The U.S. has implemented an advanced biometrics program to identify Afghan soldiers down to minute details, including “fingerprints, iris scans and facial images.” They can tell you who someone is. They can’t tell you if he’s a “moderate.”
“Manhunt after Afghan soldier killed Australian,” from the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, May 31 (thanks to Dumbledoresarmy):
A manhunt is underway for a rogue Afghan army soldier who shot dead an Australian comrade who was on guard duty in Afghanistan.
Lance Corporal Andrew Jones, 25, was at a patrol base in the Chora Valley when he was shot by an Afghan National Army (ANA) soldier who was sharing guard duties with him.
The Afghan soldier fled the scene and escaped despite being shot at by another ANA guard.
Lance Corporal Jones was airlifted to a medical facility at Tarin Kowt, where he later died.
He was on his first deployment to Afghanistan and was serving with the Mentoring Task Force, which is involved with training the Afghan army.
The ANA has expressed its “shock and outrage” at the shooting and vowed to track the soldier down.
Defence chief Angus Houston has confirmed a manhunt is underway.
“We have his name, we have his service number. So this was not an imposter, and I would characterise him as a rogue soldier,” he said.
Lance Corporal Jones was one of two Australian servicemen who lost their lives in Afghanistan on Monday in what Air Chief Marshal Houston described as a “very bad day”.
In a separate incident, Lieutenant Marcus Case, 27, was killed when a Chinook helicopter crashed east of Tarin Kowt.
Lieutenant Case, the youngest of six siblings, had recently flown helicopter rescue missions for the ADF during the Queensland floods.
Lance Corporal Jones and Lieutenant Case were both from Victoria.
The Defence Force is investigating both incidents….