Envoy: Afghan Riots Not Sign of Anti-Americanism

By Steve Inskeep

Published June 1, 2006 at 4:11 PM MDT

Ambassador Ronald Neumann addresses a press conference at the U.S. embassy in Kabul, Aug. 18, 2005.

Deadly riots sparked by a U.S. military truck crash this week are not a sign of anti-Americanism in Afghanistan, the U.S. ambassador in Kabul says.

"I do not see any groundswell of anti-Americanism or of any desire that we leave," Ambassador Ronald Neumann says in an interview.

The U.S. military says a large truck, part of a convoy on the outskirts of Kabul, plowed into a line of cars after its brakes failed, killing up to five Afghans.

The Afghan parliament on Tuesday demanded prosecution of U.S. soldiers involved in the truck accident.

American soldiers in Afghanistan are not subject to Afghan law, Neumann said. "But should the investigation reveal some wrongdoing, I'm sure that the military would follow up on its own."

A U.S. military spokesman said Wednesday that American soldiers used their guns in self-defense after rioting Afghans opened fire during a melee that broke out after the crash.

President Bush spoke with Afghan President Hamid Karzai and pledged a full investigation into Kabul's worst unrest since the Taliban's downfall.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.