Morale Down in Afghanistan: Army

(NEWSER) - The Taliban says it will execute a captured American soldier if the US does not withdraw from two districts in southeastern Afghanistan, the Voice of America reports. A Taliban rep said today the soldier is healthy but will be killed if operations in Paktika and Ghazni continue. The fate of the soldier, whom the military has classified as "believed captured," will be decided by Taliban leader Mullah Omar, the AP adds. More»

Soldiers honor fallen comrades

(NEWSER) - US soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan remembered their fallen comrades in Memorial Day services nearly a decade after the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks that sparked the Afghanistan war. In that country, dawn flag-raising ceremonies honored the more than 1,400 who have been killed, the AP reports. "We reflect on those who have gone before us. We reflect on their service and their sacrifice on behalf of our great nation," said a Marine commander. "We should also remember those serving today who embody that same commitment of service and sacrifice." More»

Stress levels rise as fighting intensifies

(AP) - As fighting and casualties in Afghanistan's war reached an all-time high, US soldiers and Marines there reported plunging morale and the highest rates of mental health problems in five years. Only 46.5% of soldiers said their morale was medium, high, or very high last year, compared with 65.7% in 2005. For Marines, it was only 58.6% last year compared with 70.4% when they were surveyed in 2006 in Iraq. (The report compares numbers of the Marines to their time in Iraq because they were not in Afghanistan in significant numbers before the surge.) More»

Kunar province among Afghanistan's most violent

(NEWSER) - Six US soldiers were killed during an attack on an insurgent hideout near Afghanistan’s border with Pakistan, the Washington Post reports. The deaths that resulted from the helicopter-driven assault are the latest reminder of the US struggle in the isolated Kunar province. The US has lately shifted its attention away from the region—one of Afghanistan’s most violent since 2005—concentrating instead on population centers. More»

US military firearms with coded messages raise issue of 'crusade'

(NEWSER) - A rifle scope commonly used by the US military is inscribed with references to the Bible. The scopes, made by Trijicon of Michigan, bear codes that refer to verses glorifying God and Jesus—even though the military, leery of being accused of waging a Crusade, bans proselytizing in Iraq and Afghanistan. The scopes are "probably the best example of violation of the separation of church and state in this country," said an activist who promotes separation of church and state. More»