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"06/20/06 The Guardian" -- -- The soldiers rounded up the villagers at first light. The Taliban had just pummelled the new Afghan National Army (ANA) base at Gaza in the Arghandab Valley, a notorious rebel nest in Zabul province. Now the soldiers wanted to know who was sheltering them.They grabbed Jamal Ludin as he left for morning prayers. The 32-year-old grape farmer said he had been lined up beside a ditch with 50 other men and thrashed with wooden poles and an electric cable. "They said, 'Tell us where are the Taliban'," he said.
"Gingerly lifting his shirt, Mr Ludin showed bandages on both sleeves and his chest. He said the soldiers had taken his money and searched his house without permission - a grave dishonour in Pashtun tradition."
"Mirza, a 26-year-old, came from another village near the ANA base. After threats from the soldiers his family fled to the provincial capital, Qalat, a jolting three-hour drive away. He admitted having helped the Taliban."
"We have no choice," he said. "They come in groups of five, 10 or 20. Some are local, others are speaking Urdu [the national language of Pakistan] or Arabic. They ask for food but you can't refuse. You can't argue with men with guns."
"Now he feels trapped between the insurgents and the central government. "To be honest we cannot fight anyone. We don't like either side," he said.
Found on informationclearinghouse.info
SIRATYST (Stuff I Read and Thought You Should Too) -- “To ravage, to slaughter, to usurp under false titles, they call empire; and where they make a desert, they call it peace.” (Calgacus, as quoted by Tacitus, Agricola 30-31)"
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