Thousands stage Afghanistan's first demo against Iraq war
uploaded 24 Mar 2003
Thousands of protestors Sunday took to the streets of eastern Afghanistan chanting slogans and demanding a halt to attacks on Iraq in the country's first-ever anti-US protests, officials said.
More than 10,000 people swarmed through Laghman provincial capital Mehtarlam shouting "Allah-o-Akbar" (God is great), torching the flags of the United States, Britain and other coalition members, said General Asmatullah, Laghman divisional commander.
Asmatullah, who like many Afghans has just one name, said the event began as a student protest at 9:30 am (0500 GMT) Sunday, but swelled into a massive demonstration as ordinary people and tribal elders joined in.
"They called for a ceasefire in Iraq, they burned the flags of the United States, Australia, Britain and Japan in the city."
According to the Pakistan-based Afghan Islamic Press agency, many of the protesters were chanting "death to America, death to Britain".
The commander said the protest ended peacefully after only three hours, but more were expected in coming days.
Sunday's demonstrations were Afghanistan's first public manifestations of disquiet over the US-led attacks on Iraq following Kabul's announcement last week that it backed military intervention.
However, dissent has already begun to show in the government's ranks with at least one powerful regional leader voicing opposition.
Ismail Khan, the governor of western Herat province, spoke out against foreign radio coverage of the conflict during speeches at Friday prayers.
Khan, a leader in the US-led coalition that ousted the hardline Taliban regime in December 2001, also warned America it was making similar mistakes to the Soviets during their disastrous 1980s occupation of Afghanistan.
"If these radio stations are broadcasting the truth, why don't they say anything about the cruel operations of the United States," he said.
The Afghan government last week came out firmly behind Washington's action on Iraq after days of deliberation during which it carefully weighed up support for its key ally with the risk of provoking an Islamic backlash.
In an official statement released Friday the government called for a quick end to the conflict and urged Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein to stand down.
"It is in the interest of the Iraqi people for Saddam Hussein to leave power. The interests of the people of Iraq are higher than the interests of Saddam and Hussein and his family," the statement said.
"The people of Afghanistan in two decades faced a lot of difficulties and problems because of despotic regimes."
In the 24 hours after the US-led coalition troops began bombarding Baghdad, the American military presence in Afghanistan came under attack from 15 rockets fired by suspected extremists -- the largest assault in months.
The US military, which launched a major offensive in southern Afghanistan coinciding with the start of the Iraq campaign, says it has no evidence that the attacks were linked to Iraq.
Source: ProLog
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