UK's Afghan Envoy Takes Leave "Amid Tensions"
22 June 2010
, AFP, 22 June 2010
EXCERPT: "The special envoy to Afghanistan has taken extended leave, the government announced, amid reports that he clashed with NATO and US officials over strategy to tackle the Taliban insurgency. Sherard Cowper-Coles has temporarily stepped down just a month before a crucial international conference in the Afghan capital Kabul, which will be attended by US Secretary of State...
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Hundreds of People are Running for Afghan Parliamentary Election
22 June 2010
Hundreds of Candidates To Be On Afghan Ballot, Miami Herald, 22 June 2010
EXCERPT: "When voters in the Afghan capital elect a new parliament later this year, they'll face a bewildering choice of more than 700 candidates that threatens to turn the election into a lottery. The election campaign, which kicks off this week, will be a major test of Afghanistan's political progress and security. Depending on how it's run, the...
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Afghanistan in Focus for Top UN Diplomats
22 June 2010
Afghanistan in Focus for Top UN Diplomats, Reuters, 22 June 2010
EXCERPT: "Senior U.N. diplomats were on their way to the Afghan capital on Monday, and the U.S. special envoy was also in the country, on a day when the death of nine foreign troops added to a bloody month in the nine-year-old insurgency. The government also announced the release of 14 suspected Taliban fighters -- including two would-be suicide bombers -- a promise it made...
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US Indirectly Paying Afghan Warlords As Part of Security Contract
22 June 2010
, The Washington Post, 22 June 2010
EXCERPT: "The U.S. military is funding a massive protection racket in Afghanistan, indirectly paying tens of millions of dollars to warlords, corrupt public officials and the Taliban to ensure safe passage of its supply convoys throughout the country, according to congressional investigators. The U.S. military is funding a massive protection...
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