR/1410 hrs