Wednesday, August 17, 2011

Only a Small Fraction of Millions Went to the Taliban

Most went to corruption: criminals, grifters, frauds and cheats, SNAFU, democracy at the finest.

[In a murky process known as "reverse money laundering," payments from the U.S. pass through companies hired by the military for transportation, construction, power projects, fuel and other services to businesses and individuals with ties to the insurgency or criminal networks, according to interviews and task force documents obtained by the AP.

"Funds begin as clean monies," according to one document, then "either through direct payments or through the flow of funds in the subcontractor network, the monies become tainted."

The conclusions by Task Force 2010 represent the most definitive assessment of how U.S. military spending and aid to Afghanistan has been diverted to the enemy or stolen. Only a small percentage of the $360 million has been garnered by the Taliban and insurgent groups, said a senior U.S. military official in Kabul. The bulk of the money was lost to profiteering, bribery and extortion by criminals and power brokers, said the official, who declined to provide a specific breakdown.] emphasis added
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_AFGHANISTAN_CORRUPTION?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2011-08-16-12-25-34

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