DOD Opens Afghan Child Sex Abuse Probe

Following a preliminary investigation, the Pentagon is launching a full-scale probe into how U.S. troops have handled repeated accusations of Afghan military and law-enforcement officials sexually abusing young boys. A number of Americans deployed to Afghanistan have said they witnessed signs of widespread sexual abuse and understood there’s a sort of unofficial policy encouraging them not to come forward. That understanding allegedly came from an aversion to heightening tension between Americans and their Afghan partners. It was also characterized as a reaction to several troops who were punished for taking action when they made accusations.