U.S. halts training for new Afghan army recruits

The senior commander of Special Operations in Afghanistan has put to a halt training for all new Afghan recruits under his command until Afghan troops can be re-screened for ties to insurgent groups, according to The Washington Post.

The move comes after a string of killings perpetrated by Afghan security forces against coalition forces. Thus far this year, 45 coalition troops have died as a result of so-called “green-on-blue” attacks.

In all, 27,000 Afghan troops will be re-screened, according to The Post. The move will not affect the majority of Afghan forces – 350,000 in all, according to The New York Times – but will involve screening of local police. The Times reports the training suspension could be at least a month, possibly longer.

According to The Post, many guidelines have not been followed in the vetting process for both army members and police, in an attempt to quickly grow the Afghan army.