04 December 2009

, The Associated Press, 4 December 2009

EXCERPT: "NATO allies will bolster the American troop surge in Afghanistan by sending at least 7,000 soldiers of their own, officials said Friday in pledges that U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton described as crucial to turning the tide in the stalemated war. The promised increase came as U.S. Marines and Afghan troops launched the...

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04 December 2009

Americans Split on Whether Goals in Afghanistan Will Be Met, Gallup, 4 December 2009

EXCERPT: "The unveiling of President Obama's new military strategy for Afghanistan has not left Americans overly confident that it will succeed -- 48% say the U.S. is certain or likely to achieve its goals in the war, while 45% say the U.S. is unlikely to do so or is certain not to achieve its aims. These results are based on a one-night reaction...

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04 December 2009

Travelling by Road in Afghanistan "Now More Dangerous Than Under Taliban", The Telegraph, 4 December 2009

EXCERPT: "Major General Nick Carter said that, before the 2001 invasion, young women could travel alone between major cities without risk of harm. Now, there is a constant threat from sophisticated IEDs and criminal gangs who rob and kidnap passengers. The admission heaped further pressure on Gordon Brown's strategy in Afghanistan,...

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04 December 2009

Trigger-Happy Security Complicates Convoys, Army Times, 2 December 2009

EXCERPT: "Ill-disciplined private security guards escorting supply convoys to coalition bases are wreaking havoc as they pass through western Kandahar province, undermining the coalition's counterinsurgency strategy here and leading to at least one confrontation with U.S. forces, say U.S. Army officers and Afghan government officials. The security guards are responsible...

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