29 April 2010

German Army Opens IED Research Center for Soldiers, Deutsche Welle, 29 April 2010

EXCERPT: "A new center was opened at the Boeselager German army base in the town of Grafschaft in western Germany on Wednesday, designed to help protect soldiers from home-made bombs planted by the Taliban in Afghanistan. As German troops are increasingly fighting Afghan insurgents in rural areas, army leaders believe that better technical information on...

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29 April 2010

Afghan Prisoners in UK Torture Claim, BBC News, 29 April 2010

EXCERPT: "The High Court has heard claims that suspected insurgents were seized by UK troops and handed over to the Afghan authorities, who then tortured them. At least eight men transferred by the Army to the Afghan Security Service, the NDS, say they were mistreated. One claims he was told he would be shot if he did not sign a confession; others say they were given electric...

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29 April 2010

Pentagon Issues Downbeat Assessment on Afghanistan, Miami Herald, 29 April 2010

EXCERPT: "The Pentagon issued a downbeat assessment Wednesday of the situation in Afghanistan, saying only one in four Afghans in strategically important areas currently back President Hamid Karzai's government even as the Taliban expand their insurgency and install shadow local governments. The report to Congress outlined some areas of progress, including...

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29 April 2010

NATO "Kills Afghan MP Relative" in Raid, BBC News, 29 April 2010

EXCERPT: "A prominent Afghan MP says Nato troops stormed her home and shot dead one of her relatives in an overnight raid. Safia Siddiqi, who was not home at the time, said soldiers tied up members of her family and fired on one of them. Nato confirmed one person was killed in an operation against a 'Taliban facilitator' in eastern Afghanistan. Safia...

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