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2011-06-03 Afghanistan
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Afghan Commander says Killed Australian soldiers assassin is a mad man
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THE general in command of the Afghan National Army soldier who murdered Lance Corporal Andrew Jones does not believe the killer was a Taliban infiltrator. If he was, the recruit would have killed more Diggers.
"But he threw away his weapon and ran," Brigadier General Abdul Hamid said.
Or he just may have wanted to live...
Corporal Jones was gunned down by an Afghan soldier after leaving his accommodation at a forward base in the Baluchi-Chora Valley.
Incoming Defence Forces chief David Hurley confirmed the ANA soldier, named as Shafidullah Gulamoon, fired four shots from the watchtower, killing the army cook before climbing a fence and running into the night.
It was an update that corrected the ADF's initial belief that the men had argued while both were on the watchtower.
As the manhunt stretched into a fifth day, General Hamid pledged to not rest until the fugitive was captured, saying: "We are sad this has happened but if he doesn't reach Pakistan he'll be captured."
He said any Afghan soldier who caught the killer would be rewarded with cash and gifts. He did not want Australia to provide any reward money.
The pledge came as the body of army pilot Lieutenant Marcus Case, killed in a helicopter crash on the same day Lance Cpl Jones died, was flown home.
Also yesterday, slain Digger Brett Wood, 32, was farewelled with full military honours in Sydney.
Sergeant Wood was killed and two others seriously wounded by a bomb in southern Afghanistan on May 20. A guard of honour formed outside St Andrew's Cathedral as Sgt Wood's widow Elvi was surrounded by military and political leaders, including Prime Minister Julia Gillard, who paid their respects to the highly decorated commando.
At his headquarters at Camp Hero adjacent to the Coalition's sprawling Kandahar air base, General Hamid said the other Afghan soldier on duty with Gulamoon had used the offender's M-16 carbine to fire at him as he fled.
General Hamid, who commands the ANA's 205th Hero Corps, said the tragic incident raised serious questions about the ANA recruiting process.
"I worry about this, but it is difficult to check the background of every recruit," he said. The general offered his heartfelt condolences to Lance-Cpl Jones' family and to the Australian people.
General Hamid said the counter-insurgency campaign was pressuring the Taliban and in the past two months more than 100 former insurgents in the Chora Valley had joined the government side. 
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Posted by Oztralian 2011-06-03 17:38||
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Posted by Oztralian 2011-06-03 17:42||
2011-06-03 17:42||
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Posted by lotp 2011-06-03 19:38||
2011-06-03 19:38||
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