Four Assassins Captured

With all the bad news on just how corrupt the Karzai government can be, those who are determined to keep their integrity sometimes get overshadowed. One of those was Abdullah Laghmani, deputy intelligence chief of NDS—the National Directorate of Security. The NDS is a rarity in this government—a trustworthy and incorruptible entity thanks to the leadership of its directors. On Sept 2 of this year, Abdullah Laghmani, was assassinated by a suicide bomber as he left a community meeting discussing counternarcotics and security issues in Mehterlam, Laghman Province.

After three months of investigation, this week his Taliban assassins were arrested.

Earlier this summer I had the good fortune of meeting with Abdullah Laghmani and was saddened by news of his death. He was a unique individual, intelligent, gutsy—and a fine looking man I might add—a professional with passion for his work. With his expertise and network of Afghan and Pakistani connections, he could have wracked havoc on the opium trade cutting off a key source of financing for the Taliban and Al Qaeda thus saving the lives of Coalition and Afghan soldiers.

It is encouraging but not surprising that Afghan investigators found the Taliban assassins. His death was a great loss for Karzai at a critical time in his administration. Let’s hope the investigation continues looking deeper for evidence of involvement by the Pakistan’s intelligence service (ISI). Many Kabul residents and officials believe the ISI was behind the Mehterlam bombing. It was Abdullah Laghmani who first found key evidence linking the Pakistan ISI to the 2008 Indian Embassy bombing. Giving weight to the accusation that the ISI directed the Laghmani assassination is the 2009 bombing of the Indian Embassy occurring 36 days after Laghmani’s death.

If you want to know more about this fine man and how he fit into the complex Afghan political game, MK Bhadrakumar’s article is a good source. Keep in mind though, Mr. Bhadrakumar was a diplomat for the Indian Foreign Service and feels no love for the Pakistan ISI.

- by Janet Killeen
photo by Omar Sobhan /Reuters