Afghan Police to Grow by 10,000 for Elections

Special to American Forces Press Service

June 29, 2009 - The Afghan National Police force will grow by 10,000 members to meet security needs for the country's upcoming national elections, military officials here reported. The international security forces approved the growth at a recent meeting of the Afghan-led International Police Coordination Board, they said.

The additional police will provide site security to polling stations throughout 14 selected provinces. With about 10 police to each station, the force will be able to secure nearly 1,000 additional polling stations in Afghanistan, Col. Bradley K. Nelson, the national police force integration officer with Combined Security Transition Command Afghanistan, said.

The training for the additional police will be divided into two phases, much like the training for the additional 4,800 police that are being trained for duty in Kabul, Nelson said. The officers will attend three weeks of training prior to the elections and will receive an additional five weeks of training after the elections.

"This is a critical component in election security," he said, "as we continue to build police forces throughout Afghanistan."

The training of the 10,000 is the second phase of the plan to train 15,000 new police and will take place after the 4,800 new Kabul police are trained.

"There is a lot of hard work going on all across Afghanistan, from the Ministry of Interior to the coalition forces, to enable the Afghan National Police to perform their duties and ensure a safe election," Nelson said.

(From a Combined Security Transition Command Afghanistan news release.)