Afghanistan: Attackers raid bank, kill at least 3

[February 19, 2011]  KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) -- Afghan officials say attackers have killed at least three people and wounded 14 in a raid on a bank in the eastern city of Jalalabad.

President Hamid Karzai condemned the attack Saturday in a statement that provided details of the casualties. His office says three suicide bombers took part in the attack on a Kabul Bank branch in the city.

Interior Ministry spokesman Zemeri Bashary says Afghan security forces have the bank surrounded.

Kabul Bank handles payrolls for many of Afghanistan's police and soldiers.

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THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE.
AP's earlier story is below.

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KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) -- Afghanistan's president said Saturday that any decision on a long-term U.S. military presence in the country must be made by Afghans and take into account neighbors' concerns, even as America's top diplomat insisted the U.S. does not seek permanent bases in the country.

President Hamid Karzai's comments underscore a desire to assert greater control over the country's future as U.S. troops prepare to begin drawing down this year.

In response to a reporter's question, Karzai said a number of American officials have raised the issue of establishing permanent U.S. bases in Afghanistan as part of broader negotiations on a long-term security partnership. He didn't say whether any formal requests had been made.

The Afghan people should have the final say on any bases, Karzai said at a press conference in Kabul. He added that the decision would need to take into consideration the concerns of Afghanistan's neighbors, which include Iran, Pakistan and China.

"The view of our neighboring countries is very important," Karzai said. "We are not living on an island ... Not only do we have neighbors, but they are big countries in the region. We are living in a region with tensions."

Discussion of permanent bases has resurfaced in recent weeks, gaining renewed attention after a leading U.S. senator proposed their establishment last month.

Lindsay Graham, a Republican senator from the state of South Carolina, said in January that having a few U.S. air bases in Afghanistan would give Afghan security forces an edge against the Taliban and benefit the region. He said he wanted the U.S. to have "an enduring relationship" with Afghanistan to ensure it never falls back into militant hands.

The Taliban criticized the proposal, saying allowing permanent bases would be tantamount to a permanent occupation.

The U.S. embassy did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Karzai's remarks Saturday. But in a speech Friday in New York, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton made clear the United States does not seek to establish permanent bases in Afghanistan.

"The United States will always maintain the capability to protect our people and our interests. But in no way should our enduring commitment be misunderstood as a desire by America or our allies to occupy Afghanistan against the will of its people," Clinton said, according to a text of her prepared remarks to the Asia Society provided by the embassy.

"We respect Afghans' proud history of resistance to foreign occupation, and we do not seek any permanent American military bases in their country or a presence that would be a threat to any of Afghanistan's neighbors," she said.

[Associated Press]

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