Afghans contemplate the site of an explosion near Kandahar's central prison Sunday, after Taliban suicide bombers struck across the city, killing dozens.STRINGER/AFGHANISTAN/Reuters
For months, NATO military commanders have promised a major new spring offensive in Kandahar to decisively defeat the Taliban. However, a series of brazen weekend attacks suggest those warnings may have emboldened the militants, triggering a wave of violence that has left the population terrified and vulnerable before the alliance's offensive has even begun.
Teams of suicide bombers targeted Kandahar's prison, police department, a guesthouse and a mosque in a series of co-ordinated blasts Saturday night. By morning, Afghan officials had counted 12 explosions, at least 35 dead and nearly 60 wounded.
The Taliban claimed responsibility online, describing the attacks as a "message" to U.S. General Stanley McChrystal, commander of NATO forces in Afghanistan, who has publicly announced his intention to oust the insurgents from their spiritual birthplace of Kandahar with an unprecedented push of U.S, British and Canadian troops.
The warnings are central to a new, U.S.-led counterinsurgency strategy that seeks to reduce casualties by giving insurgents the opportunity to flee and convincing the population that the central government will step in afterward. Publicizing planned offensives reflects a significant shift in NATO's focus - from killing insurgents to sparing civilians and bolstering the state. But the weekend setback raised questions about the larger battle ahead.
"We were having dinner when the explosion happened. We couldn't see each other because there was smoke everywhere. I could only hear crying and for a moment, I thought my baby and my wife were dead," said Ahmadullah, a distraught 40-year-old shopkeeper, describing one of Saturday's blasts. His family survived, but his home near police headquarters was destroyed.
The city was in a state of lockdown as Kandaharis cowered in their homes and the sound of gunfire echoed in the streets. Afghan security forces tried to track down as many as nine suicide bombers who apparently escaped before triggering their explosives.
Waheed Mozhdah, an independent analyst who has written a book about the insurgency and once served as Taliban foreign minister, said the publicizing of NATO offensives has given the insurgency an edge.
"These were a direct response to the announcement that [NATO]would do an operation in Kandahar. It was a show of strength and will be used to recruit new fighters," he said.
Afghan security forces managed to fend off Taliban fighters from the central prison, preventing a possible jailbreak. But government intelligence work was weak, Kandahar governor Tooryalai Wesa acknowledged. "Getting information is our weakness. Our intelligence services get the information but can't distinguish it so it is difficult to prevent attacks," he said.
Provincial police chief Sardar Mohammad Zazi said the multiple targets were intended to distract soldiers and police from the main objective - the prison.
The bombings highlighted the challenges NATO troops could face in the coming months.
The Taliban, once a predominantly rural movement, has brought the fight to Afghanistan's cities. In January, teams of militants attacked government buildings in Kabul, and Mr. Mozhdah predicted the Taliban will increasingly target urban centres.
"They want to show they still have the power to continue the fight - to show they are in control, not the government," he said.
Military commanders have cited the success of their recent campaign to oust insurgents from the Taliban stronghold of Marja in Helmand province as proof their strategy of deliberately publicizing their offensives in advance can work.
With a report from Globe and Mail staff in Kandahar