U.S. and NATO troops in Afghanistan are being ordered to carry loaded weapons at all times while on base, in response to a rash of Afghan soldiers and policemen turning their weapons on coalition forces. 

The directive, confirmed by Fox News, was issued by International Security Assistance Force Commander Gen. John Allen. It says that troops should no longer simply keep ammunition magazines close by -- instead, those magazines should be loaded in the weapons. 

Depending on where troops are stationed in Afghanistan, this is not an entirely new practice. At Bagram Air Base, for example, weapons carried by NATO troops are often inspected upon entry to make sure they are loaded. But that was not the practice at ISAF headquarters in Kabul where service members have, until now, been directed to empty their ammunition upon entering the base. 

The directive comes as military officials scramble to find ways to fight the so-called "green-on-blue attacks" or "insider threats," as Defense Secretary Leon Panetta characterized it this week.