JOIN USTaliban declares rogue Afghan soldier a hero
A rogue Afghan soldier, who killed a US soldier in cold blood in Afghanistan in May, was given a hero’s welcome by the Taliban.
The insurgents have released a video showing the Afghan soldier being welcomed by the Taliban with flowers and shouts of praise.
It shows the soldier returning to a Taliban village in Ghaziabad in Kunar province, with dozens of Taliban men lined up to greet him. The soldier, wearing an Afghan Army uniform, identifies himself as Ghazi Mahmood, or “Warrior Mahmood”.
Men with white Taliban flags, some with their faces covered, others carrying rocket propelled grenade launchers, throng around him, parading him through the village as insurgents shower him with flower garlands and chant “Long Live Mahmood,” the ABC News said in a report.
“I opened fire on three Americans who were sitting together,” the man explains calmly in the video.
On May 11, a shooting took place in a camp run by the Afghan National Army, where American troops had gone to train Afghan soldiers.
A rogue guard at the camp opened fire, killing at least one American and injuring two others before escaping. The Taliban immediately claimed responsibility, saying that a gunman named "Mahmood" was responsible and that he had returned to a Taliban camp in the remote region. The gunman's name was later confirmed by Afghan officials.