Information operations.

How about we execute one right now?

Remember the convoy ambush in Afghanistan that the MSM (and, in the end, command) had a hissy about - resulting in the deportation (hey, call it what it was) of the Marine unit. It matters not if the JTF commander truly thought the Marines had over-reacted or he was just bowing to the political realities at the time - the Taliban, with the able assistance of the Press and others, was able to effect the removal of that unit.

From Our Correspondent in the 'Stan:

I’ve got some stuff I’m putting in the next letter about civilian casualties and the information war. I’ve attached some interesting info from Dr. Gleyn Bledsoe, a U of Washington guy and Vietnam veteran who works over here with USAID providing alternative livelihoods to poppy farmers.

You may not remember the name Marko, buts it’s a town where a US Marine convoy was shot up, and when they were accused of indiscriminately killing civilians the unit had to leave the country. Dr. Bledsoe was about 200 meters away when this happened. I’ve attached the Taliban release (sent out amazingly fast), the Seattle Times article, and his letter back to the Times (which they didn’t print.)

When I asked him if it was OK to forward this with his name attached, he said “sure, what are they going to do, send me to Afghanistan ?”

The reaction of the Talibs to the event was swift, with this posting on their website:

4-3-2007

In a sacrificing attack 2 vehicles of NATO invaders were demolished in Nangrahar Zabiahulla/Mujahid

This morning at 9:00am a Mujahid of Islamic Emirate performed a sacrificing attack on a convoy of NATO invaders on Jalalabad -Toarkham highway in Nangrahar province.In result 2 tanks were demolished and all troopers were killed or wounded. After the incident invaders fired on civilians and martyred or wounded a number civilian.

We must mention that this not the first time that invaders fired on civilian and martyred many civil people when Mujahideen performed the sacrificing attack on them.

Heh. I'd note that they don't mention the innocents *they* "martyr" when they send in the "sacrificing attacks" now do they? And it's the civilians that do most of the sacrificing in those attacks, methinks. Of course, it's okay if the Talibs do the martyring of the civilians - after all, they're just sending 'em to Paradise, right? How, oh, medieval Christian of them, eh?

The AP's Rahim Faiez put out this story, as carried by the Seattle Times:

U.S. forces blamed for civilian deaths

By RAHIM FAIEZ
The Associated Press

BARIKAW, Afghanistan -- An explosives-rigged minivan crashed into a convoy of Marines that U.S. officials said also came under fire from militant gunmen Sunday. As many as 10 people were killed and 34 wounded as the convoy made a frenzied escape, and injured Afghans said the Americans fired on civilian cars and pedestrians as they sped away.

U.S. officials said militant gunfire may have killed or injured civilians, but Afghanistan's Interior Ministry and wounded Afghans said most of the bullets were American. Hundreds of angry Afghans protested near the blast site, denouncing the U.S. presence here.

As the Americans fled, they treated every car and person along the busy, tree-lined highway as a potential attacker, said Mohammad Khan Katawazi, the district chief of Shinwar in eastern Afghanistan's Nangarhar province.

"I saw them turning and firing in this direction, then turning and firing in that direction," Ahmed Najib, 23, who was hit by a bullet in his right shoulder, said of the U.S. forces. "I even saw a farmer shot by the Americans."

Lt. Col. David Accetta, the top U.S. military spokesman in Afghanistan, said gunmen may have fired on U.S. forces at multiple points during the escape. He said it was not yet clear how the casualties happened, though he left open the possibility that U.S. forces had shot civilians.

"It's not entirely clear right now if the people killed or wounded by gunfire were killed or wounded by coalition forces' gunfire or enemy attackers' gunfire," he said.

The accusation that U.S. forces killed or wounded so many Afghans was likely to cause an uproar in a country that has seen an untold number of civilians killed by international forces since the U.S.-led invasion in 2001. A high-level delegation was appointed to investigate.

The story continues - but this is sufficient for our point.

Here's your chance to participate in an InfoOp. Our Correspondent in the 'Stan, with the permission of the author - sent us this letter to the editor that the Times chose not to publish.

So, as our little InfoOp, we *will* publish it.

What Really Happened at Marko on March 3?

I am a Seattle Native working on economic development in Nangarhar Province, Afghanistan and currently residing in Jalalabad. I keep in touch with the new in Seattle thanks to the Seattle Times daily email for which I wish to thank you. Today, March 5, you ran an Associated Press article entitled U.S. Forces Blamed for Civilian Deaths by Rahim Faiez. That article disturbs me in that it is unnecessarily inflammatory, very biased, and not very accurate. It unjustly makes out American Marines who had just been attacked as a bunch of out of control killers firing wildly without discretion as they escaped that attack.

What really happened? Three US Marine up-armored humvees were returning to their base in Jalalabad. While passing thru a market place in a rural village, a mini-van, laden with explosives was driven into the small convoy and was detonated by the suicide bomber driving it. The Marines then came under fire from a number of positions along side the road. It was obvious that the intent of the bomber was to disable the vehicles and the gunmen to kill those that survived. The Marines returned fire as they drove rapidly away. One Marine was wounded. When the battle was over, 8 civilians were killed and 34 others, including a Marine had been wounded. The several bullet impacts on the escaping vehicles attested to the fact that they had been fired upon by gunmen; a fact that the AP reporter failed to mention. The attack seemed to have been a rather well planned one, and it appears that the planning included manipulation of the news as is often the case with both Al Qaeda and the Taliban.

The statement by district chief Katawazi that the Marines “treated every car and person along the busy, tree-lined highway as a potential attacker” is an accurate one. They have no other choice. The vehicle that had attacked them was not a military vehicle; it was a civilian Toyota mini-van just like the ones many of your readers drive everyday. The vehicles used in these attacks are always civilian vehicles, most commonly 4-wheel drive SUV’s, mini-vans and sedans. Of course, the AP reporter also neglected to mention that the bomber had attacked and detonated his bomb in the middle of a crowded village’s market area with quite obvious disregard for the civilians in the area and does not even mention that these were amongst the total killed and wounded. Such a revelation might have distracted from the sensationalism he was seeking.

What did the Taliban have to say about the attack? The following is from their web page (http://www.alemarah.org/ ) “This morning at 9:00am a Mujahid of Islamic Emirate performed a sacrificing attack on a convoy of NATO invaders on Jalalabad -Toarkham highway in Nangrahar province. In result 2 tanks were demolished and all troopers were killed or wounded. After the incident invaders fired on civilians and martyred or wounded a number civilian.” They also failed to mention that the “sacrificing attack” was done in a village amidst a number of civilians. As for the “2 tanks” that were demolished and all of the killed or wounded troopers; it appears that they have trouble with accurate reporting too.

Attached is a photo of the blast that was taken by one of our engineering crews who were working in the area and were about 200-300 meters from the blast when it occurred. As you can see from the resultant smoke plume, it was not a small explosion.

Again thank you for the daily Seattle Times via the internet. I would hope in the future, though, that the Times hold its news sources to higher standards of accuracy and not permit itself to be used as a propaganda organ for the likes of the Taliban.

Dr. Gleyn Bledsoe,

Jalalabad, Afghanistan

For those interested, a larger format version can be had here.

That's it! Thank you for participating in our little demonstration of an Information Operation.