Afghan Taliban

NATO Seizes Bomb-Making Materials In Afghanistan

AP | DEB RIECHMANN | Posted 11.11.2009 | World


KABUL — International troops and Afghan police seized 250 tons of ammonium nitrate fertilizer – enough to make up to a couple hundred road...

My Exclusive Interview with Ken Guest -- Journalist/Analyst on Afghanistan (Part 2)

Kathleen Wells, J.D. | Posted 11.03.2009 | World


Kathleen Wells, J.D.

The path out of the Afghan quagmire lies in making the Afghan tribes the cutting blade of the strategy, not the US forces or the Afghan National Army.

Troop Increases and the Irony of Afghanistan

Kit Gallant | Posted 10.30.2009 | World


Kit Gallant

Is it not ludicrous to imagine that adding soldiers is the appropriate method for achieving our (vague) goals, given that our problems clearly don't stem from a military inferiority?

Who Are the Taliban?

Gilles Dorronsoro | Posted 10.28.2009 | World


Gilles Dorronsoro

Most do not join the Taliban for money, but because the Afghan government is unjust, corrupt, or simply not there; or the Americans have bombed their houses or shown disrespect for their values.

Herve Morin, French Defense Minister, "Disbelief" At Idea Italy Bribed Taliban

Reuters | Posted 10.16.2009 | World


SAINT-DENIS DE LA REUNION, France, Oct 16 (Reuters) - France's defence minister reacted with disbelief on Friday to the idea that an army might pay Ta...

Pakistan's Intelligence Service Supports Taliban, Say Afghans

Telegraph | Dean Nelson, South Asia Editor | Posted 10.15.2009 | World


The policy adviser to foreign minister Rangeen Dadfar Spanta, said the British and American governments were fully aware of the ISI's role but lacked ...

Hold the Line in Afghanistan

Percy Blakeney | Posted 10.16.2009 | World


Percy Blakeney

If Obama permits McChrystal to implement his strategy, the US will lose the war in Afghanistan, the Taliban will return to power, and the nation will once again become a safe haven for al-Qaeda and Islamic extremism.

McChrystal's 40,000 Troop Hoax

Robert Naiman | Posted 10.13.2009 | World


Robert Naiman

Even if Obama were to approve General McChrystal's request, the 40,000 troops wouldn't arrive in time to significantly affect the 12-month window McChrystal says will be decisive.

US Officials Start To Negotiate With Taliban

Foreign Policy | Posted 10.09.2009 | World


In a dramatic shift, some U.S. military and civilian officials in Afghanistan are now trying to negotiate with Afghan Taliban fighters to encourage th...

Eight Years On: The View From Afghan Women

Gayle Tzemach Lemmon | Posted 10.07.2009 | World


Gayle Tzemach Lemmon

Women do not ask for protection of their rights simply because they are women; they seek assistance for their country simply because the stakes are too high -- for them and for the American public.

Afghan War: 8th Anniversary Photo Retrospective

Huffington Post | Adam Taylor | Posted 10.07.2009 | World


Wednesday marks the eighth anniversary of the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan. The notable date comes as the United States fiercely debates the future of...

100 Militants Killed in Huge Afghan Battle, NATO Says

Reuters | Peter Graff & Nick Macfie | Posted 10.06.2009 | World


NATO forces said Tuesday they had killed more that 100 fighters in a huge weekend battle in eastern Afghanistan in which eight Americans died, the dea...

Hakimullah Mehsud, New Taliban Chief Thought Dead, Meets Reporters

BBC NEWS | Posted 10.05.2009 | World


The new head of Pakistan's Taliban, Hakimullah Mehsud, has met reporters in the country's north-west, quashing persistent rumours he was dead....

My Hamid Karzai Daydream

Jamie Metzl | Posted 10.01.2009 | World


Jamie Metzl

Just back from Afghanistan, I began to daydream about Karzai speaking directly to the American people to take responsibility for his government's failings and seek support for U.S. engagement in the country.

"Exit Strategy" Might Not Be What You Mean

Lorelei Kelly | Posted 09.30.2009 | World


Lorelei Kelly

If we want to see this president succeed, a vocabulary shift is vital. The more we use leftover framing and messaging rhetoric from the Iraq War, the easier we make it for the right wing to do the same.

Taliban Widen Afghan Attacks From Base In Pakistan

nytimes.com | ERIC SCHMITT and MARK MAZZETTI | Posted 09.24.2009 | World


WASHINGTON �" Senior Taliban leaders, showing a surprising level of sophistication and organization, are using their sanctuary in Pakistan to stoke ...

Marine's Photo Reminds Us of War that Will Not End

Michael Winship | Posted 11.11.2009 | World


Michael Winship

There can be no denying the story the photo tells. It forces us to confront through a young man's violent death the ugly, bloody reality of a war.

How Afghanistan Can Avoid Becoming Another Vietnam

Mark Juergensmeyer | Posted 11.10.2009 | World


Mark Juergensmeyer

Recently we convened a workshop of senior scholars of South Asia studies and asked them to evaluate the US role in the region. They agreed upon the following five principles as the bases for formulating a new policy

Eight Weeks of America's War, Not Eight Years of "Obama's War"

Jonathan Morgenstein | Posted 11.09.2009 | Politics


Jonathan Morgenstein

The Obama administration is trying to salvage the situation in Afghanistan after the Bush Administration lost the war over eight years.

More US Troops Won't Necessarily Curb Terror: Analysis

nytimes.com | ERIC SCHMITT and SCOTT SHANE | Posted 11.08.2009 | World


Does the United States need a large and growing ground force in Afghanistan to prevent another major terrorist attack on American soil? ...

Blockbuster News of Summer 2009

B. Jeffrey Madoff | Posted 11.08.2009 | Media


B. Jeffrey Madoff

The summer's biggest news.

Suicide Bomber Attacks Kabul Airport Base (VIDEO)

Huffington Post | Posted 11.08.2009 | World


KABUL: A suicide car bomb outside a NATO military base at Kabul's main airport killed at least three civilians on Tuesday, in the worst attack on the ...

NATO jets bomb fuel tankers; Afghans say 70 killed

AP | FRANK JORDANS | Posted 10.20.2009 | World


KUNDUZ, Afghanistan — A U.S. jet dropped 500-pound bombs on two tanker trucks hijacked by the Taliban before dawn Friday, triggering a huge expl...

Taliban's Tank-Killing Bombs Came From US, Not Iran

IPS News | Posted 10.20.2009 | World


Gareth Porter I IPS WASHINGTON, Sep 3 (IPS) - In support of the official U.S. assertion that Iran is arming its sworn enemy, the Taliban, the head ...

US Embassy Bans Alcohol At Guards' Quarters After Claims Of 'Lewd' Parties

guardian.co.uk | Ewen MacAskill in Washington and David Batty | Posted 10.19.2009 | World


The US embassy in Afghanistan has brought in an alcohol ban and appointed American staff to monitor private security guards after allegations that the...