The U.S. military has handed over a group of Afghans detained this week to local police custody after angry protests outside its main base in Afghanistan, police said on Wednesday. About 2,000 Afghans protested outside the U.S. base at Bagram north of Kabul on Tuesday to demand the release of locals who the U.S. military said were arrested in an anti-insurgent operation. The U.S. military said on Tuesday eight suspects had been captured in a raid by U.S. and Afghan forces who found improvised bombs of the sort used by Taliban and other allied insurgents. It said those held were suspected of planning attacks on U.S.-led forces. Provincial police chief Abdul Rahman Sayedkhel said only six men had been detained and all had been handed over to Afghan police custody, while the Americans had promised not to search houses without government approval. "The Americans handed them to us yesterday evening and apologized for arresting them," Sayedkhel told Reuters. "The development comes because of the protests and anger shown by people during the demonstrations."
