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US military searches for three Afghan soldiers missing from Cape Cod base US military searches for three Afghan soldiers missing from Cape Cod base
(about 1 hour later)
Police and military officials are searching for a second day for three Afghanistan national army officers who went missing during a training exercise at a Cape Cod military base. As police and US military officials c searched for three Afghanistan national army officers who went missing during a training exercise at a Cape Cod military base, Governor Deval Patrick said one of the possibilities being investigated is that they may be trying to find a way to stay in the United States.
There were no details to report on the search, Lieutenant Colonel James Sahady of the Massachusetts national guard said Monday. Patrick said Monday that the military does not believe that the three soldiers pose a danger to the public.
US military officials said the Afghan soldiers had been participating in a US Central Command regional cooperation training exercise at Joint Base Cape Cod. They arrived at Camp Edwards on 11 September and were last seen Saturday at the Cape Cod Mall in Hyannis, an off day for the program. “I don’t have a reason to believe that they pose a threat. They were vetted by the military, they were cleared by the military,” Patrick told reporters while he visited a preschool program in Quincy.
The soldiers were reporting missing by base security personnel on Saturday night. They were identified as Major Jan Mohammad Arash, Captain Mohammad Nasir Askarzada and Captain Noorullah Aminyar. “There is a lot of speculation within the military that they may be trying to defect,” he said.
The Afghan the soldiers pose no threat to the public, military officials said. Lieutenant Colonel James Sahady of the Massachusetts National Guard said there were no details to report on the search Monday.
Military officials said the Afghan soldiers had been participating in a US Central Command regional cooperation training exercise at Joint Base Cape Cod. They arrived at Camp Edwards on 11 September and were last seen Saturday at the Cape Cod Mall in Hyannis during an off day for the program.
The soldiers were reported missing by base security personnel Saturday night. They were identified as Major Jan Mohammad Arash, Captain Mohammad Nasir Askarzada and Captain Noorullah Aminyar.
The regional cooperation training exercises have been held annually since 2004 to promote cooperation and interoperability among forces, build functional capacity, practice peacekeeping operations and enhance readiness.The regional cooperation training exercises have been held annually since 2004 to promote cooperation and interoperability among forces, build functional capacity, practice peacekeeping operations and enhance readiness.
This year’s exercise, which involves more than 200 participants from six nations including the US, wraps up Wednesday. There are about a dozen more Afghan soldiers still participating in the exercise. Military officials from Tajikistan, Pakistan, Kazakhstan and Mongolia are also participants. The year’s exercise, which involves more than 200 participants from six nations including the US, is scheduled to wrap up Wednesday. There are about a dozen more Afghan soldiers still participating in the exercise.
Military officials from Tajikistan, Pakistan, Kazakhstan and Mongolia are also participants.