Say what you want about the Taliban, but they sure aren't violating the Americans With Disabilities Act

Why the disabled do Taliban's deadly work

KABUL -- The suicide bombing at a Kabul Internet café drew attention for a number of reasons: It was one of the first in the Afghan capital after the fall of the Taliban; it struck a spot popular with foreigners; and a UN worker was among those who died along with the attacker, Qari Samiullah.

But a little-known fact about that 2005 blast offers a clue into the workings of the insurgents who recruit suicide bombers, and what, apart from religious propaganda, has motivated about 200 men to blow themselves up: In addition to being a deeply religious man, Mr. Samiullah was disabled.

His disability didn't come as a surprise. As the insurgency in Afghanistan gathers urgency, the Taliban and other forces are recruiting marginalized and vulnerable groups to carry out suicide attacks while men from their own ranks keep up the ground offensive.

The pool of the disenchanted and hopeless is large in Afghanistan -- people left on the fringes by their economic, physical or mental circumstances -- and there are few services to rehabilitate them after three decades of war.

"Almost 90 per cent of [suicide bombers] are people with some form of disability," forensic expert Yusuf Yadgari said.

Every bomber's body in Kabul-based attacks passes through Dr. Yadgari's morgue. He has so far detected such disabilities as muscular dystrophy, amputated toes, blindness, skin diseases and signs of mental illness in the bodies of suicide bombers.

Disabled people are a significant portion of Afghanistan's population, but they live on the margins of its society.