Kandahar's streets safer but people scarce

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THE WASHINGTON TIMES KANDAHAR, Afghanistan — The sight of children playing outside is a good sign, but people of any age are still scarce on the streets of Kandahar.

"The Taliban has lost lots of support by killing innocent civilians, so during the day it"s fairly secure and people are out," said Lt. James Des James, before a convoy of four armored vehicles rumbled out of the Canadians" concrete fortress deep within the warrens of this strategic desert city, the second largest in the country.

"Today there"s commercial activity again, fresh fruits in the market," Lt. James said

In the city center, local produce was on display at vendor stalls, along with flea-bitten shanks of meat and shiny new home appliances from Pakistan and China. But relatively few customers browse the market or walk the streets.

Unlike last year, when the Taliban fought gun battles against NATO"s multinational force across the southern provinces, militants now increasingly rely on roadside bombs and other terrorist tactics to thwart reconstruction efforts around their former capital.

A Canadian convoy was attacked Friday by a suicide bomber here. No troops were injured, but earlier in the week a Canadian soldier was killed when a roadside bomb was detonated near his vehicle about 24 miles north of the city.

Roadside bombs have killed 17 of the 57 Canadian soldiers who have died in Afghanistan to date.

On this late spring afternoon, haggard children were about the only people moving around. A passing military convoy received the thumbs-up sign from some and a middle finger from others — emblematic of the divided perspectives here.

The 110-degree heat is a factor, too, but some local entrepreneurs say it is mainly fear that stifles commerce in the south"s traditional trading hub.

"There are security problems here in Kandahar city," said Mohammad Salim, an Afghani contractor for construction projects. "Each year since [the 2001 fall of the Taliban], business has been good. This year there is no one coming."