Afghan War Blog

Sunday, October 2, 2016

Contractors in War Zones

If you have spent any time in a war zone then you have run across them . . . or perhaps . . . you are one of them. We are talking about contractors in a war zone. Sometimes as you walk around the compound or large FOB you see them. The contractor or actually . . . lots of them. And you wonder what do all these contractors do? Do they really make all the outlandish and sinful money that everyone says? Many times - based on their demeanor and dress - you tend to categorize the contractors into tidy little groups. Sometimes that works and sometimes it doesn't. Read one humorous article about how to neatly arrange the contractors in a war zone based on dress and demeanor in "The 6 Types of Contractors You Encounter Overseas", Task & Purpose, September 28, 2016.

Afghan War Blog Snippets

Video - Mercy Corps. Learn how Mercy Corps provides economic opportunity for Afghan women in this short 5-min long video. www.youtube.com/watch?v=35BGPm1Flpk

Missing Afghan Food. One writer tells us of his fondness for Afghan food that he experienced as an Embedded Training Team (ETT) member during a deployment to Afghanistan. Read "Afghan Food Was One Great Thing about Deployment", Task & Purpose, September 26, 2016.

AGO and HOOAC in War of Words. There is disagreement between the Afghan Attorney General's Office (AGO) and the High Office of Oversight and Anti-Corruption (HOOAC) about how much the AGO is doing in pursuing corruption within the Afghan government. Read more in a news report by Tolo News, September 26, 2016.

Gas-fired Power Plant to be Built. The Ghazanfar Group has been awarded a contract by the Afghan government to build and operate a 50 MW plant in Mazar-e-Sharif. The plant will increase the country's power generation capacity by 30%. Read more in "Gas-fired power plant a first for Afghanistan", Power Engineering International, September 2016.

2nd LT Artillery Officer Advising Afghan Police. A female U.S. Army 2nd LT on her first Afghan deployment is advising the Afghan police in Train, Advise, and Assist Command - East. Read more in "Atypical Afghan Advising", Army.mil, August 26, 2016.

Coalition Patrol Delivers Med Supplies. A combination of Czech Republic, Polish, Afghan, U.S., and other international members delivered medical supplies to the Charikar Hospital in Parwan province. Read more in a news report by Army.mil, September 21, 2016.

Kajaki Dam and COIN. Jeff Goodson, a former USAID employee with extensive experience in Afghanistan, writes about the Kajaki Dam and its role in counterinsurgency. Read "An Afghanistan Perspective: The Kajaki Dam - Counterinsurgency (Part II)", Real Clear Defense, September 27, 2016.

SIGAR Report on Lessons from Afghanistan. In April 19-20, 2016 the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR) and the United States Institute for Peace (USIP) held a two day conference entitled "Lessons from the Coalition: International Experiences from the Afghanistan Reconstruction". Participants included senior officials and experts from the nations and organizations involved in the reconstruction of Afghanistan. A number of themes emerged from the conference. Read more in the 24-page conference report recently published by SIGAR (September 2016).
www.sigar.mil/pdf/lessonslearned/SIGAR-16-59-LL.pdf

Female Afghan Musicians. If you are a female musician and performer in Afghanistan you face some daunting challenges. Read more in "Hip-Hop and the liberation of Women in Kabul", Pacific Standard Magazine, September 27, 2016.

Afghan War Supplemental Request. Congress will be presented a request for a supplemental spending measure to fund the continued involvement of the United States in the Afghanistan conflict. The request will be presented to Congress in November 2016 by the DoD. Read more in a news report by Defense News, September 26, 2016.

Presidential Debate and the Taliban. It seems the Taliban watched the presidential debate this past Monday night (from a secret location) and were disappointed that Afghanistan did not get much attention. (NBC News, Sep 27, 2016).

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Sunday, September 25, 2016

Resuming Afghan War Blog Newsletter

Six months ago I temporarily suspended publication of the "Afghan War Blog Weekly Newsletter" due to other work commitments and a heavy overseas travel schedule. I am now able to resume the newsletter. Those who are currently signed up for this weekly email but no longer have an interest or requirement to read updates on the Afghan conflict can easily unsubscribe at the bottom of this newsletter. Those who wish to continue to receive the newsletter are welcome to send comments, suggestions, and encouragement to the authors at staff@afghanwarnews.info.

Articles are posted online on the blog and sent out via email newsletter on Sunday morning. We welcome comments, ideas for stories, contributions, and guest writers! Visit our website at www.afghanwarnews.info, follow us on Twitter at @AfghanWarBlog, and on LinkedIn at www.linkedin.com/in/afghan-war-news.

Kunduz - Still a Fragile Situation

Map of Kunduz Province

A year ago the Taliban took control of the capital of Kunduz province. Even though the Taliban were outnumbered by the Afghan National Army, Afghan National Police, and various militia groups around Kunduz City the government forces quickly fled to the safety of the Kunduz Airport. Although U.S. and Afghan government spokesmen said that the Taliban were removed from the city within days the truth is that it took two weeks to dislodge the insurgents. The recapture of Kunduz City took place only after the government rushed its special operations forces to the area and the U.S. provided vital air support and the assistance of Special Forces teams on the ground. The security situation has not improved significantly in the Kunduz province. Read more in "Afghan government's control over Kunduz remains fragile", Deutsche Welle, September 21, 2016.

Bad ALP and Good ALP - It's All in the Vetting

Photo: PO Matthew Leistikow
ALP rifle training, Jan 2013

The Afghan Local Police (also referred to as the ALP) have a mixed record in Afghanistan. On one hand the ALP provide a local security force to communities that lack the benefit of a robust presence of the Afghan National Army or Afghan National Police. The ALP was designed to provide security in remote districts and communities to degrade the influence and control of insurgents. In many cases this was the case. However, there are many instances where the ALP also became the tool of local power brokers and warlords and adopted predatory practices - eroding support for the Afghan government at the local and national level. There was a robust methodology for the establishment of the Afghan Local Police, and when followed, it resulted in a properly selected, vetted, trained, equipped, and led local police force. However, when the vetting process was not adhered too, the results were far from satisfactory. Read an example of where the ALP first went bad and then good in Shah Joy district, Zabul province in an article entitled "How to replace a bad ALP commander: in Shajoy, success and now calamity", by Fazal Muzhary, Afghanistan Analysts Network, September 21, 2016.

Corruption - Still the Number One Enemy

General John Allen (retired) once said that "Corruption is the existential strategic threat to Afghanistan". The former International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) commander was correct. Not much has changed since his statement a few years back.

The Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR) has just released a report entitled Corruption in Conflict: Lessons from the U.S. Experience in Afghanistan, September 2016. This 164-page document contains 'lessons observed' (versus 'lessons learned') from the Afghan conflict. The report contains some recommendations on how to do stability operations in a remote, impoverished, conflict-ridden country. You can view the report (Adobe Acrobat PDF) at this link:

www.sigar.mil/pdf/lessonslearned/SIGAR-16-58-LL.pdf

Read one writers thoughts on the report and corruption in Afghanistan in "How Corruption Defeated Afghan Reconstruction", by Matthew Gault, War is Boring, September 21, 2016.

Video - "Afghanistan's Proudest Achievement"

ANA Soldiers Exiting AAF Chopper (photo from GoIRA video)

An inspirational video pushed out by the Afghan government on September 21, 2016 provides a 3 1/2 minute look at the progress the Afghan National Defense and Security Forces (ANDSF) have made over the past 15 years. While the video states that the ANDSF have attained many of their objectives the reality is that they are not quite there. Not by a long shot! If you need to be inspired by how much progress the Afghans have made in the security arena and don't mind a lot of embellishment and wishful thinking then the video is worth watching.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=d-iBlUMmIkY

RS Cdr's News Conference - Some Facts and Some Spin

General John Nicholson recently conducted a press conference with reporters in Washington, D.C. Nicholson is the current commander of Resolute Support in Afghanistan. He had a few interesting comments to make. While his comments have a certain amount of spin it is also a very informative news conference.

GoIRA Controls 70%. According to Nicholson, the Afghan government forces controls 65% to 70% of the population, the Taliban controls 10% of the population, and the remainder is 'contested'. Hmmm. Lots of analysis could be done with those 'facts'. First of all control of the population is much different than control of terrain. If much of the population lives in the large cities then the percentage of terrain controlled by the Taliban is likely much more than 10% (which of course it is). Read more on this in "US commander in Afghanistan downplays Taliban control of 10 percent of population", The Long War Journal, September 23, 2016.

DoD News Release. For more DoD spin read "Afghan Security Forces Growing to Take Over Mission, General Says", Defense Media Activity, September 23, 2016. Nicholson emphasizes that the mission has changed from counterinsurgency to 'train, advise, and assist'. He stated that the Afghan security forces executed 'Operatin Shafaq' (or Dawn) in three successful phases - the defense of Kunduz (April and May), expansion of the security zone in Helmand, western Kandahar and Uruzgan (June and July), and then in Nangarhar later in the summer. The problem with his analysis is that the situation in Kunduz is still critical, Helmand's provincial capital (Lashkar Gah) is threatened (with 90% of the province controlled by the Taliban), and Uruzgan's provincial capital (Tarin Kowt) now under attack. So . . . . .

Checkpoints, SOF, and more. He points out the problem of too many checkpoints, how it dilutes offensive power, and leaves police units isolated and vulnerable. Nicholson also speaks about the effectiveness of Afghan SOF units but also about the misuse of these units (using them for conventional force units). A lot of topics (ISIS, ISK, TTP, IMU, troop levels, array of forces, expansion of advisory effort, framework nations, enablers, etc.) covered in this news conference.

DoD Video of News Conference- "Resolute Support Commander Briefs Reporters". Watch a 42-minute video of General Nicholson's news conference held on September 23, 2016 at the Pentagon.
www.dvidshub.net/video/484589/resolute-support-commander-briefs-reporters

Afghan Security News - Good and Bad

Helmand Province still at Risk. A war correspondent takes us on a journey to Lashkar Gar, the provincial capital of Helmand province in southwestern Afghanistan. The province has been the scene of heavy fighting with most of the districts controlled by the Taliban. Although the government (and U.S. spokesmen) say that many of the districts are under Afghan government control the reality is that the government forces occupying several district administrative buildings within a small walled compound and the Taliban are free to roam the rest of the district. A lot of spin at play here. For a more realistic version of what is happening in this war-torn province read a report entitled "First Helmand, Then Afghanistan", Foreign Policy, September 21, 2016.

Govt Forces Control only 70% of Afghanistan. According to General Dunford, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (and former ISAF Cdr), says that the Afghan security forces are taken more casualties "than we're comfortable with" and that they still are lacking in key areas including air power, special operations, and intelligence. He called the war in Afghanistan a stalemate during an appearance before the Senate Armed Services Committee. Overall his assessment was on the gloomy side. Read more in a news report by The Washington Post, September 22, 2016.

U.S. Army Secretary Visits Afghanistan. Secretary Fanning visited artillerymen from the 3rd Cavalry Regiment in Laghman province in mid-September. Read more in "Army Secretary engages with artillerymen in action", Army.mil, September 22, 2015.

U.S. Airstrike Allegedly Kills 8 Afghan Police. Read more in a news report by Stars and Stripes, September 20, 2016.

Afghanistan and the Little Bird. The Afghan Air Force has received the last four of 27 MD-530F armed helicopters. Read more about these versatile choppers of the AAF in "Warplanes: Afghanistan Adopts Little Bird", Strategy Page, September 18, 2016.

ISIS Regrouping in Nangarhar Vicinity. The Islamic State in Afghanistan has suffered some setbacks this year but are still a problem in eastern Afghanistan. Afghan government leaders are hoping that 'popular uprising' and Afghan Local Police can contain the threat. Read more in "Tribal Leaders Say IS Regrouping in Afghan-Pakistan Border Areas", Voice of America, September 21, 2016.

News Article: "Losing in Afghanistan". A recent report by Foreign Affairs (Sep 22, 2016) suggests that the United States is losing the war in Afghanistan based on data released by the Pentagon. Measures of insurgent activity are the highest since in five years, Afghan government security forces are suffering high levels of casualties, and civilian deaths are rising.

Local Uprising Group in Badakhshan. A freelance reporter, Franz Marty, travels to Raghistan district, Badakhshan province and spends time with a local defense force that has taken the districts security into their own hands. The author asks what this means for the central government over the long-term. Read "Afghanistan's Anti-Taliban Vigilantes: Blessing or Curse?", The Diplomat, September 15, 2016.

Reports and Publications Recently Issued

SIGAR Quarterly Report. Four times a year the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction issues a report on the Afghan conflict and where are tax payer money is spent in Afghanistan. Topics in the latest report include electrifying Afghanistan, SIGAR oversight activities, reconstruction update, and other SIGAR reports. Overall, the report is (like most SIGAR reports) a bit pessimistic; unlike RS or DoD reports which are overly optimistic). But it is a good read to balance out the spin coming out of the Department of Defense or what the Afghan government media sources are spouting out. Things are not that good from a security standpoint, the economy is not faring well, young educated people are leaving in droves, and the international community and Resolute Support Headquarters still have not got a handle on accountability and oversight on how their funds are being spent by the Afghans. Read the Quarterly Report to the United States Congress, July 30, 2016.

Report on Recruitment by Armed Groups in Afghanistan. The European Asylum Support Office (EASO) published a report on the recruitment of armed groups in Afghanistan (Taliban and other insurgent factions) on September 19, 2016..

SIGAR Report on Afghanistan's High Office of Oversight (HOO). The High Office of Oversight is the topic of a special report by the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction. The report finds that the HOO, which has broad responsibility for combating official corruption, lacks enforcement power, and was likely just 'window dressing' to satisfy the international community's desire for progress on fighting corruption. Read the report published on September 19, 2016.
https://www.sigar.mil/pdf/special%20projects/SIGAR-16-60-SP.pdf

Commentary

Afghan's Lacking Air Support? One freelance journalist based in Afghanistan who writes on security and military issues, Franz J. Marty, comments on the supposed lack of close air support for the Afghan National Defense and Security Forces (ANDSF). Read "The Fallacious Claim of Lacking Air Support in Afghanistan", The National Interest, September 13, 2016.

NUG Not So Unified. The power sharing agreement of the National Unity Government (NUG) expires on September 30th. Read more in "The Coming Political Crisis in Afghanistan", The Diplomat, by Abdul Basit, September 23, 2016.

Photographer Interview. A photojournalist chats on his time in Afghanistan in "Andrew Quilty: Three years photographing Afghanistan", The Sydney Morning Herald, September 24, 2016.

Afghan Govt Losing Battle of Legitimacy. Christopher D. Kolenda, a former Pentagon senior advisor, is interviewed about Afghanistan. Read "Afghanistan at an Inflection Point", Council on Foreign Relations, September 22, 2016.

"Forgotten War". Max Fisher writes "15 Years Into Afghan War, Americans Would Rather Not Talk about It", The New York Times, September 20, 2016. The topic of Afghanistan is noticeably absent from the election dialogue - neither candidate wanting to talk about it or offer solutions. It seems the "Forever War" is also the "Forgotten War".

Peace Accord With HIG? A Deal with the Devil?

It appears that the Government of Afghanistan and the Hizb-e Islami Gulbuddin (HIG) insurgent group have reached an agreement to stop fighting. The insurgent group was formed by Gulbuddin Hekmatyar in the mid-1970s. It became one of the main mujahideen factions during the fight against the Soviets and puppet Afghan regime in the 1980s and a main player during the civil war after the Soviet withdrawal. The group has been accused of numerous human rights abuses by many international groups. In recent years the militant group has been relatively ineffective and relegated to the sidelines. This peace agreement with the "Butcher of Kabul" may more symbolic in nature with an unlikely effect on the level of hostilities. The peace agreement with the HIG will (in the view of the U.S.) hopefully set the stage for successful peace talks (and agreements) with other insurgent groups fighting the Afghan government.

Read more:
"Afghanistan Signs Peace Deal With Hard Line Militant Group", Radio Free Europe, Sep 22, 2016.
U.S. Embassy Peace Accords Statement, Embassy of the United States, Kabul, Afghanistan, September 22, 2016.
Draft Peace Agreement Between Government and Herb-I-Islami Gulbuddin, United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA), September 22, 2016.

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Sunday, March 20, 2016

A Short Break

Unfortunately there will be a temporary break in posting on the Afghan War News Blog and in the publishing of the Afghan War Blog Weekly Newsletter. I am beginning several back-to-back short-term overseas contracts. My work will preclude my writing activities; however I will be able to resume this coming fall. Heading back to Afghanistan.

Best regards, Staff at Afghan War News Blog

Sunday, March 13, 2016

Afghan War Blog Weekly Newsletter - March 13, 2016

Welcome to the Afghan War Blog Weekly Newsletter. Articles are posted online on the blog and sent out via email newsletter on Sunday morning. We welcome comments, ideas for stories, contributions, and guest writers! Visit our website at www.afghanwarnews.info, follow us on Twitter at @AfghanWarBlog, and on LinkedIn at www.linkedin.com/in/afghan-war-news.

Afghan Security News

AAF A-29s to MeS. According to Afghan press accounts the Afghan Air Force has posted two A-29 Super Tucano Light Attack Aircraft to the northern Balkh province of Afghanistan. Many parts of Afghanistan has seen a deteriorating security situation and this includes northern Afghanistan. The A-29s can carry heavy weapons to target anti-government armed militants. The aircraft is a multi-role, fixed-wing aircraft that provides a air-to-ground capability and aerial reconnaissance capabilities IOT support the country's counterinsurgency efforts. Read more in "Afghan Air Force receives light attack aircraft in Mazar-e-Sharif", Khaama Press, March 7, 2016.

AAF - Full Strength in 2020? The outgoing Resolute Support commander, Gen Campbell, recently said that the Afghan Air Force won't receive all of its aircraft until 2018 and that it won't be fully effective until 2020. No worries, the aircraft will still have plenty to do in 2020. This war will continue for several more years. Read "Afghan Air Force To Reach Required Strength Levels by 2020", Tolo News, March 12, 2016.

TAAC-Air & AAF. The advisors from the Train, Advise, Assist Command - Air are working 'shoulder to shoulder' with the AAF to build a sustainable air force. Read more in a press release by DVIDS, March 10, 2016.

Govt Retreat from Shahidid Hassas District. On March 1st Afghan government troops abandoned a district in Uruzgan province, Afghanistan. See "Afghan forces withdraw from district in Uruzgan", Threat Matrix, March 9, 2016.

Kabul Fire Dept Targeted. A suicide bomber attacked the Kabul Fire Department on Wednesday afternoon (Mar 9th) in Kabul city. (Tolo News, Mar 9, 2016)

Suicide Blast in Kabul. A heavy explosion rocked Kabul city on March 9th (Wed) after a suicide bomber detonated his explosives in PD 2. The bomber was the only fatality as he experienced a premature explosion. The incident happened near the Ministry of Finance. (Khaama Press, Mar 9, 2016).

Taliban Infighting in Herat. There are reports of fierce clashes between Taliban factions in the western province of Herat, Afghanistan. It appears that two top Taliban leaders have been killed, over 60 killed, and more than 60 wounded. (Khaama Press, Mar 9, 2016). See also "Scores of Taliban Fighters Killed in Infighting", Gandhara Blog, March 9, 2015.

Premature Withdrawal? The outgoing commander of U.S. Central Command told lawmakers this past week that it may be prudent to reconsider the plan to reduce the American military forces presence in Afghanistan. Given the recent increase in the Taliban's activity it is likely that the reduction from 9,800 to 5,500 by the start of next year is going to be delayed. Read more in "Planned Drawdown of US Forces in Afghanistan May be Premature: Centcom", Military.com, March 8, 2016.

More Authorities Needed in Afghanistan? According to one news report General John Campbell, prior to his departure as the Resolute Support commander, was seeking a modification of authorities for U.S. troops in Afghanistan. Although he recognized he would not see an increase in troops he was able to get the Obama administration to slow down the withdrawal rate of troops. What is unclear is if he was able to loosen up the Ruled of Engagement (ROE) for air support (air strikes) and the levels that U.S. troops could conduct the Train, Advise and Assist mission. Currently advisors are located at the MoI, MoD, and the the Afghan National Army corps (although two corps - 201st and 203rd - see part-time advisors) and SOF troops are advising at the kandak level for the Afghan special operations units. We certainly pulled our advisors off the 201st and 203rd corps way too early; and it probably was inadvisable to take them off the brigade hqs as well. Read more in "U.S. general sought greater powers in Afghanistan before exit", Reuters, March 11, 2016.

China Offering Military Aid. One news report indicates that the deteriorating security and emergence of the Islamic State in Afghanistan has prompted China to deepen its engagement. Read more in "China Offers Afghanistan Army Expanded Military Aid", The Wall Street Journal, March 9, 2016. (requires subscription).

Ireland Ends Mission. Resolute Support Headquarters held a ceremony a week ago to observe the completion of the Irish Defense Forces military mission in Afghanistan. Following fifteen years of unbroken service with both the NATO ISAF and RS missions the final contingent will redeploy to Ireland. See "Ireland commemorates end of military mission in Afghanistan", Khaama Press, March 12, 2016.

Video - Gurkhas Training Up. A unit of the UK is going to deploy to Afghanistan. Naturally the soldiers will do some predeployment training. We get to view (in five quick minutes) some of that training in No Rest for Gurkhas On Intensive Afghanistan Training, Forces TV (UK), March 10, 2016. www.forces.tv/72138100

Fractured Taliban? One defense official says that ISIL is contained in Afghanistan and that the Taliban is fractured. Sounds almost optimistic. Read more in a defense press release by DoD News, March 10, 2016.

Commentary

Paper - The Afghan National Army After ISAF. The Afghanistan Research and Evaluation Unit (AREU) has published an 18-page paper (March 2016) about the state of the ANA and the current security situation in Afghanistan.

Worries on Afghanistan. Manoj Joshi writes about the current situation in Afghanistan. The Taliban's recent refusal to participate in peace talks has serious implications for the security and stability of Afghanistan. The Taliban clearly feel that time is on its side - and given its recent gains on the battlefield - that there is little point in engaging in peace negotiations with the Kabul regime. Read more in "Worrying signals from Afghanistan", ORF Online, March 8, 2016.

Developing Emotional Calluses. Nathan K. Finney has wrote a short essay on how military members, as a result of their exposure to years of direct and indirect trauma, develop emotional calluses to the world around them. Read "Consequences of Fear: Callousness", Consequence Magazine, March 6, 2016.

Too Much Mandatory Training. While senior leaders of the military recognized that there are too many mandated training activities it would seem that little is done to lighten the load. Read more in "No Time, Literally, For All Requirements", by Maj. Crispin J. Burke, Army Magazine, March 8, 2016.

Mandatory Training - Part II. There is no doubt that the training requirements for the U.S. Army far exceed the time available to train. Many Soldiers would cut much of the training they receive. For instance, do Soldiers really need to endure a class presentation where they learn that American society attaches privilege to being white, male, and heterosexual. Yep, it happened. Read more in "U.S. Army Lectured Soldiers on Dangers of "White Privilege", Fox News, March 10, 2016.

Do We Need Better Generals? Michael Vickers, the former under secretary of Defense for Intelligence seems to think so. Read "Vickers: Fastest way to improve strategy is to prepare and pick better generals", Foreign Policy, March 9, 2016. See Mike Vickers testimony before the Senate Armed Services Committee entitled Improving the Pentagon's Development of Policy, Strategy and Plans, December 8, 2015.

"Silk Road" and Afghanistan. China is pushing the integration of China economic interests into the Central and South Asian regions. Expanding China's direct interests in Afghanistan would open new avenues for U.S.-China cooperation. Hmmmm. Okay, but I say "Advantage China". Read what Andi Zhou has to say in "Can China's 'One Belt, One Road' Save the US in Afghanistan?", The Diplomat, March 11, 2016.

Australian Documentary. "In their own words and their own extraordinary, never-before-seen helmet-cam battle footage, Australia's fighting men and women lay bare their hearts in an epic series - not just how they waged a war, but why and to what end." If you live in Australia then you can watch "Afghanistan: Inside Australia's War", ABC.net.au, March 8, 2016. Unfortunately, unless posted on YouTube.com, the rest of us can't.
www.abc.net.au/tv/programs/afghanistan-inside-australias-war/

Movie Review - A War. Several weeks back I reviewed the newly released Danish movie A War. Since then numerous reviews have come out. The latest that I have read is by David Franke - who manages to input a bit of commentary at the end of his review. Read "The Danes in Afghanistan", The American Conservative, March 11, 2016.

Recalibrating ROE. In past decade the Rules of Engagement at theater level have seen some changes. Some believe the rules are too tight; sacrificing safety of military members in order to avoid civilian casualties and unfortunate situations that will explode in the world's media. Others see the tightening of ROE necessary in a counterinsurgency environment. Not my favorite topic, but if you are a lawyer you might be interested in a 57-page paper on SROE /SRUF by Colonel Gary P. Corn and published in the Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law, Vol. 49:1, 2016.

Panel - "What to Do About Afghanistan". The Council on Foreign Relations hosted a panel discussion on the security situation of Afghanistan. Former ISAF commander General (Ret) John Allen, Former U.S. Ambassador to Afghanistan James B. Cunningham, and Mary Beth Long - a former Assistant Secretary of Defense and President of Metis Solutions were on the panel. You can watch the one hour long video at the link below.
www.cfr.org/afghanistan/hbo-do-afghanistan/p37591

Hybrid Warriors. The military community (uniformed, academic, think tanks, included) has been struggling with defining the new era of warfare since 2011. The crux of the matter is how to attach a term to the space between peace and war. Lots of terms are out there: unconventional warfare, Gray Zone, Hybrid Warfare, political warfare, etc. One security observer and commentator - Douglas A. Ollivant - has penned a paper that sees past the terminology and concentrates on the participants of this new type of conflict. Read "The Rise of the Hybrid Warriors: From Ukraine to the Middle East", War on the Rocks, March 9, 2016.

Understanding COIN. Dr. Geraint Hughes, a student of counterinsurgency and formerly of the London Regiment of the Territorial Army, writes that the terminological distinctions between COIN, PSO, 'stabilisation', and 'major combat operations' are potentially becoming increasingly less relevant. Read "Uncertain Coinage", Defense-in-Depth, King's College, London, March 7, 2016.

Islamic State

3,000 or 1,000 ISIS in Afghanistan? Most analysts say that the Islamic State has about 3,000 fighters in Afghanistan. Mostly in Nangarhar province. However, the IS has been taken some losses. The Taliban are getting after ISIS in eastern Afghanistan. The 201st Corps is taking the fight to ISIS. And, in addition, lots of drones are attacking ISIS positions from the sky. Looks like ISIS is caught between a rock and a hard place. Nice to see good things happen on the security front for a change. Outgoing Resolute Support HQs commander, General John Campbell, says that the current ISIS strength in Afghanistan is more likely 1,000. If true, that is good news.

"Follow the Money" is now "Destroy the Money". The Islamic State in Syria and Iraq had for a long time enjoyed financial success. It had installed a tax system, gained money from oil proceeds, and took control of banks with millions of dollars. Now it appears that repeated air strikes against the oil fields and ISIS controlled banks plus a plunging economic situation in Syria has made the finances of ISIS less robust. In fact, the group is now offering captured women as payment to some of its members and ensuring that these women are on birth control to ensure payments can be made on a regular basis. Read more in "The Islamic State's Money Problems", RAND Corporation Blog, March 5, 2016.

West Lacking a Strategy to Defeat ISIS. Michael W. S. Ryan of the Jamestown Foundation has penned a short article examining the Islamic States strengths and weaknesses. He says that while we have made some significant gains in the battle against ISIS we still lack a comprehensive strategy to defeat the organization and we lack a strategic narrative to stop its metastasis. Read more in "The ISIS Paradox: Strength in Weakness", The CIPHER Brief, March 10, 2016.

SOF Scoffing up Prisoners. So . . . we can't put our captured terrorists into Guantanamo anymore (because President Obama won't do it); so perhaps we keep them a while (for interrogation) and then pass them on to someone else. Well, . . . I guess that is the plan. Read "U.S. Detentions of ISIL Members in Iraq Will be Short-Term Only", DoD News, March 9, 2016. See also "US military won't hold detainees more than 30 days", Fox News Politics, March 11, 2016.

Peace Talks

Taliban Reluctant to Join Peace Talks. Despite lots of optimism by the U.S. State Department (publicly at least) and the Afghan government it appears that the Taliban are not all the eager to join in on peace talks. Read more in "Road to Quadrilateral-Backed Peace Talks Uncertain as Taliban Refuse to Participate", The Diplomat, March 7, 2016.

Accusations of Interference. Former Minister of Interior (MoI) Daudzai slams Pakistan for its interference in the internal affairs of Afghanistan and its sabotage of the Afghan-Taliban peace negotiations in recent news report. (Tolo News, Mar 12, 2016).

Podcast - History of Peace Talks. Task & Purpose Radio have aired an episode that discusses Beau Bergdahl's role in negotiating peace talks with the Taliban in "The Complex History of the Taliban Peace Talks", March 8, 2016.

Peace Talks Failure - Plan B? Michael Kugelman presents the obstacles to concrete progress in the Afghan / Taliban peace talks that are (or are not) about to take place over the next several months. He asks "If Reconciliation Fails in Afghanistan, What's Plan B?", War on the Rocks, March 10, 2016. (CAUTION: He offers no Plan B . . . ).

Bloody Summer? The rejection of peace talks by the Taliban has dire implications for the coming fighting season. Read more in "Afghanistan braces for bloody summer as Taliban reject peace talks with government", Washington Times, March 7, 2016.

Women in Afghanistan

International Women's Day. The world recognized the annual International Women's Day this past week. All the major players provided news releases on the progress and obstacles in advancing women's rights.

CSTC-A and Women. The Combined Security Transition Command j- Afghanistan (CSTC-A) recently celebrated International Women's Day. A keynote speaker (see photo above) was Maj. Gen. Gordon "Skip" Davis, Jr. Every photo I ever see of this guy has him smiling! There is something seriously wrong here. Doesn't he know that he has three very good reasons not to be so jolly? 1) He lives and works on that small postage stamp of real estate in Kabul known as Camp Resolute Support, 2) he is in a war zone, and 3) he is tasked with training up the ANA and ANP. Hmmmm. Read more in a news press release by DVIDS, March 9, 2016.

AAF and Women. The Afghan Air Force hosted an International Women's Day conference on March 6th at the Kabul Air Wing. Approximately 200 AAF and Train, Advise, Assist Command-Air (TAAC-Air) military men and women attended the event to include guest speakers from the AAF commander to a young Afghan girl reading poetry. (DVIDS, Mar 8, 2016).

Role of Afghan Women. Laura Bush (former 1st Lady) is an honorary co-chair of the U.S.-Afghan Women's Council and chair of the Women's Initiative at the George W. Bush Institute. She has penned an opinion piece about women in Afghanistan where she explores the progress made for women in Afghanistan over the past 15 years and identifies the areas that still need further advances. Read "How Afghanistan's women are helping the country move forward", The Washington Post, March 7, 2016.

Book - We Are Afghan Women. The George W. Bush Presidential Center is publishing a book about Afghan women. The book is being released . . . timed with International Women's Day. "The book spotlights the stories of 29 inspiring and heroic Afghan women in their own voices and records their extraordinary struggles, resolve, and will to triumph in present-day Afghanistan." Read more about We Are Afghan Women: Voices of Hope.

Former Female Afghan War Vets Import Saffron. Members of the Harvard University community who are also veterans of the Afghan conflict have been importing saffron from Afghanistan. They operate a firm called Rumi Spice. The founders of the firm are a unique group of people - male, female, route clearance, Cultural Support Team, etc. Read more in "Veterans behind Rumi Spice source saffron directly from Afghan farmers", Food Navigator, March 9, 2016.

Court Reduces Sentences in Mob Killing of Farkhunda. Four men sentenced to death for the killing of a woman named Farkhunda (which received widespread international attention) have had their sentences reduced to as little as ten years in prison. (The New York Times, Mar 9, 2016).

Short Film - Masculinity in Afghanistan. The Afghanistan Research and Evaluation Unit (AREU) conducted some research titled The Other Side of Gender Inequality: Men and Masculinities in Afghanistan. A film based on this research was filmed. It has English subtitles and is 20 minutes long, and posted on YouTube.com on March 9, 2016. A little bit of culture about being a man and a women in Afghan society.

IDLG Wants More Women in Govt. The Independent Directorate of Local Governance has called for a stronger presence of women in local governance across Afghanistan. (Tolo News, Mar 7, 2016).

Radio Shaesta - Back on the Air. An Afghan women's radio station was put off the air as a result of the Taliban attack and subsequent occupation of the Kunduz city this past fall. The radio station was ransacked and the broadcasting equipment was confiscated or destroyed. But . . . they are back up and running. Read "Afghan Women's Radio Returns After Taliban Attack", Voice of America, March 8, 2016.

Women Reporters in Afghanistan. There are some difficulties and cultural barriers that women journalists face when reporting from Afghanistan. Read the story of two women reporters that were in northern Afghanistan in late 2001 in "No Woman's Land: On the Frontline with Female Reporters", International News Safety Institute, March 7, 2016.

Refugees, Migrants, and Interpreters

Afghan Migrants. Many refugees from Afghanistan are making their way (via people smugglers) across Iran into Turkey where they hope to either find work (and a place to live) or a way to get to Europe. However, Europe has begun the process of closing its doors after being overwhelmed with refugees from Syria, Afghanistan, and north Africa in 2015. Read more in "Afghans feel forgotten in Europe's migrant crisis", Reuters, March 6, 2016.

Young People Desperate to Leave Afghanistan. There is not a lot of opportunity for young Afghans. However Europe is no longer the promised land. Slovenia, Croatia, and Macedonia (long the transit nations for the migrant populations heading to Scandinavia and Germany) has been closing its borders. Economic migrants from Afghanistan are no longer welcome. Watch a video 1-minute long video entitled Determined to Leave Afghanistan, Even as Europe's Borders Close, Radio Free Europe, March 10, 2016.

Empty Promises for Migrants. Many Afghans making the treacherous journey to Europe are finding the promises made by human smugglers are not fulfilled. Read more in "European Dream Unfulfilled for Afghan Economic Migrants", Radio Free Europe, March 10, 2016.

CRS Report SIV. The Congressional Research Service (CRS) recently published a report on the Special Immigrant Visa program for Iraqi and Afghan interpreters (February 26, 2016).
www.hsdl.org/?abstract&did=790970

Canada: Interpreters Wait While Refugees Accepted. I guess one has to wonder which government is treating former Afghan interpreters worse. Is it Canada or the United States. Neither government seems to give much priority to the Afghan interpreters to whom our military owes so much. Read more in "Refugees fast-tracked but interpreter forced to wait", Toronto Sun, March 8, 2016.

Helmand Province

Helmand Province - District by District. The fight for Helmand province over the past decade has been one of the most costly for both the Coalition and the Afghan government security forces. The British, Danish, U.S. Marines, and others have spent lots of money and lives trying to rest this volatile province from Taliban control. In part, this was successful until the Coalition withdrew its forces over the past two years. The Afghan National Army (ANA) 215th Corps and various police organizations were not up to the task. In addition, the government agencies were corrupt, absent, and terribly ineffective in establishing government functions and providing services. Overall, the Afghan government and security forces failed. Now most of the province is in Taliban hands.

The Afghanistan Analysts Network (AAN) does a comprehensive breakdown of the province - with an examination of who controls how much of each district. The report is in two parts. Read "Helmand: A crisis a long time coming", March 10, 2016 and "Helmand: the chain of chiefdoms unravels", March 11, 2016.

Govt Retreat from Helmand Districts. "Overstretched Afghan forces are pulling back from violent southern districts without a fight, ceding key territory to the resurgent Taliban as part of an unprecedented 'strategic retreat' that has stoked fears government control is slipping." Read more in "Afghan retreat from key districts stokes instability fears", Yahoo News!, March 6, 2016.

Govt Offices in Gereshk Attacked. Taliban militants have attacked government offices in Helmand province. The police headquarters and intelligence agency offices were attacked on March 9th. (Khaama Press, Mar 9, 2016).

Quetta Shura Leaders Now in Musa Qala. Some leaders of the Taliban's Quetta Shura are now in the Musa Qala district of Helmand province taking a prominent role in heading up the conflict with Afghan government forces. Read more in "Taliban Quetta Shura Leading War in Musa Qala of Helmand", Tolo News, March 6, 2016.

Different Perspective of Helmand. Much of the news in the Afghan and international media is about the security setbacks that the ANDSF have suffered at the hands of the Taliban in Helmand province. However, there is another side of the story. Helmand province offers much more than just conflict. Read "As the Taliban Menace Afghanistan, the Helmand River Offers Solace", The New York Times, March 8, 2016.

Alcohol, Helmand, & the Human Domain. Human Terrain Teams (HTTs) were established to help military commanders understand the local environment - specifically the human environment - or human terrain - if that suits you. Members of the HTTs were usually more attuned to the human environment due to their professional degrees, work experience, and time in Afghanistan (most did several back-to-back tours in the same province). However, that is not to say that the HTT pros were not surprised from time to time. One aspect of working with the Europeans (in this case the Danes) is their realistic approach to alcohol in a combat zone (versus the tightly-wrapped, zero-tolerance U.S. military). I will say that with three military trips to Afghanistan followed by three consecutive years as a contractor that I had some preferences; especially after having worked with the French in Kapisa and the Europeans in northern Afghanistan. So . . . back to the news report - "Johnnie Red in Helmand", by Ryan Evans, War on the Rocks, June 19, 2014.

U.S. Advisors Retraining 215th Corps. The leadership of the 215th Corps was horrible this past year and has since been replaced. Soldiers of the corps did not receive pay, food, ammunition, or leave as a result of poor officership. Military advisors from the 10th Mountain Division are currently in Helmand province providing additional training to the ANA. Read more in "US soldiers retrain Afghan army battling Taliban ahead of poppy harvest", Stars and Stripes, March 10, 2016.

Defense News

U.S. Defense Spending Woes. A recent news story by Matthew Gault examines the national defense stance of the presidential candidates and where they stand on defense spending. And naturally, the F-35 comes under intense criticism. Read "Donald Trump is right about defense spending - and that should scare you", Reuters, March 2, 2016.

Countering Adversaries without War. The Arroyo Center of RAND Corporation has published a new report (52 pages, 2016) that it prepared for the U.S. Army. It is entitled The Power to Coerce: Countering Adversaries Without Going to War. This paper explores the space in between hard military power and soft power. Evidently the short acronym for "Power to Coerce" is known as P2C . . . a new acronym for me.

Another Attack on HTS. Tom Vanden Brook of USA Today just can't say enough bad stuff about the Human Terrain System (HTS). His misguided and uniformed attacks are inaccurate and an attack on a very valuable program. Read his latest in "$725M program Army 'killed' found alive, growing", USA Today, March 9, 2016.

F-35 - "Huge Mess". The U.S. Director of Operational Test and Evaluation - DOT&E - recently released a scathing assessment of the F-35 - sometimes referred to as a plane that can do anything but nothing very well. Read "The F-35 Joint Strike Fighter Is Still a Huge Mess", War is Boring, March 9, 2016. See also "The F-35: Still Failing to Impress", Project on Government Oversight (POGO), March 7, 2016.

F-35 - "A Great Success". Air Force LTG Christopher Bogdan, the program executive for the F-35 Lighting II joint program office, provided his insight on the F-35. He says that we are having slow, steady progress with the questionable aircraft. If he can fly an airplane as well as he transitions his water bottle from hand to hand then he is quite an aviator. So . . . want to listen to a little spin? Watch a 60-minute long DoD News video posted on March 10, 2016 on DVIDSHUB.
www.dvidshub.net/video/453918/f-35-program-chief-speaks-defense-programs-conference

Book Review - Selling War. A new book details how the U.S. military lost in the information war early on in Iraq. For a glimpse of what this book is about read a review by Adam J. Tiffen in "The Information War That the US Lost in Iraq", Task & Purpose, March 7, 2016. The book Selling War: A Critical Look at the Military's PR Machine is now available on Amazon.com.

MISO and Marines. The USMC may soon be expanding its psychological operations (PSYOP) capabilities with the use of an expanded Military Information Support Operations (MISO) program. This is certainly a welcome move given the inability of the U.S. government and military to "control the narrative" in recent conflicts like Iraq and Afghanistan. Read "Marines May Expand Psychological Operations With New Specialty", Military.com, March 11, 2016.

CA Papers. A Civil Affairs Syposium was held in November 2015. Various associations and agencies took part. Five papers are presented in this report entitled 2015-2016 Civil Affairs Issue Papers: A Force for Engagement and Conflict Prevention. The papers cover topics on Counter-Unconventional Warfare, State Partnership Program, Conflict Prevention, International Police Engagement, and Developing Human Networks.
www.pksoi.org/index.cfm?disp=cdrview.cfm&cdrid=1580

Paper - Enhanced Army Airborne Forces. Several authors have collaborated on a RAND Corporation paper (132 pages) that examines the role of the U.S. Army's airborne forces in the future, the challenges it will likely face, the capabilities that it will need to face those challenges, and how to prioritize those capabilities. (RAND, Mar 2016).
www.rand.org/pubs/research_reports/RR309.html

Navy Loosens the Rules. It appears that the Navy is going to be a little lax in the physical fitness category. It seems some are wondering why being able to do those pushups and run fast is important. The Navy's body fat restrictions changed in January and many sailors are getting second, third, and fourth chances to pass their physical fitness test. Read "Navy loosens body fat rules to retain sailors", Military Times, March 7, 2016.

Closing GITMO. Congress required the president to submit a plan for how to close the Guantanamo Bay detention facility in Cuba. Obama had made this a presidential imperative but up to now has not come up with an alternate plan (other than releasing terrorists) to downsize the population and to continue to detain those deemed too dangerous to release. The White House submitted a plan in early March 2016. You can read the 21 page document posted on defense.gov entitled Plan for Closing the Guantanamo Bay Detention Facility.

Governance News

Dar-ul-Aman Palace, Kabul, Afghanistan

MoU Signed with Indonesia. The Foreign Ministers of Indonesia and Afghanistan signed a Memorandum of Understanding on diplomatic training cooperation recently. Read a press release by the Afghan Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Mach 6, 2016.

Old Palace Renovations. President Ghani has indicated that the old Afghan palace located outside of Kabul - Dar-ul-Aman - will be renovated. Certainly it is a big part of Afghanistan's history. I have seen that palace up close. It will require lots of money and work to bring it back to life.

Afghan Justice System. Anyone familiar with the Afghan justice system knows that it is under-funded, under-staffed, and very corrupt. If you have money then you can have justice; otherwise you are in for a long wait and the short end of the stick. The Human Rights Watch organization has come out (once again) against the judicial branch of the Afghan government. This time the outrage is over the reduction of sentences for those convicted of killing an Afghan women who was falsely accused of burning the Koran. Read "HRW Slams Afghan Justice System", Radio Free Europe, March 13, 2016.

EU Anti-Corruption Campaign. The European Union will be launching yet another anti-corruption endeavor to help Afghan citizens fight corruption and seek to mobilize support for stronger government action against corruption. Yep. I am sure the campaign will be "a great success". Read more in a press release by the EU, 12 March 2016.

Cooperation Needed. President Ghani has stressed the need for cooperation between the cabinet members and the parliamentarians in a bid to help resolve national-level issues facing Afghanistan. Read "NUG Leaders Urge Cooperation Between Cabinet and Parliament", Tolo News, March 5, 2016.

Women in the Military

Italian Female Soldier (DVIDS)

New Issue - PRISM. The Center for Complex Operations of the National Defense University (NDU) has posted a new issue of PRISM, Vol. 6, No. 1, 2016. This quarterly publication has a wealth of articles on many topics. This specific issue, 214 pages long, is entitled "Women, Peace, & Inclusive Security". Some of the articles explore the use of Female Engagement Teams (FETs) and Cultural Support Teams (CSTs) as well as female members of the National Guard's Agribusiness Development Teams in Afghanistan. Also profiled are female members of military units from NATO and around the world.

U.S. Female Soldier in Pre-Ranger Training (DVIDS)

Lower PT Standards for Females in Rangers? According to one news article posted on SOFREP.com the Ranger Regiment & school are now adopting different physical fitness standards for men and women who will enter training for Ranger School and once assigned to the Ranger Regiment. Apparently the regiment is moving to an "Army Physical Fitness Test" (APFT) that is not 'one size fits all'.

The new annual requirement for someone assigned to the Ranger Regiment according to SOFREP.com is "2 x APFTs (min 60 points in ea. event, scaled by age & gender) IAW Army Regulations". So, at age 17-21, men are required to do the minimum of 53 sit-ups, 42 push-ups, and a 15.54 two-mile run; women are required to do the minimum of 53 sit-ups, 19 push-ups, and a 18:54 two-mile run. See the current "Army Physical Fitness Test Scorecard" for the different physical standards by gender and age group.

If true, this is truly disconcerting news. Read "Proof that standards will be dropped for females entering the 75th Ranger Regiment", SOFREP.com, March 7, 2016.

Army's Gender Integration Implementation Plan. The U.S. Army's plan is a detailed approach for integrating women into all military occupational specialties (MOSs). The paves the way for female Soldiers to serve in the Infantry, Armor, and Special Forces.
www.army.mil/standto/archive_2016-03-10

Most Marines Opposed to Women in Combat Units. "A survey of nearly 54,000 members of the Marine Corps found that two out of three male Marines and one out three female Marines were opposed to opening all combat jobs to women." Read more in "How big is opposition to women in combat units among Marines? This report explains.", The Washington Post, March 10, 2016.

SOF News

Afghanistan's Commandos. There are about 11,000 Afghan soldiers assigned to the Afghan National Army Special Operations Command (ANASOC). To many observers these are the men that will ensure Afghanistan does not fall to the Taliban and they are the crack troops that respond to dire situations (such as the fall of Kunduz city in late 2015). The commando and special forces units have a very low attrition rate - especially when compared to the remainder of the Afghan army and police forces. However, there are some problems. The commando units are not always used in the proper role and are usually over-employed by Corps commanders of the Afghan army. There is a shortage of training ammunition and uniforms . . . and the training facilities at Camp Moorehead (just outside of Kabul) are not sufficient for the number of soldiers training at that location. Read more in a news story by Tim Craig - "These are the 11,000 soldiers who might save Afghanistan", The Washington Post, March 8, 2016.

Hybrid Warfare Skeptic. The hybrid warfare concept has been around for at least a decade if not more. There are other terms and phases that have been introduced that are very close to the hybrid warfare definition to include, Ambiguous Warfare, Gray Zone, Political Warfare, etc. One commentator, Christopher Paul, provides his thoughts on the various concepts that describe the space between peace and war. A long intellectual read . . . if you are an SF dude then it is in your lane. Dr. Paul is a senior social scientist working for RAND Corporation. Read "Confessions of a Hybrid Warfare Skeptic", Small Wars Journal, March 3, 2016.

A New Unconventional Warfare Strategy & Human Domain. Carole N. House writes an extensive article that defines " . . . critical restructuring needs of the U.S. government . . . " and proposes " . . . strategic lines of effort to facilitate a comprehensive national approach to the conduct of unconventional warfare and countering its use against the United States". Read "Proposal of an Unconventional Warfare Strategy to Dominate the Human Domain", Small Wars Journal, March 7, 2016.

CANSOF and Africa. Canadian special forces have recently completed their participation in the U.S. military exercise called "Flintlock" that was held in Africa. (Ottawa Citizen, Mar 7, 2016).

Australian Special Forces Chief Making Amends. It's tough for a special operations soldier nowadays. In the current atmosphere of political correctness it is like walking on thin ice. Then again, the military is not a place where sexual harassment should take place. Those irascible folks from down under! Read someone finding out how difficult navigating this new terrain is in "Cleared special forces chief apologises to complainants", The West Australian, March 9, 2016.

US SOF in Libya. General Tony Thomas, currently the head of the Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC) has been nominated by President Obama to head up the United States Special Operations Command (USSOCOM). He recently testified before (Wed, 9 Mar) the Senate Armed Services Committee where he stated that he supports the deployment of SOF to Libya to oppose the growth of the Islamic State. Read more in "Obama nominee supports sending special operators to Libya", The Hill Blog, March 9, 2015.

Italian SOF in Libya. The Italians made it in the news as well; although under unfavorable conditions. They have been accused of beating up (verbally and physically) news reporters in Libya. Probably a small incident but . . . (Eurasia Review, Mar 12, 2016).

SOF Mission in Somalia? It would seem that U.S. special operations are just about everywhere. A recent news report indicates that U.S. SOF conducted a helicopter assault on the al-Shabab terror group in Somalia. Read more in "U.S. Special Operations Forces Involved in Somalia Raid: Defense Officials", NBC News, March 9, 2016.

SOF, Corruption, and Somalia. One of the difficulties in working with foreign military forces that are engaged in internal conflicts is that the governments are usually corrupt. In underdeveloped nations this is usually the case. Thus special operations forces find themselves engaged in counterinsurgency efforts that prop up a corrupt government. This is true of Afghanistan, Iraq, and many other places. It is also true of Somalia. A good friend of mine who worked as a counterinsurgency advisor for several years in Afghanistan recently completed a two-year stretch in Somalia. His contract ended when he confronted a high-ranking Somali officer who was pocketing an excessive amount of money and supplies for his personal enrichment; robbing the lower ranking soldiers of ammunition, food, money, and other supplies. Want to know more? Read "Somalia: A Sober Assessment", Strategy Page, March 11, 2016.

SOF and the 'Small Footprint". Max Boot, a commentator on terrorism and national security, shares his thoughts on the over-reliance on special operations forces in Afghanistan, Iraq, and around the world in "The Perils of a Small Footprint", Commentary Magazine, March 10, 2016.

SF Training on Okinawa. The Green Berets of the 1st Special Forces Group train for many different types of missions in the Pacific region. Read more in "Special Forces get ready", Army.mil, March 10, 2016.

SF LTC in Anti-Trump Ad. Mike Waltz, a two-time Afghan veteran, occasional commentator on Fox News, and author of one or two books about Afghanistan has been seen nation-wide in a widely distributed anti-Trump ad. Read more in "Former Special Forces Commander Featured in New Anti-Trump Ad", Task & Purpose, March 7, 2016.

SOF is Evolving and Adapting. The United States Special Operations Command's operators are adapting to an ever changing security situation around the world. On any given day U.S. SOF are deployed to over 80 countries. Read a DoD News release on this topic. (DoD News, Mar 8, 2016).

SOF in Pacific. General Votel, commander of USSOCOM, says that special operations continue to work in the Asia-Pacific region. Read "Commander: SOCOM Never Left the Pacific", Seapower Magazine, March 8, 2016.

First Female SEALs in 2017? The Navy is pushing ahead to integrate women into the SEAL teams. New Navy documentation lays out the training, recruiting, and assignment plan to place women into previously closed special ops jobs. (Task & Purpose, Mar 11, 2016).

SOF & Maneuver Career Courses. The students of the Maneuver Captains Career Course and the SOF Captains Career Course are working together to enhance interoperability. (Bayonent & Saber, March 8, 2016).

NG SF General "H.B." Profiled. A Special Forces general gets himself into the news in "Olive Hill Childhood Was Foundation for Brigadier General", Journal-Times, March 9, 2016.

CIA Director at SEAL Event. John O. Brennan, the director of the Central Intelligence Agency recently spoke at the Navy SEAL Foundation 8th New York City Benefit Dinner in early March 2016. Your can read his prepared remarks in a transcript provided on the CIA's webpage.