Sunday, November 22, 2015

Afghan War News Snippets



Female ANP Forced into Prostitution. There are allegations surfacing in Kabul that an Afghan security forces officer has forced female police recruits into prostitution. (ABC Net News, Nov 15, 2015).

SIGAR - Reconstruction Hurt by Corruption. The head of the U.S. Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR) says that reconstruction efforts are plagued by poor planning, wasteful spending, and chronic corruption. Read more in a news report (Gandhara Blog, Nov 19, 2015). See also the transcript of prepared remarks by John F. Sopko (SIGAR) from his address to the Watson Institute for International Studies (Providence, R.I.) on November 18, 2015 entitled "U.S. Challenges in Afghanistan: A Discussion with John Sopko".

Georgian Soldier Honored in U.S. Posthumously. A ceremony where a Georgian soldier was awarded the U.S. Bronze Star Medal was recently held at Fort Campbell. Private First Class Vasil Kuljanishvili died in September while serving in the NATO-led Resolute Support mission alongside the 101st Airborne Division. (Agenda.ge, Nov 19, 2015).

Georgians, BAF, and the Marines. Bagram Air Base is the largest U.S. military installation in Afghanistan and subject to attack by snipers, rockets, and mortars. However there are forces working at BAF dedicated to ensuring the safety of the base. Some of these forces are from the Republic of Georgia. The Georgian soldiers are assisted in their mission by U.S. Marines. Read more in a news report posted by DVIDS, Nov 18, 2015.

Germany in for Long Haul. Germany has decided to modestly increase the size of its Afghanistan contingent and to extend the deployment's mandate until the end of 2016. The number of German troops will grow to 980. Read more in a news report by Business Standard, November 19, 2015. See a news report on the same topic by Tolo News, November 18, 2015.

"DEEP" and Governance in Afghanistan. NATO sponsored some seminars that provided Afghan civil and military officials with opportunities to learn more about strategic planning and improving civil-military interaction. Learn more in an article - "Advancing governance goals in Afghanistan's defence and security sector", NATO Newsroom, November 19, 2015.

Kabul Bank Scandal - Just Won't Go Away. The Afghan government was recently embarrassed when it rolled out its "Smart City" plan for urban renewal. One of the shareholders of the project is currently serving a 15 year sentence for his part in the Kabul Bank scandal. Read more in "The Afghan Government and the Smart City Debacle: Who out-smarted whom?", Afghanistan Analysts Network, November 21, 2015.

Afghan Meteorologists Increase Capabilities. The Train, Advise, Assist Command - Air (TAAC-Air) is helping the Afghan Air Force meteorologists and weather forecasters on how to provide weather support to the Afghan National Defense Security Forces (ANDSF). (DVIDS, Nov 18, 2015).

Camp Baker Closed. The Australians are slowly pulling out of Afghanistan. Camp Baker, located within the confines of Kandahar Air Field in southern Afghanistan was the Australian Defense Forces (ADF) main logistics and support base. It was established in March 2006. Read more in "Australia closes Afghan logistics base", Shepard News, November 18, 2015.

FM 3-96, Brigade Combat Team Updated. FM 3-96 provides doctrine for the brigade combat team and describes relationships, organizational roles and functions, capabilities and limitations, and responsibilities within the BCT. Read more in the TRADOC Newsletter, November 19, 2015.

Army Divorce Rate & Relationship w/ Strippers. A new study has found that there is a correlation between Soldiers marrying pole dancers and failed marriages. Read more in "Army to Lower Divorce Rates by Training Soldiers Not to Marry Strippers", Duffel Blog, November 21, 2015..

Battle for Kunduz City. A top government official in Afghanistan recently revealed that more than 1,300 foreign fighters participated in the capture of Kunduz City in northern Afghanistan last month. Some outside observers believe that this figure may be a bit high. Read more in "Afghan Official: Over 1,300 Foreign Fighters in Kunduz Battle"Voice of America, November 15, 2015.

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