Iraq & Afghanistan Wars // Current

Taliban urges Obama to repudiate Bush's Afghan policy

Afghanistan's Taliban called on US president-elect Barack Obama to repudiate the "war-mongering" policies of... more

Kepano
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BBC NEWS - Silence falls as Britain remembers

The overnight rain had thankfully been blown away by high winds, and by the time the crowds began gathering in Whitehall, it was... more

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UK Defence chief will resist any US call to send more troops to Afghanistan - The Guardian

The head of the armed forces made it clear yesterday that he would oppose any request from Barack Obama to transfer British troops to Afghanistan from Iraq when they leave Basra next year.

Air Chief Marshal Sir Jock Stirrup, the chief of the defence staff, said that a reduction in the "operational tempo" was essential for British troops and it was time other Nato countries contributed more to the fight against the insurgency in Afghanistan.

"I have said for a very long time that the British armed forces are stretched. We are doing more than we are structured and resourced to do in the long term. We can do it for a short period, but we can't continue doing it ad infinitum," Stirrup told BBC1's Andrew Marr Show:

"We have to put ourselves back into balance. It is crucial that we reduce the operational tempo for our armed forces. So it can't be ... just a one-for-one transfer from Iraq to Afghanistan. We have to reduce that tempo."

The foreign secretary, David Miliband, underlined Stirrup's concerns. When asked if the president-elect's plans to step up operations in Afghanistan would require an increase in the size of Britain's commitment there, the foreign secretary replied: "Not necessarily, no."

Miliband added: "As the second-largest contributor of troops in Afghanistan, the first thing we say is that we don't want to bear an unfair share of the burden. The second thing we say is that more foreign troops on their own are not going to provide the answer in Afghanistan. It needs to be an approach that combines a serious security presence with the development of the country ... It's got to be a civilian surge as well as a military surge. That is the lesson from Iraq as well as Afghanistan."

The US is already planning a substantial increase, perhaps by as much as 20,000, in the number of American troops in Afghanistan - there are more than 30,000 there now. Obama has made it clear that he wants to pull US troops out of Iraq and concentrate on Afghanistan.

The number of British troops in southern Iraq, about 4,000, is expected to fall to a few hundred by the middle of next year. British defence officials have expressed concern that it may prove difficult to reject a request from the new US president to deploy more UK forces in Afghanistan.

However, a senior defence source said: "If asked the question [from Obama] the politicians will have to go on the military advice about what is achievable."

Britain is already planning to send more equipment to southern Afghanistan, where it has about 8,000 troops. That total could increase, but only by a few hundred, defence sources say.

(more at the link)The head of the armed forces made it clear yesterday that he would oppose any request from Barack Obama to transfer British troops... more

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9 days ago

McCain's Voting Record: He Does Not Support Our Troops and Veterans

Since everyone is at least a bit familiar with John McCain’s record when it comes to strolling through a market in Baghdad... more

aliasone
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3 responses

1 month ago

The CIA keeps "terrorist" DNA on file

DNA samples of thousands of suspected terrorists from Iraq, Afghanistan and elsewhere have been collected and preserved in a... more

Mulcahey
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4 responses

1 month ago

Bush to send more troops to Afghanistan

US President George W Bush is preparing to announce that more American troops will be sent to Afghanistan in the next few months.... more

TravG73
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2 months ago

Afghan commission says US troops fired on first

KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) -- An Afghan army commander said that U.S. and Afghan troops were fired on first from a village where a... more

ivxx
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3 months ago

10 French soldiers killed in Afghanistan ambush

In the worst single-incident loss of life in at least three years for Western troops in Afghanistan, an ambush killed 10 French... more

merasyad
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3 months ago

Afghan roadside bombs hit four-year peak

Roadside bomb incidents involving U.S. and NATO troops in Afghanistan hit their highest level in at least four years between April... more

merasyad
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3 months ago

Marines get tours extended in Afghanistan

(CNN) -- Approximately 1,200 Marines serving in southwestern Afghanistan will have their tours of duty extended by 30 days,... more

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4 months ago

If McCain Becomes President: Osama Bin Laden To Face A "Nuremberg-Like" Trial

(CNN) -- Sen. John McCain on Friday said as president he would consider bringing Osama bin Laden to justice through a... more

IndieArtist
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4 months ago

Al-Qaida draws more foreign recruits to Afghan war

Afghanistan has been drawing a fresh influx of jihadi fighters from Turkey, Central Asia, Chechnya and the Middle East, one more... more

merasyad
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4 months ago

Obama and McCain turn focus toward Afghanistan

John McCain and Barack Obama are turning their foreign policy focus toward the war in Afghanistan, as new poll results show... more

merasyad
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4 months ago

Half of UK military forces 'ready to quit'

Almost half of UK military personnel are ready to leave the forces, a Ministry of Defence survey suggests. Some 47% of Army and... more

merasyad
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4 months ago

Bush may send more troops to Afghanistan

President Bush said Wednesday he is weighing whether to send more troops to Afghanistan. Bush said it has been a "tough... more

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5 months ago

Afghanistan troop deaths outnumber those in Iraq

Militants in Afghanistan killed more US and Nato troops than those in Iraq in June after a fresh spate of rebel attacks that highlighted the growing strength of the Taliban.

A count by Associated Press (AP) found that at least 45 international troops, including 27 from the US and 13 British, died in Afghanistan last month, compared with 31 international soldiers killed in Iraq, of whom 29 were from the US.

It was the second consecutive month that more troops were killed in Afghanistan, where international forces suffered their deadliest month since the 2001 US-led invasion.

The figures follow a report by the Pentagon last week that forecast the Taliban would maintain or increase the rate of attacks along the Pakistan border where US troops operate. Attacks are already up by 40% this year from 2007.

Fighting between militants and international troops is intensifying in the southern half of Afghanistan. AP's tally places the total death toll at 2,100 in the past six months.

While most of those killed have been militants, foreign troop deaths are also rising, as insurgents get more effective at ambushes and roadside bombings.

The US-led coalition said today that helicopters and a bomber carried out an attack on militants massing in the Khost province, in the eastern region of the war-torn country, armed with heavy machine guns and grenades.

"After positively identifying the militants, coalition forces engaged them with attack helicopters and a close air support bomber, killing approximately 33 militants," spokesman First Lieutenant Nathan Perry said.

An Afghan army officer said the clash began when Taliban militants attacked coalition and Afghan forces patrolling in Tani, a district on the border with Pakistan.

Colonel Mohammed Israr, a battalion commander in Khost, said the group of about 50 militants had crossed from Pakistan - where some Taliban and al-Qaida militants seek refuge - and retreated in that direction under heavy coalition fire.

However, Perry said the clash took place about five miles from the frontier and "did not involve Pakistan".

Last month, the international community pledged $21bn (£10.5bn) in aid to Afghanistan but critics have attacked a perceived lack of strategy to turn that commitment into success.
Militants in Afghanistan killed more US and Nato troops than those in Iraq in June after a fresh spate of rebel attacks that... more