According to the report, a relative of Gul said he started following the teachings of the Taliban in 1995, then later left Afghanistan for Pakistan because “he was upset that foreigners had invaded his country.” When asked why Gul returned to Afghanistan in 2008, he said he “wanted to kill Americans.”
Afghan soldiers stand guard outside an airport gate in Kabul on April 27, 2011, after Col. Ahmed Gul killed 9 Americans.
The Afghan soldier who gunned down nine Americans in a shooting rampage at a military compound in Kabul last April targeted and killed his U.S. mentors after they took away his wings and cut his salary nearly in half because he was unable to learn English, a longtime colleague of the killer has told FoxNews.com.
A second Afghan airman, who was wounded in the April 27 attack, says the gunman, Col. Ahmed Gul, also intended to kill Afghans who were working with the Americans at the base at Kabul Airport. And he said he fears there will be more incidents like it as the war winds down.
A U.S. Air Force Special Investigation report on the attack that was released last week concluded that Gul, 46, acted alone, and it found no evidence that the attack was connected to the Taliban or insurgents. It noted reports of Gul’s mental and financial problems, but it did not mention Gul’s failure to learn English as a possible motive.
The Air Force report, said the Afghan official who was wounded in the shooting, also reveals clear evidence that the Ministry of Defense failed to conduct a proper background check on Gul, who had returned to active duty after spending 18 months in military housing in Hayatabad, Pakistan, where he became radicalized and increasingly anti-American.
[…]