Afghanistan: US coalition leaflets put aid workers at greater risk

The Guardian is again proving to be one of the best newspapers in the world. Here's a report by Ewen MacAskill--Pentagon forced to withdraw leaflet linking aid to information on Taliban:

The US-led coalition in Afghanistan has distributed leaflets calling on people to provide information on al-Qaida and the Taliban or face losing humanitarian aid.
The move has outraged aid organisations who said their work is independent of the military and it was despicable to pretend otherwise.

[snip]

The leaflets were distributed by US forces in Zabul province, which borders Pakistan and where the Taliban have regained control of several districts.

One of the leaflets, showing an Afghan carrying a bag of provisions, reads: "In order to continue the humanitarian aid, pass over any information related to Taliban, al-Qaida or Gulbuddin organisations to the coalition forces." The latter reference is to the renegade warlord Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, who is believed to have allied himself with the Taliban.

Fourteen aid workers were killed in Afghanistan last year; eleven have been killed thus far this year.

The Pentagon admits this was a mistake (gasp!) and promises it won't happen again.