A key part of the coalition effort in Afghanistan is to peel away militants from the Taliban and integrate them into society through jobs and opportunities. The Washington Post’s Joshua Partlow has a story on whether that strategy has a chance to work.
“Taliban leaders scoff at that notion, saying their loyalists are waging a determined holy war against the infidel armies of the West and can't be bought off,” Partlow writes.
“Interviews with [militants] who recently left the Taliban as part of an Afghan government effort to lure them from the battlefield suggest that in many cases, U.S. policymakers may be on to something.
“Several ex-fighters said they joined the Taliban not out of religious zealotry but for far more mundane reasons: anger at the government in Kabul, revenge for losing a government job, pressure from family or tribe members - or simply because they were broke.”
There's nothing more unpleasant than being awoken by a bomb. At 6:35 a.m. on Friday morning, I jerked upright as a huge blast rattled the windows in my bedroom and sent chunks of plaster clattering to the floor. As I looked around in sleepy confusion, not-too-distant gunfire echoed in the street outside.
The Taliban claimed responsibility for attacks in Kabul, Afghanistan near the Safi Landmark Hotel in the neighborhood of Shahr-E-Naw, where there are a number of government buildings and U.N. offices as well as supermarkets, banks, diplomatic facilities and villas for well-to-do Afghans. At least 17 people were killed. Full story
U.S. Gen. Stanley McChyrstal, in an interview with USA Today, says that the recent arrests and killings of Taliban leaders are taking a toll on the organization.
“You see a weakening of the organization's confidence,” McChrystal told USA Today.
“McChrystal, however, cautioned that it was too early to suggest the recent successes in targeting militant leaders is ‘decisive’ because it hasn't led to a reduction in violence or fighters in Afghanistan,” writes Jim Michaels of USA Today.
"We don't see [the Taliban] collapsing," McChrystal told the paper.
Authorities raised the Afghan flag over the battle-scarred enclave of Marjah on Thursday, a ceremony symbolizing the presence of the Afghan government in the Taliban stronghold. The red, black and green banner was hoisted over an area where U.S. and other troops have been fighting the Taliban in Operation Moshtarak - the biggest offensive of the war. Full Story
Part of the U.S. Marines' mission in Marjah, Afghanistan, is to gain the confidence of residents as well as clear the Taliban-held area of improvised explosive devices. CNN International Correspondent Atia Abawi has this behind the scenes look.
After the fall of South Vietnam in 1975, U.S. Col. Harry Summers remarked to his North Vietnamese counterpart, "You know you never defeated us on the battlefield." After a moment, the North Vietnamese officer replied: "That may be so, but it is also irrelevant." Although that blunt exchange took place nearly 35 years ago, it's still worthy of close consideration in light of America's wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Full Story
As the top NATO commander in Afghanistan publicly apologized for the latest civilian deaths in the war, one of his former advisers said Tuesday the Afghan people have "crystallized their frustration" on the issue of civilian casualties.
"It's crystallized a disappointment with the international intervention that's been growing since about 2003," said Sarah Chayes, who just completed one year of service as an adviser to Gen. Stanley McChrystal and his staff in Kabul.