Fatal Car Accident Leads To Violent Anti-American Riots In Afghanistan

ISLAMABAD - A fatal car accident in the Afghan capital involving a U.S. military convoy has blown up into violent anti-American riots in the normally pro-Western city.  The convoy was attacked after at least one Afghan was killed in the accident, U.S. forces reportedly fired at the protestors, and the situation deteriorated from there.

Witnesses say the American convoy slammed into a vehicle during rush hour traffic Monday morning, killing at least one person and injuring several others. 

Within minutes protests erupted near the wreckage. Hundreds of people began throwing rocks and debris at the U.S. soldiers.

As local police struggled to regain control of the area, shots were fired into the crowd. Police confirm at least one person was killed by gunfire.

A number of witnesses say they saw U.S. soldiers open fire, while others claim local police were responsible for the fatalities.

U.S. military spokeswoman, Lieutenant Tamara Lawrence, says American troops only fired warning shots into the air as the crowd surged toward their vehicles.

“There are indications that there may have been at least one military vehicle that fired shots above the crowd, over the crowd, as they were (the soldiers) leaving the area,” She says.
 
By midday, hundreds of protesters had taken to the streets in several locations around the city. Residents reported hearing automatic gunfire across the capital.
 
More than two hundred people joined a march on Afghanistan’s presidential palace near the city center.  Demonstrators chanted slogans against the United Sates and Afghanistan’s U.S.-backed president, Hamid Karzai.

Afghan officials are appealing for calm.

The incident comes as Taleban insurgents maintained their latest offensive, targeting coalition and government troops around the country. 

The ongoing unrest has prompted widespread concern that President Karzai’s government could be losing popular support around the country.