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Paris Match 'Propaganda'
Staring out from a glossy eight-page spread in the latest edition of the magazine Paris Match, several Taleban fighters show off their trophies of war. Guns, walkie-talkies and even a wrist-watch are photographed - all spoils taken from the 10 French soldiers they killed in an ambush last month. Accompanying the pictures is a long interview with the Taleban leader who calls himself Commander Farouki. He claims they were tipped off about the French mission in their area and were able to prepare an ambush with 140 highly trained insurgents. "If night hadn't fallen we'd have killed every one of the soldiers," he boasts. He denies reports that other French paratroopers were captured and tortured but warns that every single French soldier found on Afghan soil will be killed. Propaganda On French radio today, Defence Minister Herve Morin criticised Paris Match for peddling Taleban propaganda. "Should we really be doing the Taleban's propaganda for them?" he asked. "The Taleban have understood perfectly that Western public opinion is probably the Achilles' heel of the international community present in Afghanistan." A diplomat from the foreign ministry said it was the responsibility of the media to decide what they covered and how they did it, but added: "The reactions of the families of the servicemen speak for themselves. We can only imagine the pain that they felt when they saw these pictures, as well as that of the comrades of these men who are still in Afghanistan."
Posted by: Fred 2008-09-05 |
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| http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=249173 |