Four NATO soldiers killed as questions remain over hand-over dates

Four soldiers with the NATO led force in Afghanistan have been killed in an attack suspected to be by members of the Afghan police, senior Afghan officials say.

This latest incident brings the number of NATO troops killed by “insider attacks” to 51 for the year.

With the news of this attack and the deaths of two UK servicemen killed at a check-point by a man in a police uniform yesterday, questions about the handover of control to the Afghan police force continue to fester.

The NATO led ISAF forces are due to hand over command of all combat missions to Afghan forces by the middle of 2013, and all troops are expected to have left Afghanistan by the end of 2014.

But these recent attacks show that target is fragile and seems increasingly optimistic, I can’t begin to imagine the embarrassment that would be caused if command was handed to Afghan forces and six months down the line NATO forces had to return, because the Afghan police force had buckled and the Taliban were running riot.

I also can’t begin to imagine what it must be like for the NATO forces tasked with training recruits to be Afghan police, training someone who has been sent there to kill you the moment a gun is put in their hands, or the moment your back is turned, their bravery and dedication to the task is immeasurable.

However if attacks like this persist in the coming weeks and months, the deadlines for withdrawal look more and more brittle, and as unpopular as it is, the option of extending those deadlines should at least be given a fair consideration.

Because if the deadlines are set in stone and all forces are withdrawn by the end of 2014 and the Afghan forces can’t cope, then it will all have been a complete waste of lives and time.

I want the hand-overs to go ahead as planned without any problems, I want the Afghan forces to be able to do the job, and I also want all the NATO troops in Afghanistan to return home safely, in the same way that I want to score a last minute winner for England in the World Cup final, but in reality the prospects look very different.