Afghan Government’s Delays Hinder Recruitment of Taliban Defectors
19 May 2011
The Afghan government has moved so slowly to recruit Taliban defectors that U.S. and Afghan officials say they are losing an opportunity to capitalize on hard-won military gains and the death of Osama bin Laden. Interest among war-weary Taliban foot soldiers and low-ranking commanders in switching sides is at an all-time high, the officials said, but the Afghan government’s inability to provide safe houses, job-training classes and other services...
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Taliban Use Threats of Violence, Promises of Martyrdom to Recruit Children
19 May 2011
The Taliban gave Noor Mohammad a simple choice – either they would cut off his hand for stealing or he could redeem himself and bring glory on his family by becoming a suicide bomber. Held in Taliban custody in a different village from his parents, after allegedly stealing mobile phones during a wedding party in his village, the 14-year-old boy went for the second option. He was soon being given basic lessons in how to use a handgun, which...
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Limited Funding, "Ingrained Views" Seen as Challenges in Tackling Mental Health Problems
19 May 2011
Experts estimate that 60% of the Afghan populace suffers from mild to severe mental illness. Yarzada and the rest of the hospital's three dozen psychiatrists and psychologists see as many as 160 patients a day at the crumbling 26-year-old facility that they are still rebuilding after a bombing six months ago. Afghan leaders have vowed to use an infusion of international aid to improve medical services and have made mental health a priority. Yet the...
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Insurgents Kill 35 Workers at NATO-funded Road Project in Rural East
19 May 2011
Insurgents firing heavy machine-guns, rocket-propelled grenades and assault rifles killed 35 workers and guards in an attack on a NATO-funded road construction site in a remote area of eastern Afghanistan, authorities said Thursday. More than 100 fighters carried out the assault in Wazei Zadran in a mountainous region of Paktia province near neighbouring Pakistan's lawless tribal areas, said Galaxy Sky construction company owner Noorullah Bidar....
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