Calls to end Afghan mission as first Pole killed

28-year old Kurowski was wounded during an attack on his convoy and died on the way to hospital. "I have never tried to hide the fact that the mission in Afghanistan is very dangerous," said Defense Minister Aleksander Szczygło. Ministry representatives ensure that Poles are well prepared and have even better equipment than in Iraq. However, critics say that the weak point of the Polish mission is military intelligence. "We use the support of Americans and the British and it is obvious that they protect their soldiers first," said Bronisław Komorowski, a former defense minister. Some army experts believe that the Taliban observe and provoke Polish soldiers in order to find their weak spots. "They will try even more spectacular attacks," said Artur Bilski from the Multinational Corps North-East. "Parliamentary elections are approaching in Poland and they hope that the attacks will cause a panic among politicians and the media," he added. As the news broke, the League of Polish Families and Self-Defense demanded, "The immediate withdrawal of the Polish troops from Afghanistan". The Polish contingent in Afghanistan consists of 1,100 troops. (Rzeczpospolita, pp. A1, A7; Gazeta Wyborcza, pp. 1, 10-11) E.B.