A patrol of Polish soldiers came under fire in Afghanistan, Thursday. No casualties were experienced on the Polish side though one of the assailants was shot dead in an exchange of gunfire.
The incident occurred in the Ghazni province, eastern Afghanistan, where the Polish troops are stationed. The Polish patrol was raked with machine-gun fire. The soldiers set off in pursuit of the insurgents who launched the attack while riding a motorcycle.
One insurgent escaped after this compatriot was shot. Next to the abandoned motorcycle, soldiers found landmines, weapons and ammunition.
The incident occurred just one day after Polish troops in Afghanistan finished moving in to the province of Ghazni. At the beginning of November Poland is to take full responsibility for the region.
Nangar Khel case returns to court?
Meanwhile, Polish soldiers who were acquitted by the Military District Court in Warsaw for the alleged unlawful of civilians in the Afghan village of Nangar Khel may have to defend themselves again after the court decided to open the case for re-investigation.
The decision was made behind closed doors, with only the prosecution and one of the soldiers' defence lawyers hearing the court verdict.
The defence counsel for the accused, Piotr Kruszyński, admitted that the "decision is warranted," adding that the prosecution made some legal errors when presenting the case.
Piotr Dewiński, another defence lawyer who is working on behalf of the soldiers stated that the court is "not there to look for evidence, but to asses the evidence given to it."
According to Mr. Dewiński, one of the errors made by the court was the failure to question the governor of the Afghan province where the event happened, or indeed to cross-examine the soldier who trained the accused before their tour of duty.
The chief prosecutor heading the case, Colonel Jerzy Artymiak, has said that the prosecution may appeal the court's decision to return the case for assessment.
The attack in Nangar Khel happened over a year ago in August 2007, when a group of Polish soldiers opened fire after coming under attack from insurgents. Civilians, including women and children, were killed in the fighting. (jm/jb)