Afghanistan

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US Drone May Have Killed Taliban Leader Mehsud

(Newser) - Potentially big news out of Pakistan: A US drone may have killed Pakistani Taliban chief Baitullah Mehsud, reports Reuters. "There is reason to believe that reports of his death may be true, but it can't be confirmed at this time," said an anonymous US official. Mehsud is an...

Roadside Bomb Kills 21 Afghan Civilians

(Newser) - A roadside bomb hit a wedding party on its way to a ceremony in southern Afghanistan, killing 21 people including women and children, Afghan officials said today. A local police chief said that a Western airstrike hours later killed five farmers loading cucumbers into a taxi in a neighboring province;...

Bomb Blast in Western Afghanistan Kills 10

Targeted police chief critically injured; Taliban claims responsibility

(Newser) - A remote-controlled bomb exploded today in western Afghanistan's main city, killing 10 and critically wounding a district police chief, the main target of the attack. Police said 30 were injured. The bomb went off on a crowded street near a fruit market in Herat. The police chief for a nearby...

US to Pressure Brits for More Troops in Afghanistan

(Newser) - The US is expected to push for more British troops to help fight the Taliban in Afghanistan, a move certain to be unpopular with the British public, reports the Guardian. NATO Gen. Stanley McChrystal will likely recommend to President Obama that the current total of 150,000 Afghan troops should...

In Afghan War, Human Rights an 'Operational Problem'

(Newser) - Guerrilla warfare is not, historically, a nice business. One Guatemalan general once described it as a protection racket, according to Christopher Dickey of Newsweek. You send a clear message: “We can protect you from the guerrillas, but the guerrillas cannot protect you from us—and you’ve got to...

Judge Orders Gitmo Detainee Returned to Afghanistan

But Mohammed Jawad may still face conventional prosecution

(Newser) - A Guantanamo Bay inmate may be released to Afghanistan next month after successfully challenging his detention under habeas corpus, the Washington Post reports. US District Judge Ellen Huvelle ordered Mohammed Jawad’s release based on the dodgy evidence against him—mainly, a confession allegedly obtained by threatening to kill Jawad...

US, Brits Press Plans for Taliban Talks

(Newser) - British commanders backed by US officials aim to use the success of recent offensives to persuade mid-level Taliban leaders to come in for talks and give up the fight, the Guardian reports. Conditions are right for the "second-tier" leaders who control large numbers of fighters in southern Afghanistan to...

US Will Stop Releasing Afghan Insurgent Body Count

(Newser) - The US will no longer publish tallies of the number of enemies killed in Afghanistan, CNN reports. The body counts send the wrong message, says the top US military spokesman for the coalition, who ordered the change. The war is supposed to be about protecting civilians, he noted, not killing...

Taliban's No. 2 a Fierce, Intelligent Opponent of US

Mullah Omar's lieutenant may be really running the insurgency

(Newser) - Though most Americans know of Mullah Omar, head of the Taliban’s insurgency in Afghanistan, few know his capable lieutenant, Mullah Baradar. As a high-profile US target, Omar has kept a low profile over the last 3 years—while Baradar commands day-to-day operations, Newsweek reports. But Baradar’s cunning leadership...

Suicide Attackers Strike Afghan City

(Newser) - Taliban fighters wearing suicide vests and armed with AK-47 rifles and rocket-propelled grenades attacked the main police station today in the southeast city of Khost, triggering hours-long gunbattles that left seven militants dead and 14 people wounded, officials said. The attack began in the afternoon when at least six fighters...

New Yorker Was 'Ready to Deliver Suicide Bomb'

His terrorist handler told him he needed more religious instruction

(Newser) - A Queens man who pleaded guilty to aiding al-Qaeda was ready and willing to deliver a suicide bomb for the terrorist organization, he revealed to investigators. His handlers told 26-year-old Bryant Neal Vinas, however, that he needed more "religious" training before he could carry out such a mission, he...

World Thinks Better of US With Obama at Helm: Poll

(Newser) - President Obama’s election has increased America’s standing in the world, new polling shows. Global attitudes toward the US have been bolstered by Obama’s election to levels not seen since the Clinton administration, the New York Times reports. In Indonesia, for instance, where the president spent part of...

US Man Charged in Afghanistan Rocket Attack

Long Islander also gave al-Qaeda info on NYC mass transit: feds

(Newser) - An American arrested in Pakistan last fall faces charges for firing rockets at a US military base in Afghanistan, the New York Times reports. Bryant Neal Vinas, 26, also allegedly gave al-Qaeda detailed information about the New York City transit system and Long Island Railroad in return for military training.

US Afghan Surge Angers Pakistan

(Newser) - The American offensive in southern Afghanistan is sparking serious tensions with Pakistan, the New York Times reports. Pakistani officials fear that the surge will push Taliban militants into its border region, triggering a rise in militancy that it will be ill-equipped to tackle without shifting troops from the Indian border....

US Troop Deaths Pass 5K in Iraq, Afghanistan

Deadliest month so far in Afghanistan

(Newser) - The combined death toll among US troops in Iraq and Afghanistan has passed 5,000, USA Today reports. The Pentagon says 4,332 have died in Iraq and 669 in Afghanistan. At least 30 American troops have died in Afghanistan in July, the deadliest month in the nearly 8-year-old war,...

Captured US Soldier May Be in Pakistan

Fox News 'expert' suggests that Taliban execute Bergdahl

(Newser) - The American soldier captured by the Taliban in Afghanistan may be in Pakistan, a potentially huge stumbling block in the quest to free the 23-year-old, ABC News reports. If the insurgent group that apparently kidnapped him has indeed moved Pfc. Bowe Bergdahl over the border to South Waziristan, the American...

Taliban Hostage's Hometown Stayed Quiet on Kidnapping

(Newser) - The Taliban's capture of an American soldier in Afghanistan is old news for some residents of his hometown, but they kept quiet out of concern for his safety, the AP reports. The family of Bowe R. Bergdahl asked neighbors and other community members in Hailey, Idaho, not to discuss his...

US Military Review Calls for Afghan Prison Changes

(Newser) - Afghanistan’s prison system, including the American-run Bagram facility, needs a complete overhaul, according to a new US military review. The current system, which has a dreadful reputation with both human rights advocates and Afghan civilians, houses radical inmates with more moderate prisoners. The offensive in the southern part of...

Gates: Public Won't Stand for 'Long Slog' in Afghanistan

Turnaround must happen within year

(Newser) - Americans aren’t going to put up with a ‘long slog’ in Afghanistan, says Robert Gates: if the public doesn’t see things getting better within a year, support for the war will likely falter, he tells the Los Angeles Times. “After the Iraq experience, nobody is prepared...

Taliban Threatens to Kill Captured American Soldier

(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...

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