Commander in Afghanistan transfers handling of shooting incident to Finland

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The commander of the Finnish force in Afghanistan, Lt. Col. Pertti Pullinen, has transferred the handling of the shooting incident in which a Finnish peacekeeper was wounded in early October to Finland for further investigation.
     
Pullinen reported from Afghanistan on Wednesday that he had decided to excuse himself from the case in order to avoid potential allegations of partiality.
      The case will be handled by the Finnish Defence Forces' International Center FINCENT, under its new Commandant, Colonel Mauri Koskela. FINCENT is the Finnish Defence Forces competence centre for peace support operations, controlling the domestic responsibilities of all Finnish overseas operations, including personnel, logistics, and training matters.
     
On October 1st, a Finnish soldier in the NATO-led ISAF peacekeeping forces was injured by gunfire in Afghanistan, when several people began shooting at a group of Finnish peacekeepers who were performing a night-movement exercise on a firing range in the Aybak District in Northern Afghanistan.
      According to the investigations made by the Defence Staff Investigation Department and the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI), the peacekeeper - who was guarding the exercise against intruders - was hit by three bullets from two Finnish assault rifles, as he apparently came into the line of fire during the exchange of dozens of gunshots between Finnish soldiers and local police officers. The police officers had possibly mistaken the ISAF soldiers for insurgents.
      Currently, around 100 Finnish peacekeepers are serving in the NATO-led ISAF operation in Afghanistan.


Previously in HS International Edition:
  Defence Forces consider new equipment for Afghanistan troops (31.10.2006)
  Peacekeeper wounded in Afghanistan may have been shot by other Finns (13.10.2006)
  Finnish peacekeeper injured in firefight in Afghanistan (2.10.2006)

Links:
  Finnish Defence Forces International Centre FINCENT

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