Quote Originally Posted by HoreTore View Post
Also; why is it a given that these people are going to die?

There are thousands and thousands of afghanis working for NATO, why are these people moved to the top of Talibans hit-list, above the governor who supports the troops, the truck driver bringing supplies, the police officer, et etc?

And why is it a given that the Taliban will actually succeed in killing these, as the governor, truck driver and police officer are all still alive?
Because these informants are, in many cases, regular afghans who don't like the taliban, or taliban defectors. One example.
One specific example cited by the paper is a report on an interview conducted by military officers of a potential Taliban defector. The militant is named, along with his father and the village in which they live.
Informants are either regular folks or turncoats. They live in small villages, big towns, all sorts of places. They don't live in the military camp, or behind the security guards. They live out, in the open. That's how being an informant works. The point is to blend in, be the last person you'd expect to be working for NATO.NATO doesn't send Johnny American as a spy against the Taliban- that'd just succeed in getting him shot on sight.

So, if you really do care about the lives of Afghans, you'd be quite concerned about this report. IMO.