The remains of several burned Korans found in the trash of the U.S. base at Bagram, near Kabul in February 2012, fueled the ire of many Afghans who oppose the presence of foreign troops in his country. Between 2,000 and 3,000 people gathered at the base shouting and throwing stones to its outer walls. The mob also attacked and burned a kiosk.

Islam sets very rigid rules about how to treat the Koran at all times. Violating these rules or destroy a sacred book improperly is a sacrilege that is considered very serious. The incident has stoked the anti-American sentiment that has always existed in Afghanistan since the American militar presence. The U.S. defence secretary, Leon Panetta, apologised to the Afghans stating that "these actions do not represent the views of the U.S. military".