US Claims Progress against IED Threat
03 February 2011
US General Reports Progress Against Roadside Bombs in Afghanistan, National Journal, 28 January 2011
EXCERPT: "U.S. troops in southern Afghanistan are finding and safely clearing 80 percent of the roadside bombs being set by militants there, cutting down on American casualties in one of the country's most violent regions and offering a potential bit of good news as the Obama administration prepares to start bringing home some troops...
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Drugs, Curses Fuel Tensions before Afghan Handover
03 February 2011
, AFP, 3 February 2011
EXCERPT: "Drugs, swearing and a sometimes insurmountable language barrier are just some of the cultural problems facing US troops striving to hand security to their Afghan counterparts by 2014. Americans are infuriated by Afghan soldiers smoking hashish while Afghans hate the often florid swearing of US troops, soldiers told AFP in the Zhari and Arghandab districts...
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Afghan Central Bank to Sell Troubled Kabulbank
03 February 2011
Afghan Cbank Says Will Sell Troubled Kabulbank, Reuters, 2 February 2011
EXCERPT: "The Afghan central bank said on Wednesday it will seek to sell the troubled Kabulbank within three years once it has been rehabilitated after fraud and mismanagement cost it hundreds of millions of dollars. Widespread mismanagement at Kabulbank has threatened to add a financial crisis to security and governance woes in Afghanistan, where violence is at...
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Afghan Police "Nearly as Unpopular as Taliban in South"
03 February 2011
Afghan Police "Nearly as Unpopular as Taliban in South", The Guardian, 3 February 2011
EXCERPT: "Afghanistan's police force is only slightly more popular than the Taliban in the insurgent heartlands of the south, according to a survey commissioned by the UN. The results of the poll, published today, portrayed a police force widely viewed by Afghans as corrupt and biased, underscoring doubts about a planned Nato handover....
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