Afghanistan

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Pentagon Official Ran Private Assassin Support Crew

Honcho probed over secret 'Jason Bourne' crew

(Newser) - A senior Pentagon official secretly set up a private network of contractors to help track and kill militants in Afghanistan and Pakistan, military officials say. Michael D. Furlong may have diverted money from other programs to fund his own network of former CIA and Special Forces operatives, officials tell the...

4 Suicide Attacks Kill 30 in Afghanistan

Separate blasts rock Kandahar, one of them near a prison

(Newser) - At least 30 people were killed and dozens more hurt in four suicide attacks in the Afghan city of Kandahar. A local official—the half-brother of President Hamid Karzai—says a main target of the attacks was a prison, but no prisoners escaped. It may have been an attempt to...

Pilot Shot in Head Still Lands With Afghan Injured

Hangs onto controls with blood in his eyes

(Newser) - A British pilot shot in the head managed to land his aging helicopter full of Afghanistan war wounded in a safe zone. Lt. Ian Fortune, 28, has ferrying wounded on a Chinook chopper last month when it suddenly "shuddered," said reporter Mike Brewer, who was on board doing...

Next Target Taliban Stronghold of Kandahar
Next Target Taliban Stronghold of Kandahar
Gen. McChrystal
Mar 8, 2010 5:07 AM CST

Next Target Taliban Stronghold of Kandahar

Meanwhile, Gates arrives in Afghanistan

(Newser) - Preparations have begun for a crucial campaign to assert Afghan government control over Kandahar, spiritual home of the Taliban, Gen. Stanley McChrystal said today. The NATO-led force is growing in districts around Kandahar that are under the Taliban thumb, ahead of an eventual military operation, McChrsytal said, though he added...

1 in 3 Killed by US Drones Are Civilians

Think tank issues report on Pakistan casualties

(Newser) - One out of three people killed by unmanned US Predator drones in Pakistan is a civilian, according to a new report sure to fuel criticism of the unmanned attacks. The report by a Washington think tank found that 32% of the more than 1,200 people killed since 2004 were...

Afghans, Allies Split Over Taliban Talks

Karzai's invitation creates confusion

(Newser) - Afghan President Hamid Karzai has invited the Taliban to join peace talks this spring, but widespread confusion remains over who'll be doing the talking and what will be on the table. The British—and some senior American commanders—appear keener than the Obama administration to begin substantive talks, the Washington ...

Afghanistan Bans Live Coverage of Militant Attacks

Country says coverage 'emboldens' militants

(Newser) - Afghanistan has banned live coverage of Taliban attacks, saying live images embolden militants at the government's expense. Journalists with permission from the country's spy agency will be allowed to film the aftermath of battle. Human rights groups denounced the move. "The government should not hide their inabilities by barring...

Suicide Bombers Kill 17 in Downtown Kabul

Taliban claims responsibility for attack targeting Indians

(Newser) - At least 17 people were killed when gunmen and five suicide bombers struck in the heart of Kabul today. The Taliban have claimed responsibility for the attacks, which targeted a major shopping center and two guesthouses used mainly by Indian embassy employees and other foreigners working in the Afghan capital....

NATO Admits Killing 10 Afghan Kids in Botched Raid

Anger over civilian deaths grows

(Newser) - When a NATO raid killed 10 children and teenagers at a remote mountain compound in Afghanistan last December, troops claimed to be targeting a “known insurgent group responsible for a series of violent attacks.” But after a lengthy investigation by the Times of London, NATO now admits that...

Afghan War Killing More and More Iraq Veterans
Afghan War Killing More
and More Iraq Veterans
US death toll nears 1K
Feb 24, 2010 5:00 AM CST

Afghan War Killing More and More Iraq Veterans

Death toll stands at 996

(Newser) - The American death toll from the war in Afghanistan is nearing 1,000, according to the Pentagon's official death toll and already over it according to unofficial counts. The number of military personnel killed in Operation Enduring Freedom, which stood at 996 as of yesterday, includes a rising number of...

Unlikely Allies Help Obama in Afghanistan

White House engages with Russia, China, and more, and gets results

(Newser) - Diplomacy has become a major part of Barack Obama’s strategy in Afghanistan; the administration has been proactively recruiting regional allies, even ones that seem like strange bedfellows. Russia, for example, which suffered its own defeat in Afghanistan in part thanks to US covert operations, recently gave a general authorization...

Zazi Pleads Guilty in NYC Subway Terror Plot

Airport shuttle driver points finger at US actions in Afghanistan

(Newser) - A former Denver airport shuttle driver today admitted to a plot to bomb the New York City subways, saying he was recruited by al-Qaeda in Pakistan for a "martyrdom plan" against the US. Najibullah Zazi, 25, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to use weapons of mass destruction, conspiracy to commit...

Afghan Poker Star Funds Secret Villas for Karzai & Pals

Kabul Bank gives hidden loans to officials

(Newser) - Afghanistan’s largest commercial bank has been giving off-the-books multimillion-dollar loans to top members of Hamid Karzai’s government, to help them buy luxury villas in Dubai. Kabul Bank's founder and chairman is Sherkhan Farnood, Afghanistan’s only world-class poker player, and many of the villas, including Karzai’s own,...

33 Civilians Killed in Afghan Airstrike

Women, children among victims in bombed minibuses

(Newser) - At least 33 civilians, including women and children, were killed yesterday when a NATO airstrike obliterated a group of minibuses traveling along a road in the midst of the Marjah offensive. Officials believed the vehicles were carrying insurgents on their way to attack allied forces. Some 14 people were wounded...

Marines Squeeze Taliban Holdouts in Marjah

(Newser) - Marines and Afghan units converged today on a dangerous western quarter of the Taliban stronghold of Marjah, with NATO forces facing "determined resistance" as their assault on the southern town entered its second week. Fighter jets, drones, and attack helicopters flew over Marjah, as Marine and Afghan companies moved...

Marines Seize Marjah Taliban HQ

Elite squads dropped behind Taliban lines as offensive continues

(Newser) - US Marines seized a compound that appears to have been the Taliban's Marjah headquarters after a fierce gunfight Friday. The compound just south of the town center contained dozens of Taliban-issued ID cards and diplomas from a Taliban training camp in Pakistan, the AP reports. Small groups of fighters abandoned...

Taliban Snipers Finally Learn How to Shoot

Deadly marksmen a new challenge for US, Afghan forces

(Newser) - In their battle with US-led troops in Marjah, the Taliban seem to have traded up from their characteristically shoddy marksmen to skilled snipers who are taking a toll. Sniper fire, rarely seen in more than eight years of fighting in Afghanistan, has killed one Marine and struck four others in...

Taliban Using Human Shields in Marjah

Troops strive to avoid civilian casualties, take city center

(Newser) - Taliban fighters in Marjah are increasingly using civilians as human shields, as they try to thwart NATO's house-to-house searches, according to the top Afghan general in the offensive. “The enemy is fighting from compounds where soldiers can very clearly see women or children on the roof or in a...

Marjah Taliban 'Running Out of Gas'

Commaders say half town's fighters are dead or fled

(Newser) - The number of Taliban fighters in Marjah has dropped by half and morale is fading fast among the rest, according to American and Afghan commanders. Some 100 of the 400 fighters in the area when the AFghan offensive began Saturday have been killed and commanders say close to 100 more...

Marjah a Blueprint for Obama Afghan Strategy

Afghan troops outnumber NATO and US for first time

(Newser) - The current offensive in Marjah is not only the largest in the 8 years the US has been engaged in in Afghanistan, but the White House hopes it will serve as a strategic blueprint for the rest of the war. The administration has been stressing the differences between the Marjah...

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