Afghan Killed 9 Americans After Disarming Them

The grim details are taking shape in the wake of today's shooting at Kabul's airport. All nine victims were Americans—eight US troops and one contractor—who were training members of Afghanistan's fledgling air force. The shooter, an Afghan pilot, got into an argument with the trainers, left the room, then re-entered and forced the Americans to remove their weapons, reports ABC News. When they were disarmed, he shot them with a US-provided semi-automatic. He then apparently fatally shot himself.

The Taliban immediately claimed responsibility and said it was yet another infiltrator attack. But that looks unlikely, notes AP, which talked to the pilot's brother. "He was under economic pressures and recently he sold his house. He was not in a normal frame of mind because of these pressures," said the brother. "He loved his people and his country. He had no link with Taliban or al-Qaeda." (More Afghanistan stories.)