Tuesday, September 23, 2014

Afghan Soldiers Go AWOL in Cape Cod

Three officers (one major and two captains) from the Afghan National Army who were attending a training exercise at Joint Base Cape Cod have gone missing. Police and military authorities are currently searching for them. They arrived at Camp Edwards (Cape Cod, Massachusetts) on September 11th and disappeared while visiting the Cape Cod Mall in Hyannis, Massachusetts. This is quite normal. The U.S. and other ISAF nations provide opportunities for Afghan police and army personnel to attend training events and courses. Usually the attendees are chosen by higher ranking officials based on political, family, or patronage ties. The "disappearance rate" is fairly predictable - usually two to three personnel from a group of ten or twenty Afghan visitors. The Afghan "disappeared" will make prior arrangements with friends or family who are already located in the United States (or Europe) for pickup once they slip away from their "watchers". Read more on the "Cape Cod Three" in "3 Afghan soldiers missing from Cape Cod base", AOL News, September 22, 2014. UPDATE: The three missing Afghans have been found; they will receive remedial map reading training soon!

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