Kandahar mayor's claim to shopkeeper-occupied land dividing residents

The elder's comments left State Department officials in Kandahar seething. They said the elder is part of the family that claims ownership of the land, and they were incensed that neither the mayor nor the governor were invited to counter the views of the three elders, all of whom were highly critical of U.S. military and reconstruction efforts in the area.

In the battle for this city, military commanders often note, the key terrain is not geographic but human. It involves getting residents to forsake the Taliban and side with the government and its international allies. But the elders' complaints, which involved far more than just the bazaar, revealed how far the Afghan government -- and all the Americans working here -- are from reaching that goal.

It is rare that a senior commander gets to hear such unvarnished grievances. When military leaders and members of Congress visit Afghanistan, their interactions with Afghans, if there are any, are usually limited to brief meetings with government officials. But Mullen insisted on seeing the elders during a day-long trip because he had promised, when he met them a year ago, that he would return to hear their views.

"Nothing has changed except one thing: We didn't want operations, but operations have started," said one of the other elders.

"Are you bringing security here or are you bringing violence?" asked the elder who criticized the mayor. Mullen's aides asked that the participants not be named because of concerns about retribution.

"We're bringing security," Mullen responded. Military operations are necessary, he said, "so that good governance can be put in place."

But the men appeared unconvinced. "The problem in this country is that there just isn't administration that's effective," the elder said.

He also complained that U.S. reconstruction aid, particularly support for farmers, is winding up in the wrong hands. "Ninety percent of your assistance is going to the Taliban," he said.

Mullen, who appeared grim-faced at moments, noted that in the past month, the Taliban killed 45 civilians, while coalition forces killed five. But once again, the elders were unmoved.

None of them would have been killed, the third elder said, "if you weren't here."

But in a demonstration of the contradictory impulses many Afghans feel toward the presence of foreign forces, the first elder told Mullen that "we're hearing your departure is imminent, and that worries us."

"We're not leaving," Mullen said. "We have left before. It didn't work."

After an hour, Mullen had to move on to his next meeting. None of the elders had been won over.

"I wish I could throw a switch and it would be over tomorrow. But I can't," he said. "This is about you and your people. It's not about us."