Merry Christmas!

Christmas - Afghanistan 2002

Christmas Eve 2002 Camp Vance, Bagram Air Field

Cabinet Still Not Formed

The 'forced marriage' between Ghani and Abdullah is showing some signs of discord. The cabinet has not yet been named. Half of the positions were to be named by each; however President Ghani has not accepted the half by Abdullah due to lack of qualifications. Read more in "Afghan cabinet delays stoke worry, frustration", The Washington Post, December 23, 2014.

COMISAF & Afghans visit Pakistan

Top Afghan and U.S. generals have visited Pakistan this week to address anti-terrorism efforts with Pakistan's army chief General Raheel Sharif. The meeting was focused on military coordination on both sides of the border. Read more in "US, Afghan Generals in Islamabad for Border Security Talks", Voice of America, December 23, 2014.

ANA Kabul Bus Rides Halted

The intensified Taliban offensive in Kabul has caused the Afghan National Army (ANA) to stop the practice of transporting its soldiers to and from work on buses. A number of buses have been targeted by Taliban suicide bombers in recent months causing deaths and injuries. Read more in "After Bus Bombings, Afghan Army Halts Soldier Transports", Voice of America, December 16, 2014.

Pakistan to Execute Hundreds of Terrorists

Pakistan says it will begin executing nearly 500 prisoners convicted on terrorism-related charges in the coming weeks. The moratorium was imposed by Pakistan in 2008. The New York-based Human rights Watch (HRW) has called on Pakistan to immediately stop the execution of the death-row terrorists (of course). Read more in "Pakistan to Execute Hundreds of Terror Convicts", Gandhara Blog - Radio Free Europe, December 2, 2014.

Daily News Snippets (Dec 24, 2014)

Contractor Overbilled Pentagon. Lockheed Martin Integrated Systems over billed the Pentagon for work performed in Iraq and Afghanistan. Firm will repay $27.5 million to settle over billing charges. (Defense One, Dec 22, 2014).

Fixing America's Aid to Afghanistan. Jordan Olmstead, a freelance writer and Research Affiliate at the Southwest Initiative for the Study of Middle Eastern Conflict, says that the US needs a more strategic approach in providing assistance to the two troubled countries. He states that "An ideal aid program would be guided by four key principles: targeted, conditional, tiered, and post hoc." The Diplomat, Dec 23, 2014).
http://thediplomat.com/2014/12/fixing-americas-aid-to-afghanistan-and-pakistan/

General John Campbell, COMISAF, accompanied Afghan Army Chief General Sher Mohammad Karimi on a visit to the Pakistani Chief of the Army General Raheel Sharif in Islamabad, Pakistan. The meeting focused on coordinating Pakistan-Afghanistan military and counter-terrorism operations on both sides of the border. The generals agree that their subordinate commanders will begin meeting immediately to further coordinate border area security operations. (Editors Note: Up to this point the Afghan military representatives to previous border meetings have been outclassed by their Pakistan counterparts. And outmaneuvered.) Read more in a new release by ISAF News, Dec 23, 2014.

Pay Raise for Army. U.S. Army Soldiers will receive a one-percent increase in basic pay in January. Read more in a news release by DoD News, Dec 22, 2014.

Broke Afghan Government. The Kerry-brokered Afghan power-sharing agreement hasn't resolved any problems, or appointed any ministers. Read more in "Afghanistan's Still-Broken Government", The American Conservative, December 23, 2014.

COMISAF Spells It Out. Are you wondering what the mission is in Afghanistan? How well are the Afghan National Security Forces doing? General John Campbell spells it out in an article found on the website of Defense News (Dec 23, 2014).

China Hacking Afghan Gov Websites? It appears that someone in China is hacking the websites of the Afghan government. Read more in "Is China hacking Afghan government sites", The Hill, December 22, 2014. See also "China Blamed for Operation Poisoned Helmand Attack on Afghan Sites", Info  Security Magazine,  December 23, 2014.

Analysis of Peshawar School Massacre. John Wilson has penned a piece for Eurasia Review (Dec 22, 2014) entitled "Peshawar Massacre: What Now?" where he explains the complex situation of "Good" and "Bad" Taliban and how the Pakistanis seem fixated on establishing "strategic depth" by continuing to back the Afghan Taliban in its fight against the Afghan government.

Afghan Film Breaks New Ground. A film depicting life in northern Afghanistan has been released that depicts the harsher side of Afghan culture. Read more in "The Afghan film where a Buzkashi game decides a woman's future", BBC News Asia, December 23, 2014.

Taliban Smelling Blood. The ISAF information operations machine tells us that all is well, the Afghans are in the lead, the transition is a success, and that we merely have to educate the Afghans on how to properly fill out their MoD 14s so their logistics system will work. Others, however, are not buying the PR offensive of paradise in the Hindu Kush. Read "Afghanistan: From Bad to Worse", Asia Sentinel, December 23, 2014.

Why Internet Browse for Afghan War News?

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Afghan Commandos Are Ready

The U.S. Army Special Forces has been working with the Afghan Commando Kandaks for a number of years; ever since the first Commando Kandak was established in 2007. There are currently nine Commando Kandaks with plans for establishing a 10th. The Commando Kandaks have become more capable every year and are currently able to operate independently of advisors - although advisors are still present. With the increasing capability of the kandaks U.S. Army Special Forces have been able to draw down their forces in Afghanistan. As of December 2014 there will be only one battalion-sized U.S. Special Operations Task Force. There will be, however, some specialized units remaining to conduct counter-terrorist missions as well as numerous Special Operations Advisor elements to work with the higher level staff elements of the ANA at ministry and institutional level. Read more in "With U.S. leaving, elite Afghan commandos take up mission", Fayetteville Observer, December 15, 2014.

HELISAF - Spanish SAR in Afghanistan

ISAF Helicopters over Badghis province
(Photo TSgt Kevin Wallace)

As we reach the final days of the ISAF mission and the beginning of the Resolute Support mission a bit of history is slipping by. The past 13 years have seen numerous countries take part in the Afghan War. Beginning in January 2015 the commitment to Afghanistan, about 12,000 personnel, will provide advisory coverage on only four out of the six ANA Corps and some small bases in Kabul. As 2015 goes by the footprint will get even smaller; with about 6,000 troops at Bagram and Kabul only as 2016 begins. In an effort to capture some of the past history of the different nations participating the Afghan War News Blog will provide some glimpses of past operations, units, and events.

To this end we are highlighting an article about the Spanish Air Force Search and Rescue (SAR) teams that served for a number of years in western Afghanistan. The SAR teams (helicopters, crew, medical, and Spanish Air Force Special Force) provided medical evacuation (MEDEVAC) capability to the International Security Assistance Force's (ISAF) Regional Command West (RC-West). Erwan de Cherisey, an aviation expert and war correspondent wrote an extensive article detailing the Spanish SAR capabilities and a descriptive explanation of how they conducted their very important mission. Read "HELISAF: Spanish SAR in Afghanistan", Air Forces Monthly.com, February 2014 (posted on Spanish Department of Defense website).

Level II Advising Explained - 203rd Corps

With the drawdown of Coalition forces and closure of a significant number of small and large bases the reach of  U.S. and other troop contributing nations has diminished. Two of the six ANA corps and corresponding police units no longer have advisors on a permanent, persistent (daily face-to-face contact). Instead, advisors travel on a periodic basis to the 'uncovered corps' (203rd and 215th) to check in with the ANA leadership and staff. This is called "Level II Advising". Train, Advise, Assist Command - East is responsible for two corps - the 201st and 203rd. While TAAC-East gets to see the 201st everyday (as it is co-located with the 201st at FOB Gamberi) it has to travel to visit the 203rd,  Afghan Border Police, Afghan National Police, and the Operational Coordination Center (OCC).

In October, with the closure of the U.S. FOB Lightning in Gardez, the advising effort in southeastern Afghanistan transitioned to "Level II Advising". This type of advising is conducted by email, phone calls, and occasional visits. The infrequent advising trips, called Expeditionary Advisory Packages (EAPs), are planned and coordinated with Afghan counterparts. The EAPs are conducted just a couple of times a month.

Soon, the 203rd Corps - because it is doing so well in defeating the Taliban in contested districts like Azra, Nerkh, Chak, Mohammad Agha, and others - will progress to "Level III" advising. Level III advising for the 203rd Corps will begin in January 2015 and will be conducted by an "Advise and Assist Cell" or ACC based in Kabul. As other Afghan army corps and regional security forces continue to progress in 2015, the AAC will assume Level III advisory responsibility from each of the five TAACs currently partnered with Afghan security forces. By 2016, the AAC will conduct advising of all Afghan security forces from Kabul.

Information for this post taken from "Army, USMC generals talk Afghanistan transition on advisory trip", ISAF News, December 20, 2014.

Helmand Province - Taliban Offensive

The 2014 fighting season, typically over by this time of the year, is still ongoing in Helmand province. With the departure of British troops and U.S. Marines a few months earlier the 215th ANA Corps and the Afghan police are now on their own. The Taliban are pushing hard to take over one or more districts (one of them Sangin). The situation is so bad that the 215th ANA Corps commander was replaced recently. Read more in "Taliban Push Into Afghan Districts That U.S. Had Secured", The New York Times, December 22, 2014.

Afghan Govt Websites Have Malware

ThreatConnect, a cybersecurity firm based in Virginia, says that its researchers found a corrupted JavaScript file used to host content on "gov.af" websites. It seems the malware, likely linked to China, has no known antivirus remedies. The firm believes that "Operation Poisoned Helmand" is linked to Chinese intelligence. The malware was found on websites for the ministries of justice, foreign affairs, education, commerce and industry, and others. Read more in "U.S. firm finds malware targeting visitors to Afghan government websites", Reuters, December 21, 2014.

Culture: Weddings Costly in Afghanistan

Weddings are very costly in Afghanistan. Since the fall of the Taliban wedding costs have increased enormously. The government of Afghanistan is trying to put a cap on wedding costs. Costs of weddings for the upper class can go to $20,000 and beyond. Because of these costs a person can not get married for many years. Some engagements last over five years. Dresses are expensive - from $100 to $2,000. To compensate for the increased costs mass weddings are gaining popularity. View a video (4 mins) entitled "My big fat pricey Afghan wedding", NATO Channel, December 22, 2014.

CIA Continues to Assist Pakistan

Shuja Nawaz, a distinguished fellow at the Atlantic Council's South Asia Center, writes an opinion about the CIA and the help it provides Pakistan in fighting terrorism. In 2011, the Central Intelligence Agency and the ISI (Pakistan's intel service), were not on speaking terms. However, there is a thaw in the air and some collaboration is taking place. According to Nawaz, the atmosphere can improve if the CIA would only try to understand ". . . Pakistan's aspirations and fears." (Hmmmm.) He says that the CIA ". . . should attempt to broaden its official relationships inside Pakistan to strengthen the country's civilian intelligence bureau and the newly formed National Counter Terrorism Authority." Yep. Work more closely with the ISI - the same organization from a country that sheltered Osama bin Laden, keeps Mullah Omar safe, and provides support and sanctuary to the Afghan Taliban. Read more in his opinion piece in The New York Times, December 21, 2014.

Kandahar PCoP & Cross-Border Opns

The Provincial Chief of Police (PCoP) for Kandahar has authorized his forces to respond to insurgent attacks from across the Afghan-Pakistan border. He states that insurgents will fire there weapons within 100 meters of Pakistani forces. The Ministry of Interior says that the support PCoP Raziq's actions. Read more in "MoI Backs Raziq to Respond to Cross Border Attacks", Stars and Stripes, December 22, 2014.

Hope for Afghanistan

The Director of the Afghanistan Research and Evaluation Unit (AREU) provided a briefing on December 17, 2014 for the Asia Society Policy Institute. You can read the transcript at the link below. Despite continued Taliban violence, a slowing economy, and political uncertainty (no cabinet thus far) there is some cause for hope. The Taliban were not able to disrupt the elections and the international community has signaled continued support in the coming years. Read more in "Afghan Think Tank Director Sees 'Growing Political Maturity' and Support for Democracy", Asia Society, December 18, 2014.

Backgrounder: Taliban

Zahid Hussain provides us with a backgrounder on the Taliban's re-emergence since 2001 on both sides of the Durand line. Hussain is the author of Frontline Pakistan: The Struggle with Militant Islam and several other books and journal contributions. He is currently a columnist for Pakistan's daily Dawn newspaper and is a former correspondent for the Times of London and the Wall Street Journal. From 2011 to 2012 he was the Pakistan Scholar at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars in Washington, D.C. His extensive and informative article is entitled "The Taliban Question", The Cairo Review of Global Affairs, October 19, 2014.

Challenges of Afghan Government

Afghanistan is entering the new year with a host of new challenges; and they will be getting less help in meeting those challenges. The cabinet has still not been formed up by Ghani and Abdullah, the insurgency is intensifying, attacks in Kabul have increased, and the Afghan National Security Forces are still experiencing capability gaps in logistics, aviation, and intelligence. The drug trade and corruption hampers development and governance in the rural areas. While the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) and Afghan government officials are issuing confident messages about the "National Unity Government", "transition", and "Afghan security forces in the lead" - others are more wary about the future. One of those expressing concern is Kate Clark of the Afghanistan Analysts Network (AAN). Read more in "After Pivotal 2014, Afghanistan Faces New Challenges With Less Help", Voice of American, December 22, 2014.

Revisit Afghan Endgame

Bruce Riedel, writing for Brookings, provides us with his opinion on what is to be done in Afghanistan. He says that President Obama's decision to publicly lay out his timeline for ending American troop involvement in Afghanistan was a mistake. Riedel also informs us that Pakistan needs to be pressured to end its support to the Taliban.

"But the real problem has not changed: Pakistani support for the Taliban insurgency. Pakistan's intelligence agency, the ISI, has been providing the Taliban with safe haven and sanctuary in Pakistan for over a decade. The ISI participates directly in planning Taliban operations and target selection against Nato and Afghan targets. It helps arm and fund the Taliban and assists its fundraising efforts in the Gulf states".

Riedel concludes with a recommendation that the withdrawal from Afghanistan should be event driven and not time driven; that Obama should revisit his timeline and endgame. In addition, he thinks that India should step up and assist Afghanistan more than it does and that real pressure needs to be applied to Pakistan to stop their support of the Afghan Taliban. Read his article in "Revisit Afghanistan's End Game Plan", Brookings, December 15, 2014.