http://rt.com/news/afghanistan-airstrike-security-deal-459/
http://www.juancole.com/2013/11/karzai-pakistan-protests-against-us-drone-strikes-may-force-us-out.html
President Karzai was quick to condemn the strike is indicative of the US willingness to needlessly endanger civilians in the 12-plus year war, saying he would definitely not sign the Bilateral Security Agreement(BSA) unless such strikes stop.
As usual for the Syrian war, the figures have not been independently verified, and will doubtless be contested by Hezbollah, which so far has put the death toll at 3.
The controversy over Arak has been something of a microcosm of the differences in perspective of Western nations and Iran, as the reactor was designed, amid complaints about Iran’s enrichment of uranium, to run on unenriched uranium.
The interim deal, which is set to last six months, includes a dramatically ratcheted up inspection setup, which would include essentially daily inspections at multiple sites.
Karzai condemns US strike that killed toddler, threatens not to sign security deal
President Hamid Karzai has blamed the US for a drone strike on a home in southern Afghanistan that killed a 2-year-old child and wounded two women, vowing that he will not sign a key bilateral security deal if such attacks continue.
“This attack shows that American forces are not respecting the life and safety of Afghan people’s houses,” Karzai said in the statement Thursday. “For years, our innocent people have become victims of the war under the name of terrorism, and they have had no safety in their homes.”
Karzai made it clear that he will not sign the security agreement if such “oppressions by foreign forces continue.”
The president stated that the airstrike was suspected to have been carried out by US “pilotless aircraft”and targeted a house in Helmand Province. Karzai added that he received his information from the governor of the province, Mohammad Naem.
Late Thursday Night, Gen. Joseph F. Dunford Jr., the American and NATO commander in Afghanistan, called President Karzai to apologize for the strike.
“He talked to President Karzai directly, expressed deep regrets for the incident and any civilian casualties, and promised to convene an immediate joint investigation to determine all the facts of what happened,” a coalition spokesman speaking told the New York Times Friday on condition of anonymity.
No details were provided by the US-led coalition about Thursday’s airstrike. But the NATO-led force in Afghanistan said it will investigate it, adding that it "deeply regrets" any civilian deaths that happened, according to Reuters.
The strike came as US and Afghanistan are in the midst of negotiating a bilateral security agreement that has so far not fleshed out the details about under what conditions US troops will stay in Afghanistan past the NATO forces’ pullout in 2014.
Last week US had thought it finalized the deal by proposing to leave 15,000 soldiers in Afghanistan to train and assist the country’s military. But, Karzai had doubts about signing the deal, expressing concerns over US meddling in Afghanistan’s internal affairs.
This week, Karzai has called on the US to cease all military operations against civilian homes and show a clear dedication to the peace process before a security pact is signed.
Karzai set the conditions in a meeting with US National Security Advisor Susan Rice, the US envoy to the region and the NATO commander in Afghanistan, Reuters reported. "President Karzai outlined new conditions for signing the agreement and indicated he is not prepared to sign the BSA promptly," the White House said.
The conditions included returning Afghan citizens from the US detention center at Guantanamo Bay as a clear step to launch the peace process ahead of the scheduled exit of most US and NATO forces beyond 2014.
Karzai’s new conditions for a Bilateral Security Agreement (BSA) come after he rejected the endorsement of the security deal by an assembly of Afghan elders on Sunday. The Loya Jirga, or grand assembly, recommended Karzai to sign the agreement.
Earlier, the US government said that if the deal with Afghanistan is not signed by the end of 2013 then it will have to begin withdrawing its troops completely starting next year.
and...
Karzai, Pakistan Protests against US Drone Strikes may force US out
Posted on 11/29/2013 by Juan Cole
Afghan President Hamid Karzai complained Friday that a US drone strike in Helmand Province targeting a Taliban commander on a motorcycle appears to have gone bad and ended up killing a 2 year old child and wounding two women instead. A second drone strike killed the commander.
Karzai said that he would not sign a Status of Forces Agreement with the US until they stopped military operations that involved invading the homes of Afghans, and hinted that the drone strikes are an issue for him too, since they demonstrate, he said, the the US does not respect the lives of non-combatants.
Karzai’s refusal to sign the SOFA may force the US to begin withdrawals and to make plans, at least, to leave completely by the end of December 2014. The withdrawal of the 75,000 NATO troops in Afghanistan is a big logistical task and can’t be left till the last minute, in case there is no SOFA in the end. If US troops tried to operate in Afghanistan without a bilateral agreement, they could be brought up in Afghan courts on war crimes charges if anything went wrong. No US commander would agree to operate under such a constant threat.
US officials were surprised and dismayed when Karzai, after a long period of negotiations with the US on this issue, abruptly announced that he wouldn’t sign the agreement hammered out between his government and the US allowing American troops to remain in Afghanistan.
The drones are also roiling relations between the US and elements in Pakistan.
On Friday morning, a US drone strike near Miranshah in Pakistan’s tribal belt killed two alleged militants.
The strike follows on one last week on Pakistan proper, killing 6 at a seminary where the Haqqani Network leadership was meeting.
Tehrik-i Insaf or Justice Party, led by Imran Khan, won the provincial government in the northern Khyber-Pukhtunkhwa Province (formerly North-West Frontier Province). Imran and his PTI have led protests against continued US drone strikes in northern Pakistan, blocking NATO supply trucks from bringing goods up from Karachi through the Khyber Pass and thence to troops in Afghanistan.
The NATO truck route is a Federal matter, not a provincial one, and the PTI’s actions are viewed dimly by Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif in Islamabad. Sharif has not, however, moved to intervene.
and....
US Drone Kills Two Women, Child in Attack on Afghan Home
Karzai: No Deal Unless Drone Strikes Stop
by Jason Ditz, November 28, 2013
There’s never really a good time to blow up a house-load of civilians, but the Obama Administration seems to find particularly inopportune times to do so, following up a week-long battle with Afghan President Hamid Karzai over extending their occupation by blowing up a home, killing two women and a child within.
President Karzai was quick to condemn the strike is indicative of the US willingness to needlessly endanger civilians in the 12-plus year war, saying he would definitely not sign the Bilateral Security Agreement(BSA) unless such strikes stop.
The US has been demanding Karzai sign the BSA by the end of the year, threatening to withdraw if he refuses and even trying to find ways to get it into effect without the Afghan president’s signature.
Karzai, whose final term in office ends in April, insists that the deal should wait until then, and has pressed the US for more concessions, including ending night raids on Afghan civilian homes and releasing Afghan citizens from Guantanamo Bay, as conditions for an early signature. The drone strike just adds one more thing to the list, since apparently the Obama Administration needs it to be spelled out in writing that they’re not allowed to blow up homes.
Syria .....
Syrian Rebels Claim They Killed 250 Hezbollah in Damascus
Army Retakes Key Town North of Damascus
by Jason Ditz, November 28, 2013
The Free Syrian Army has claimed to have killed at least 250 Hezbollah fighters today in fierce battles north of Damascus. They also claim to have “captured dozens” of others.
As usual for the Syrian war, the figures have not been independently verified, and will doubtless be contested by Hezbollah, which so far has put the death toll at 3.
There was fighting reported in metro Damascus, and particularly the north, as the Syrian military has taken over the town of Deir Attiyeh, along the highway between Damascus and Homs.
The town is one of the last rebel possessions in the south of Syria, and reflects the growing momentum of the civil war, with the military taking virtually total control of the south while the rebels solidify their control over the northwest, and Kurdish factions hold the northeast.
Iran.........
Iran Invites UN Inspectors to Arak Reactor
Invitation Is Above And Beyond Terms of P5+1 Deal
by Jason Ditz, November 28, 2013
There are a lot of additional IAEA inspections on the horizon for Iran, but the nation’s nuclear officials are going above and beyond the terms required by their new deal with the P5+1, inviting the inspectors to visit the under construction Arak heavy water reactor.
The controversy over Arak has been something of a microcosm of the differences in perspective of Western nations and Iran, as the reactor was designed, amid complaints about Iran’s enrichment of uranium, to run on unenriched uranium.
While that would seem to be a reassuring measure, hawks have suggested that since the waste from Arak would hypothetically include plutonium, which could be extracted by a reprocessing facility that doesn’t exist and isn’t planned, it amounts to another vector by which Iran could get nuclear weapons.
Under the deal, Iran won’t make any improvements to the reactor itself for six months, but they can continue to work on the facility itself. An eventual deal will likely involve some third party nation, likely Russia, taking the waste out of the country after use.
Iran Deal Costly for Cash-Strapped IAEA Inspectors
Daily Inspections Will Require Significant Manpower
by Jason Ditz, November 28, 2013
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) committed itself to doing anythingnecessary to implement the P5+1 deal with Iran, but it may have overreached according to leader Amano Yukiya, who says that they may not have the money to pay for everything the two sides agreed to.
The interim deal, which is set to last six months, includes a dramatically ratcheted up inspection setup, which would include essentially daily inspections at multiple sites.
That’s a lot more than is really necessary, though it does give Western officials a chance to prove to opponents of the deal that a close eye is being kept on Iran’s activities.
But for the IAEA, which is expected to carry all these inspections out, it means a lot more inspectors and support staff on the ground at all times, and that’s simply not in their budget. This could stall implementation of the more stringent inspection regime into January, according to officials.
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