Afghanistan Violence Record High Reached In 2010, Says Government

KABUL (Reuters) -- The number of Afghan police killed during 2010 fell about seven percent to 1,292, the government said on Monday, despite violence spreading across the country as the war entered its tenth year.

Foreign military and civilian casualties are at record levels despite the presence of about 150,000 NATO-led troops, with 2010 the bloodiest year on record since the Taliban were ousted by U.S.-backed Afghan forces in late 2001.

Read the whole story: Reuters

Comments

[helmet veshdon]

11:24 AM on 02/07/2011

Looks like the soldier in the picture isn't holding an M16, looks more like an ar10, which is a bit strange.

[ewldest]

12:42 PM on 01/04/2011

"Winning hearts and minds' doesn't mean cutting down civilians and taking the muscle and brain matter for souvenirs - well, not to anyone outside of the US military, anyway.
This is going to get much worse - and it won't get better. True, when we leave, the Afghans will face a brutal civil war - we long prepared them for that (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/michael-hughes/road-to-peace-in-afghanis_b_804002.html), and it is inevitable - no matter when we leave.
But inevitable also is our withdrawal in disgrace, much like any other failed colonial power.
The sooner we get it over with the better. Begin that withdrawal now.

[stormpilot]

04:22 AM on 01/04/2011

It must also be taken into account that the data released by US and NATO omits most victims of the U.S drone strikes in the border region with Pakistan numbering close to 1,000 deaths.

[stormpilot]

04:18 AM on 01/04/2011

“From the sky, occupation forces are bombng, k/ll/ng civilians – mostly women and children. On the ground, Taliban and warlords together continue their fasc/sm. The US and NATO occupy my country under the name of all beautiful banners of democracy, women’s rights, human rights. And for this long time, they shed the bl00d of our people under the name of war on te rror……. It’s better [for the US and NATO] to leave Afghanistan, then it’s much easier for us to fight one enemy instead of two” – Malalai Joya, November 11, 2010 at http://www.towardfreedom.com/home/middle-east/2178-why-the-us-should-leave-afghanistan-an-interview-with-malalai-joya-former-afghan-member-of-parliament.

[stormpilot]

04:15 AM on 01/04/2011

"...as the W1k1Le aks revelations have demonstrated, much c arna ge in Afghanistan goes unreported. Marc Herold, Associate Professor of Economic Development and Women's Studies at the University of New Hampshire and contributor to globalresearch.ca, estimates that between 8,705 and 10,283 civilians have been k/lled by U.S.-NATO forces since the beginning of the war. (See "Pentagon Lies and Afghan Civilian Deaths: The Unspoken Truth," Global Research, December 8, 2010)" http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=22327

[habeass]

10:51 PM on 01/03/2011

Not that it matters on this site, but how many Afghan civilians, were killed by Afghans? Perhaps I'm quibbling over the details.

[sophiemaki]

08:47 PM on 01/03/2011

Petraeus controls obama.

[MMRDO]

11:06 PM on 01/03/2011

Unlikely.

[babybecks]

08:14 PM on 01/03/2011

Gotta love the spread of democracy

[SangZe]

07:02 PM on 01/03/2011

Obama's War!

[lqw]

07:40 PM on 01/03/2011

499 US troops lost their lives in Afghanistan in 2010
317 US troops lost their lives in 2009

http://icasualties.org/oef/

Obama's GOOD war.

[gbrooks]

12:12 AM on 01/04/2011

No such thing as a "good" war, that's for sure.

[JoeBlough]

06:15 PM on 01/03/2011

But think about all the Freedom we obtained.

[1donewrong]

03:20 PM on 01/03/2011

Of course our troop casualities are at record levels 2 years in a row. Thanks to the military mind of barak

[sophiemaki]

06:53 PM on 01/03/2011

Petraeus.

[lqw]

07:41 PM on 01/03/2011

Chosen by Obama.

[1donewrong]

08:33 PM on 01/03/2011

he's been there less than a year. its baraks rules of engagement that has fueled this disaster

[Mr Sick Of Greed]

03:13 PM on 01/03/2011

how do we win something which is basically an abstract idea? to enforce our viewpoints to an un-enducated country where corruption is king?....can you imagine if the Afghan army decided to set foot on our ground and shove their ideologies down our throats? what makes the US think this is "winnable"? they don't, we have to get used to the fact that we are a millitarized nation....this paradigm of perpetual warfare takes absolutely nowhere.....GOD BLESS those who have lost their lives for someone else's greedy, immoral agenda......my heart aches...but life will go on......

[verycold]

05:08 PM on 01/03/2011

I can't speak about any ideas being jammed down any throats since I am not witnessing that, but I actually don't think that is the mission in Afghanistan.  I think the idea is to cocoon Pakistan which means taking away the threat around Pakistan that does as you know have nukes.  Based on the region and how many troops are there, I really don't think there enough one on one to change the culture in Afghanistan. 

Have you ever read "Three Cups of Tea"?  I would say that Greg is a very passive man that is fighting to build schools that allows the Afghan people to be proud, self sufficient and get a good education.  I never go the impression he wanted to change people per se, but did like exchanging ideas.  So allowing women to see and hear what men get to do is allowing all Afghans to benefit regardless of gender.  However that changes the culture by that mere allowance, doesn't it?  The thing is he saw joy by those women who got to go to school and thus it would be hard to think of those women losing that right., 

Change is inevitable.  Cultures can forestall it,but eventually they are forced to deal with those changes. 

I don't know the answer for Afghanistan, or our involvement, but I do know that far too little is being debated for the past 2 years on this issue.  I find it hypocritical that so many progressives were so loud and vocal during the Bush years, but are silent now.  War is war.  So I am guessing all that noise during the Bush years had little to do with war, but more about just bashing the party in office.

[JoeBlough]

06:16 PM on 01/03/2011

Whose GOD?

[SangZe]

07:03 PM on 01/03/2011

Moloch or Mammon?

[apefool]

01:52 PM on 01/03/2011

the poor killing the extremely poor, same old war
don't support the troops

[MMRDO]

11:07 PM on 01/03/2011

You do that, enjoy.

[Justaminute]

01:40 PM on 01/03/2011

If you just stick with reading American publications you would not know that Afghan civilians are joining up with the Taliban. The "collateral damage" has family and we are the bad guys in this now.

[WOODSTOCKER51]

12:50 PM on 01/03/2011

..AND DICK CHENEY AND GEO BUSH HAVNT LOST ONE MINUTE OF SLEEP YET!

[Blackorpheus]

01:20 PM on 01/03/2011

Include Rumsfeld in that criminal list. And have Obama, Gates and their host of advisers lost any sleep? I don't think so.

[SangZe]

07:03 PM on 01/03/2011

Not with Obama as their ally.