Afghanistan

(Newser) - Fifty people, including a group of children stranded aboard a school bus, have been killed in fighting between al-Qaeda terrorists and local tribesmen in one of Pakistan’s lawless regions on the border with Afghanistan. Taliban leaders, who have ties to both groups, are trying to broker a truce, according...

(Newser) - A new human rights report suggests that self-immolation is on the rise among Afghan women, who believe setting themselves on fire is the only sure way to end their agonized lives. The study interviewed the family members of 800 such women, who reported that rape, domestic violence, and accusations against...

(Newser) - "Don't ask, don't tell" works fine for Gen. Peter Pace, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, because "homosexual acts are immoral" and should not be condoned any more than adultery within the ranks. Pace defended the Pentagon's current policy on gays to the Chicago Tribune, opposing proposed...

(Newser) - Britain will send 1,400 more troops to Afghanistan in the next few months to counter a Taliban spring offensive. Other NATO allies are unwilling to commit more forces, and French and German patrols are so risk averse their helicopters may as well be "parked up in leading European...