Live Q&As

The U.S. military was quick to announced it had taken a soldier into custody and to call the acts deplorable. I think Afghans will be watching very closely over the next few days to see if the U.S. makes good on its promise to hold the culprit accountable. I think they also will want to know whether there were red flags that were disregarded. 

Historically there has been a considerable amount of support for the Taliban in this area. In fact , Panjwai district, where the shootings occurred, is the birthplace of the Taliban movement. I think many Afghans in the south are torn between whether they would be better off siding with the Taliban or a weak Afghan government many see as corrupt. I think these shootings boost to the Taliban narrative that the U.S. mission here is doomed and  that it is carried out by crusaders waging war on Islam. The international community and the Afghan government have had a tough time  pushing back successfully on that narrative. 

It varies considerably. Among educated, urban Afghans who have benefited from the development and societal changes of the past few years, there's deep concern about what effect the draw down will have on security and political stability. (Both have been in short supply, even with a large foreign troop footprint) Among Afghans in rural areas, where elders and religious leaders are more influential than the government, and where Afghans have not benefited much from the war economy, I think there are many people who would like to see foreign troops leave. Many think, I think, that if they did, the fighting would ease. 

No. U.S. soldiers here enjoy immunity from prosecution in the Afghan court system. They also did in Iraq. That ultimately doomed the U.S. goal of keeping a small troop footprint in Iraq after the end of last year, because Iraqi officials refused to grant them immunity. U.S. military personnel charged with crimes are prosecuted in the military justice system. 

That's a great point. I think a murder case of this nature could take a long time to prosecute. And I think Afghans will want to see him held accountable very soon. It will be a tricky balance for U.S. officials as they strike a balance between managing Afghan expectations and ensuring the solider gets a fair trial. 

Some members of parliament did today. I think the government understands that such a call, if it were made formally, would be merely symbolic because no one expects the U.S. to waive the soldier's immunity. 

In this case, the U.S. was pretty quick to admit the severity of what had happened. It will be interesting to see how full an account they present and whether it is convincing to Afghans who suspect more than one gunman carried out the killings. But if you compare this to prior incidents in which U.S. soldiers willfully killed civilians -- Haditha is perhaps the best example -- there is little evidence so far of a coverup. I think the military has learned it fares better when it comes clean early on incidents like these. 

Some I have spoken to have expressed concern that this could turn a large segment of the population against them and into the arms of the Taliban. There also are fears of retaliatory attacks, which would not come as a surprise. 

U.S. military officials say they believe he acted alone. Some Afghans have disputed that. The reason for that might be that U.S. soldiers swarmed the village after the shootings to evacuate the wounded and investigate what had happened. He seems to have walked out of the base. This is highly unusual, but certainly not impossible. 

Yes, Panjwai has been a Taliban stronghold for years. The 2010 troop surge succeeded in restoring a semblance of government control in these areas. But many people worry that these gains could erode quickly as U.S. troops begin to pull out. 

A few do. Most rely on interpreters. 

I think this incident was jarring even to Afghans who have a dim view of Americans. It was unlike anything they've ever seen foreign troops here do. 

True. Word got out here pretty quickly. 

I think it will depend to a large extent in this case on how well the U.S. is able to present this as an aberration and how successful the Taliban and other critics of foreign troops are in pushing the view that it is a symptom of a failed mission. It's too soon to tell. 

I think it's certainly possible. These seems to be little appetite or political capital to double down. The fact that this is all playing out in an election year could have an impact on that.