Afghanistan News Center

Afghanistan News March 14, 2010: Today's headlines.....

Taliban: Kandahar bombings a 'warning' to NATO
By Noor Khan, Associated Press Writer
KANDAHAR, Afghanistan – Deadly bomb attacks in the southern Afghan city of Kandahar were a warning to NATO's top general that the Taliban are ready for a coming offensive in their heartland, the insurgents said Sunday.

Taliban assault on Afghanistan's Kandahar kills 35
by Nasrat Shoib
KANDAHAR, Afghanistan (AFP) – Thirty-five people were killed in a Taliban assault on Kandahar described by rebels as a pre-emptive response to Western plans to eradicate them from the strategic city.

Afghan gov wants more troops after Kandahar attack
By Noor Khan, Associated Press Writer – Sun Mar 14, 7:31 am ET
KANDAHAR, Afghanistan – The governor of Kandahar province demanded more security around Afghanistan's largest southern city Sunday after a series of explosions killed dozens of people in the Taliban heartland — the target of the war's next major offensive by Afghan and international forces.

Blast kills Pakistani national in Afghanistan: police
Sun Mar 14, 5:21 am ET
KANDAHAR, Afghanistan (Reuters) – A roadside bomb killed a Pakistani construction worker and wounded six of his compatriots on Sunday in Afghanistan's southern city of Kandahar, police said.

Afghanistan eases ban on news coverage of raids
By Jonathon Burch – Sat Mar 13, 8:48 pm ET
KABUL (Reuters) – Afghanistan rowed back on Saturday from a total ban on media broadcasts of "disturbing" images from insurgent attacks or live pictures of security operations.

Kandahar slides into lawlessness as Taliban attacks force government to retreat
By Keith B. Richburg The Washington Post Sunday, March 14, 2010; A13
KANDAHAR, AFGHANISTAN -- Even in this dusty, dangerous city long accustomed to violence, the killing last month of Abdul Majid Babai managed to shock.

Afghanistan's new great game: The undeclared wars within the war
Deutsche Welle - Mar 14 4:30 AM
Conventional Western public opinion regards the war in Afghanistan as a struggle between NATO and extremist Islamic militants. Since assuming office Barack Obama has redefined the conflict by calling it the Af-Pak war.

At least 18 Afghan suspects arrested in Pakistan
People's Daily - Mar 14 4:08 AM
At least 18 suspected Afghan nationals were arrested Sunday by Pakistani police during a search operation in southern Pakistan, according to local TV reports.

Afghan Prosecutors Key to Beating Taliban
Robert C. O’Brien and Stephen G. Larson: Establishing a Judicial System Afghans Can Trust Must Be Priority
CBS News By Robert C. O’Brien and Stephen G. Larson March 13, 2010
Robert C. O’Brien is the Co-Chair of the U.S. Department of State Public-Private Partnership for Justice Reform in Afghanistan and is the managing partner of Arent Fox LLP’s Los Angeles Office. Stephen G. Larson is a retired federal Judge

We've met the enemy in Afghanistan, and he's changed
By Roy Gutman, McClatchy Newspapers via Stars and Stripes online edition, Sunday, March 14, 2010
KABUL, Afghanistan — A decade ago, when the Taliban controlled the Afghan government, their militiamen — barely motivated, untrained conscripts — tried for five years to seize control of the entire country from more moderate forces but didn't succeed, even with the help of Osama bin Laden's Arab and other foreign volunteers.

Five myths about the war in Afghanistan
The Washington Post By Michael O'Hanlon and Hassina Sherjan Sunday, March 14, 2010
The war in Afghanistan is in its ninth year, and even officials supportive of the U.S. presence there acknowledge the challenges that remain. "People still need to understand there is some very hard fighting and very hard days ahead," Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates

At Afghan outpost, Marines gone rogue or leading the fight against counterinsurgency?
The Washington Post By Rajiv Chandrasekaran 03/14/2010
DELARAM - Home to a dozen truck stops and a few hundred family farms bounded by miles of foreboding desert, this hamlet in southwestern Afghanistan is far from a strategic priority for senior officers at the international military headquarters

Training for the civilian surge in Afghanistan
By Kim Ghattas BBC News, Mascatatuck Urban Training Center, Indiana Saturday, 13 March 2010
The Afghan governor walked down the main market street, chatting with US soldiers and civilians as an armoured personnel carrier stood guard on a corner.