New details have emerged on the Afghan attack

A Polish attack on civilians in the Afghan village of Nangar Khel in August was not an accident, according to the sources of Gazeta Wyborcza daily. Instead an order was given before the soldiers left the Wazi-Kwa military base.

Last week RMF FM radio also reported that the soldiers were told by their superior, Warrant Officer Andrzej O., not to worry if they hit the village. The radio reported that one of the soldiers, 25-year-old Łukasz B., objected to the order to shell a hill by the village for fear of killing the civilians. Łukasz B. allegedly returned to the base to confirm that his unit was indeed expected to shell the hill.

Major Olgierd C., the head of the Wazi-Kwa base, denied the accusations of the soldiers, claiming that they were trying to foist responsibility off on him. He has been arrested also.

The Military Court in Poznań rejected a motion to release five of the soldiers. It also rejected an appeal to release Major Olgierd C. The court denied these appeals.

In an additional twist, last Friday the prosecutors investigating the case received a threatening letter, reported Polska daily. The anonymous letter stated that any member of the team who prosecuted the soldiers for civil crimes would be killed.

No official investigation into the threats is planned, however. 

The seven Polish troops in question stand accused of shooting Afghani civilians on August 16. The attack caused the deaths of six civilians and wounded a number of others. Six soldiers face life sentences and the seventh faces a sentence of 25 years.

Nangar Khel village is one of the most dangerous areas in the Polish-controlled zone and the inhabitants often help the Taliban, the chief of Polish forces in Afghanistan, Lieutenant Colonel Adam Pstręk told Polish Radio.