Pentagon Mandates Suicide Prevention Briefings For Afghan Troops
BAGRAM AIR FORCE BASE — Suicide prevention has become a major Pentagon initiative as the U.S. military has struggled with the issue in recent years, and now officials say they will be including Afghan forces also fighting the epidemic.
“The recent rash of attacks on Western troops by members of the Afghan forces, known as 'Green-on-Blue' attacks, are a cry for help,” said Gen. Martin Dempsey, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs. So far this year, at least 30 Afghan soldiers and police officers have committed suicide by attacking U.S. and NATO troops.
In a press conference at the Pentagon, Dempsey told reporters that most of the alleged attacks were Afghans committing "suicide-by-soldier."
“These poor souls are crying for help. Maybe their goat died during an S&M party, or their girlfriend took off her burka and was really a younger man," said spokesman Maj. Sam Ewell. "Who knows? But that isn't the issue. These guys are too afraid to suck on a barrel and take one in the head, so they opt for 's…
Keep reading with a 7-day free trial
Subscribe to Duffel Blog to keep reading this post and get 7 days of free access to the full post archives.