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ISAF Reports Another Insider Attack

ISAF reports that two ISAF members died when attacked by two individuals wearing Afghan National Security Force uniforms. Insider attacks in 2013 were reduced from the large number that occurred in 2012. The attack took place in eastern Afghanistan. See the ISAF news release here.
http://www.dvidshub.net/news/120511/isaf-casualties

BG Rothstein to Head NATO ATC-Afghanistan

Brig. Gen. Michael D. Rothstein, commander, 56th Fighter Wing, Air Education and Training Command, Luke Air Force Base, Ariz., to commanding general, North Atlantic Treaty Organization Air Training Command-Afghanistan, North Atlantic Treaty Organization Training Mission-Afghanistan/Combined Security Transition Command-Afghanistan, and commander, 438th Air Expeditionary Wing, Air Combat Command, Kabul, Afghanistan.

Read the news release by the U.S. Department of Defense dated February 6, 2014 here.

Afghan Soldiers Very Concerned on Departure of ISAF

Members of the Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF) are dismayed that President Karzai has not signed the Bilateral Security Agreement (BSA). They have legitimate concerns on their ability to hold off the Taliban should ISAF advisors and "enablers" depart along with much of the aid money that would pay the salaries and costs of the 350,000 man security forces. Read more in "Afghan soldiers desperate for pact with U.S. criticize President Karzai for delay", The Washington Post, February 8, 2014.

Linda Robinson Interview - Village Stability Operations and SOF

Linda Robinson, an author and observer of the Special Operations Community, was recently interviewed about her newest book. Much of the interview centered on the Village Stability Operations (VSO) program launched in 2011 by the Combined Joint Special Operations Component Command - Afghanistan (CFSOCC-A). Read the interview entitled "Village Stability Operations and the Future of the American Way of War", Small Wars Journal, February 6, 2014.

"The Patrol" - A British Film Looking at the Afghan War

A former British officer who served in Afghanistan has written and directed an independent film about the realities of war for British troops in Afghanistan. The film is entitled "The Patrol". The director was not impressed with how the war was being prosecuted and felt that counter-insurgency was not being conducted properly. Read more in "The Patrol: a British look at modern warfare", The Telegraph, February 6, 2014.

Former National Security Adviser Jim Jones Talks about Future Problems with Afghanistan and Pakistan

Retired General Jim Jones, a former national security adviser for President Obama, was interviewed by Bloomberg Television about the Afghanistan conflict (as well as Pakistan). Jones says that even if the Bilateral Security Agreement is signed the U.S. will continue to be challenged by terrorist groups operating in Pakistan. He discusses Karzai, the Bilateral Security Agreement, possible re-emergency of the Taliban, and more. Read the transcript entitled "Jones Sees Terror Threat in Afghan Pakistan Region", Bloomberg News, February 7, 2014.

Ketamine Replaces Other Drugs at Point of Injury and During Medevacs in Afghanistan

For most of Operation Enduring Freedom casualties were treated with morphine and fentanyl to ease pain. However, in the past few years a new medical initiative to treat patients at the point of injury and during the initial MEDEVAC has taken place. The use of ketamine has proven to be effective as a substitute and according to a recent news release by the military. Read "4th Infantry Division continues ketamine initiative in Afghanistan", DVIDS, February 4, 2014.

Afghan Official Confident on Elections

The head of Afghanistan's Independent Election Commission (IEC) says that there is concern for violence during the April 2014 presidential elections. However, he states a number of improvements have been made that will ensure the 2014 election will be conducted better than the 2009 presidential election that was marred by violence, voter intimidation, ballot stuffing, corruption, and fraud. The election official is hoping to avoid some of the past election problems. Read more in "Afghanistan Says Set to Ensure Elections Avoid Past Problems", The New York Times, February 9, 2014.

Malnutrition in Afghanistan on the Rise in 2013

Despite billions of foreign aid pouring into Afghanistan every year there are still pockets of hunger among children in Afghanistan. According to the United Nations malnutrition in Afghanistan is on the rise. Read more in "Salt and Terror in Afghanistan", The Huffington Post, February 6, 2014.

An Afghan Interpreter's New Life in the United States

An Afghan interpreter who worked for the U.S. military in northeastern Afghanistan for over ten years is now living in the United States. He is one of the few interpreters that the U.S. State Department has approved for a visa - the majority of those interpreters have their visa applications rejected. It took two years for him to be able to get his visa all the while under constant threat of retaliation by the Taliban for working for the U.S. military. Although he is happy that he and his family are now safe there are still some challenges in adjusting to the new country, its people and culture. Read more in "Escape from Afghanistan: A father's journey", WUSA, February 9, 2014.

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You can receive the Afghan War News Daily Newsletter each day. It should arrive in your e-mail inbox at 5:00 am Eastern Standard Time. It is easy to subscribe. Send an e-mail to staff@afghanwarnews.info or go to www.afghanwarnews.blogspot.com and submit your subscription request in the "Follow by Email" dialogue box in the top of the right hand column. It is easy to unsubscribe. At the bottom of the newsletter click "unsubscribe" and you will be automatically unsubscribed.

Protests Against Corruption in Oruzgan Province After Australian Withdrawal

The remote province of Oruzgan in central Afghanistan is undergoing some security, corruption, and governance difficulties just two months after the Australia withdrawal from the province. Protests have broken out in Tarin Kowt - the capital of Oruzgan. The protesters are calling attention to the collusion of the provincial governor with the Taliban. They also cite numerous instances of corruption where aid money provided by foreign donor nations have been diverted by the provincial governor. There apparently is a big rift between the provincial governor and the provincial chief of police (Matiullah Khan). Provincial governors are not elected but are appointed through a process orchestrated by President Karzai. Read more in "Afghanistan: Violent protests break out in Oruzgan two months after Australians leave", The Sidney Morning Herald, February 10, 2014.

Guidance on Common Training Standards for Security Force Assistance (SFA) (DoD January 2014)

The Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness has published "Guidance on Common Training Standards for Security Force Assistance (SFA),  dated January 2014. The training standards are issued to assist the general purpose forces in sustaining the capability to perform the security force assistance or SFA mission. The pub was put together with the cooperation of USSOCOM and other defense organizations and agencies.

The primary purpose of the training standards are to: 1) "Provide a list of skills related to SAF that are common across the force and can be used as guidelines, with standards for measuring the qualifications of individuals and collective forces"; 2) "Offer a set of benchmarks for the Services to use to identify, train, and track individuals and collective forces conducting SFA"; 3) "Serve as a menu of SFA skills to help joint force commanders and planners articulate required capabilities when requesting forces".

You can read online or download the document at the link below:

Guidance on Common Training Standards for Security Force Assistance (SFA)

Sarah Chayes on Karzai - A Cozy Relationship with The Taliban

Many believe that President Hamid Karzai's behavior toward the United States is erratic and inconsistent and are having difficulty on figuring out why he has 'turned on the U.S'. Most point to the non-signing of the Bilateral Security Agreement, release of detainees with histories of attacking Americans, and his periodic out-bursts on night raids, civilian casualties, negotiations with the Taliban, and more. One very knowledgeable and long-term observer of the Afghan scene says that we shouldn't be surprised at Karzai's behavior - pointing to a "cozy history" with the Taliban in the past. Read Sarah Chayes latest opinion piece in "Hamid Karzai's cozy history with the Taliban", Los Angeles Times, February 9, 2014.

Miami Dolphin Cheerleaders Entertain Troops in Manas

Miami Dolphin cheerleaders performed on stage at the Transit Center at Manas, Kyrgyzstan on February 7, 2014. There were a total of five Miami Dolphin cheerleaders along with two former Miami Dolphin football players. Prior to their arrival at Manas they were on tour at several locations in Afghanistan. The National Football League has been very supportive with providing entertainment for the troops in Afghanistan. Manas will soon shut down and be replaced by a personnel transit center in Romania later this year. (Photo at left by Senior Airman George Goslin dated February 7, 2014.)

Request by Newspaper for Command Climate Report Related to Panjwai Massacre Denied by Pentagon

A request for the release of the findings of a command climate report conducted by the Army on a Special Forces base in Panjwai district, Kandahar province where the convicted murderer SFC Bales was assigned will not be released by the Pentagon. Rumors of alcohol consumption during the time that SFC Bales killed the Afghan villagers have circulated but the Army is not providing much insight into the goings-on at the camp. The Panjwai massacre took place in March 2012. Bales was convicted of murder and sentenced to life for the killing of 17 unarmed Afghan villagers to include women and children. Read more in "Could Bales have been stopped? Answers please", The Bellingham Herald, February 9, 2014.

Brief Introduction to Prime Movers in Afghan Elections

 A recent online post provides us with pictures and a brief bio of the prime movers in the upcoming April 2014 presidential elections that will be held in Afghanistan. Some of the more colorful presidential candidates are presented along with a few of the vice-presidential candidates. Read more in "Afghanistan's Future: Who's Who in Pivotal Presidential Election", NBC News, February 9, 2014.

Afghan High Peace Council Applauds Talks between Pakistan and TTP

The Afghan High Peace Council has welcomed news that peace talks have begun between the government of Pakistan and the Pakistan Taliban. For those who are unaware the Pakistan Taliban are the "bad Taliban" and the Afghan Taliban are the "good Taliban" - at least from the perspective of the Pakistani intelligence service. Read more in "Afghan Peace Council Praises Pakistan Talks", Radio Free Europe, February 7, 2014.

Afghanistan is Poppy Center of the World

Poppy Field in Zabul - Photo by SSG Brian Ferguson, DVIDS

A recent report states that there is more poppy cultivation in Afghanistan now than there was in 2002 just after the Taliban were removed from power. In the last few years poppy cultivation in Afghanistan has grown significantly. Afghanistan produced almost 90 percent of the world's opium in 2013. The United States has spent more than $10 billion since 2002 on counter-narcotics in Afghanistan. Prospects for getting the opium trade under control are dim. The U.S. military essentially walked away from opium eradication. Those programs that were funded and implemented by Afghan National Security Forces were ridden with corruption. There are some very well trained and capable counter-narcotic units in the ANSF but they are constrained by the corruption of the Karzai regime and provincial governors. Congress is in a dour mood when it comes to continued funding for anything with the name of Afghanistan attached to it. It might be time to concentrate on the demand side instead of the supply side of the heroin problem. Read more in "Afghanistan Continues to be Hub of Poppy Cultivation", Voice of America, February 8, 2014.

U.S. Won't Freeze Haqqani Cash Assets

A recent news report states that the U.S. has not frozen any of the Haqqani Network financial assets. This has prompted some criticism from members of Congress and other counter-terrorist experts. The U.S. has frozen the assets of some individual members designated as terrorists who belong to the Haqqani Network. Read more in "U.S. Won't Seize Taliban Ally's Cash", The Daily Beast, February 7, 2014.

U.S. Senators Seek Vote on Future Afghan Involvement

A group of Democrat and Republican Senators say they want a vote on the future U.S. involvement in Afghanistan. See "Senators Seek Vote on US Troops in Afghanistan", Associated Press, February 6, 2014.

242nd Engineer Detachment Heading to Afghanistan

The Connecticut Army National Guard has mobilized the 242nd Engineer Detachment (Construction Management Team) to deploy in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. The unit is now training at Fort Bliss, Texas and then will move on to Afghanistan to serve as a part of an engineer task force that is deconstructing and consolidating coalition bases as part of the retrograde process. Read more in "National Guard unit heads to Afghanistan", The Day, February 6, 2014.

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You can receive the Afghan War News Daily Newsletter each day. It should arrive in your e-mail inbox at 5:00 am Eastern Standard Time. It is easy to subscribe. Send an e-mail to staff@afghanwarnews.info or go to www.afghanwarnews.blogspot.com and submit your subscription request in the "Follow by Email" dialogue box in the top of the right hand column. It is easy to unsubscribe. At the bottom of the newsletter click "unsubscribe" and you will be automatically unsubscribed.

ANSF Can "Clear" but Not "Hold"

In what is painfully obvious to most observers of the Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF) is that fact that the ANSF can conduct clearing operations but they can't conduct hold operations very well. Of course, that is one of the principal reasons that the "Build" phrase of the counterinsurgency effort suffered such mixed results. So the ability of the ANSF to "clear, hold, and build" is lacking. In countering an insurgency being able to "clear, hold, and build" is crucial. Almost all ISAF members from brigade level on down recognize this fact. However, ISAF continues its information operations campaign that the ANSF can protect the population, has emerged from the 2013 fighting season on top of the Taliban, and is capable of conducting operations in the future that will keep the Taliban at bay. This does a disservice to those who want the real story (or perhaps the complete story). Fortunately there are leaders still left in the military that tell it like it is. Enter LTG Flynn, director of the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA), who will be testifying on Tuesday (Feb 10, 2014) at a Senate hearing. Those familiar with LTG Flynn know he doesn't pull any punches. Read more in "Afghan Forces Struggle to Hold Land, Defense Agency Says", Bloomberg News, February 10, 2014.

Former DCOM CSTC-A to be Promoted (MG Michael Williamson)

Army MG Michael Williamson has been selected for appointment to the rank of Lieutenant General and assignment as military deputy/director, Army Acquisition Corps in Washington, D.C. He most recently served as deputy commanding general, Combined Security Transition Command-Afghanistan. Read the news release "General Officer Announcement", U.S. Department of Defense, February 10, 2014.

Car Bomb Kills Two Civilian Contractors in Afghanistan

Two civilian contractors (reportedly Americans) were killed in a vehicle borne IED or VBIED in the Kabul area on Monday. The attack took place near the country's largest detention center in eastern Kabul. See the official news release in "ISAF Casualty", ISAF News, February 10, 2014. In a separate report (but possibly describing the same incident) three advisers were reported killed in the center of Kabul. Read more in "Three advisers killed in blast near center in Kabul", Stars and Stripes, February 10, 2014. There is a little confusion on the number of contractors - whether it was two or three. Here is an update from Stars and Stripes.

C-17 Globemasters Working Overtime for Afghan Retrograde

U.S. Air Force C-17 Globemaster III aircrews are working around the clock to support Operation Enduring Freedom retrograde operations, airlifting equipment out of Afghanistan and fulfilling a vital role at one of U.S. Central Command's regional deployment and distribution operations centers, strategically located air, land and sea logistics hubs. Airmen of the 816th Expeditionary Airlift Squadron fly multiple sorties a day to airlift mine resistant ambush protected vehicles out of Afghanistan. The MRAPs are airlifted out of Afghanistan to one of the transit locations where they are then loaded onto ships and sent on to the United States. Read the rest of the story in "Combat airlift role critical to retrograde operations", DVIDS, February 4, 2014. Photo from DVIDS photo libary.

Afghan Interpreters in Limbo - State Department Identified as Culprit

Read the story of an Afghan interpreter who has been waiting five years for his U.S. visa - U.S. visa backlog leaves Afghan interpreters in limbo, The Seattle Times, February 8, 2014.

III Corps Departs Afghanistan

III Corps has been the nucleus of the ISAF Joint Command (IJC) for the past year. It is now departing for its home base of Fort Hood, Texas. III Corps will be replaced by 18th Airborne Corps from Fort Bragg, North Carolina. The outgoing commander, LTG Mark Milley, provided some comments during his change of command about the situation in Afghanistan. He said that a lot of progress has been made but there certainly is more work left to do to include providing assistance to the Afghan National Security Force as they get ready for the presidential elections in April. Read more in "III Corps leaves Afghanistan", Killeen Daily Herald, February 9, 2014.

New Commander for ISAF Joint Command (IJC)

The commander of the 18th Airborne Corps from Fort Bragg, North Carolina has assumed command of ISAF Joint Command (IJC) from LTG Mark Milley of III Corps. Lieutenant General Joseph Anderson is a West Point graduate who has completed a number of military schools and training courses (Airborne, Ranger, Infantry, staff college, etc.). He has served in many demanding assignments throughout his army career and in quite a few of the Army's infantry units to include 4th Infantry, 5th Infantry (Mech), 75th Ranger Regiment, 187th Infantry Regiment, 82nd Airborne, 25th Infantry, and 101st Air Assault Division. In reviewing his bio posted on the Fort Bragg website one can see that  LTG Anderson has commanded and worked at all levels of the Army and has completed a some advanced degrees as well. He has had multiple deployments around the world to include the Balkans, Panama, and three tours in Iraq. Of note is the absence of any deployment time in Afghanistan. "Hmmmm". . . . . I am sure he is a quick learner.

Defense Official Outlines U.S. Counternarcotic Achievements in Afghanistan

A defense official testified before Congress providing information on the counter-narcotics fight in Afghanistan. She outlined the achievements that have been made thus far, provided information on what two billion dollars has bought in terms of counter-drug effort and capability, and lent insight into the problems that lie ahead. Read more in "Afghanistan Counternarcotics Efforts Continue, Official Says", American Forces Press Service, February 6, 2014.

Abdul Rab Rasoul Sayyaf - Potential President

A former warlord, Abdul Rab Rasoul Sayyaf, could very well be the next president of Afghanistan after the April 2014 Afghan elections. He comes with a certain amount of baggage - human rights abuses (the Hazaras are not fond of him), associations with terrorist organizations, and he is an Islamic hardliner. However, as the leader of a Pashtun party that is very anti-Taliban he enjoys a lot of support politically within Afghanistan. He is famous as a jihadi leader of a Pashtun militia against the Russians during the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan in the 1980s. Read more in "Former warlord launches campaign to succeed Karzai", The Washington Post, February 7, 2014.

Tie Between Combat Experience and Mental Health

A recent study provides evidence that there is a tie between a military members mental health and the amount of exposure to combat. As the combat experiences mount the problems of mental health grow. Read a report published by Mental Health Advisory Team 9 (MHAT 9), Afghanistan, 10 October 2013 posted here on armymedicine.mil.

White House Ponders a Post-2014 Afghanistan

There are a lot of opinions floating around the White House about what to do in Afghanistan post-2014. Zero Option, 10K, or just a few thousand are the proposals being floated. Some want Obama to plant the flag in the sand, declare victory, yank the flag out and leave Afghanistan completely (zero option), Vice President Biden wants a small counter-terrorism force of a few thousand left there to deal with the remnants of al Qaeda, and the generals are pushing for the 10K option which would allow for the counter-terrorism capability but also the advisory force that would conduct Security Force Assistance to the Afghan National Security Forces. Read more in "Old Tensions Resurface in Debate Over U.S. Role in Post-2014 Afghanistan", The New York Times, February 4, 2014.

5th Combat Service Support Kandak Receives Training at Camp Eagle, Afghanistan

Members of the 5th Combat Service Support (CSS) Kandak, 2nd Brigade, 205th Corps recently received training in logistics from American advisors. The course increased the ANA logistics capability which will improve sustainment and mobility of the other kandaks (battalions) in the 2nd Brigade. Training encompassed the ability to order, transport, and receive mission-essential equipment and supplies. The training provided by the advisors is geared to helping the ANA sustain itself in the future once the coalition withdraws. This is part of the shift from unit-based, combat-advising at the tactical level to advising along functional processes at lowest levels to the ministries (something that ISAF refers to as "functionally-based Security Force Assistance). Read more in "Sustainment and mobility: Afghans train on logistics for continued success", DVIDS, February 1, 2014.

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You can receive the Afghan War News Daily Newsletter each day. It should arrive in your e-mail inbox at 5:00 am Eastern Standard Time. It is easy to subscribe. Send an e-mail to staff@afghanwarnews.info or go to www.afghanwarnews.blogspot.com and submit your subscription request in the "Follow by Email" dialogue box in the top of the right hand column. It is easy to unsubscribe. At the bottom of the newsletter click "unsubscribe" and you will be automatically unsubscribed.

ISAF PR Campaign Against SIGAR

The Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR) has been writing reports that raise a lot of questions on the oversight the U.S. military, State Department, and USAID have on the billions of dollars flowing into the Afghan ministries. ISAF and USAID are fighting back - not so much by fixing the problems - but with an Information Operations campaign against SIGAR. Read more in "The Pentagon's PR War Against SIGAR", POGO Blog, February 4, 2012. View a PowerPoint presentation that General Dunford's staff prepared to depict how ISAF can deflect that SIGAR report findings here in the CAG Audit Plan of Action for SIGAR.

News on NTM-A Literacy Program

ISAF has provided us with another update on the Afghan National Security Forces literacy program. This news release is about the Darulaman Literacy Centre at the Regional Military Training Centre in Kabul. Read more in "NTM-A Literacy Program - building Afghanistan", DVIDS, February 8, 2014. It will make your heart pump fast and bring a glow to your cheeks. To rid yourself of the increased heart rate and the flushed appearance read a recent report by the Special Inspector General of Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR) on the failures of the ANSF literacy program here.

Afghan Combined Arms Training Course Conducted for First Time - Improving CAI

The Afghan War started in the Fall of 2001 when a small group of CIA agents and several Special Forces teams assisted the Northern Alliance and some Pashtun resistance groups in overthrowing the Taliban regime. It is now 2014 - more than 13 years later - and we are now making great strides in the professionalization of the Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF). For the first time (again, 13 years later) ISAF has assisted the Consolidated Fielding Centre (CFC) in the conduct of "the first ever Combined Arms Training course". The course was organized by mentors from NTM-A in partnership with the ANA Training and Education Command (ANATEC). In the shift from combat-oriented, unit-based advising to functionally-based Security Force Assistance (fbSFA) the advisors conducting Security Force Assistance are concentrating on five functional areas - Leadership, Command and Control, Combined Arms Integration, Training, and Sustainment. The Combined Arms Training course is an attempt to provide more professionalism in the Combined Arms Integration of the five functional pillars for ANSF development and sustainment. Read more in "ISAF and the ANSF focus on capability integration", DVIDS, February 8, 2014.

2nd MAW Returns from Afghan Deployment

Read about the return of the 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing (Forward) to Cherry Point after a long deployment in Afghanistan. See "2nd MAW Fwd returns after year long deployment", DVIDS, February 8, 2014.

Sangin Valley Now Cleared - Ready for Elections

A good news story from the ISAF information gurus say that the Sangin Valley is now more safe as a result of the Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF) clearing the valley prior to the elections. ANSF forces from the 2nd and 3rd Brigades of the 215th Corps along with members of the Afghan Uniform Police and other ANSF elements conducted the "completely Afghan-led operation" with only advisor-related help from coalition forces (that would be SFAAT 2-215). The operation took place over a nine day period ending 4 February and was designed to offer a better environment for potential voters and the local populace. Presumably the Taliban will not be able to re-infiltrate into the Sangin Valley in the time between February 4 and April 5 in order to disrupt the elections. Read more in "Afghans clear Sangin Valley prior to elections", DVIDS, February 8, 2014. Learn more about the Sangin Valley here.

Civilian Casualties Up 14 Per Cent in 2013

The United Nations has released a new report that states civilian casualties in the Afghan War rose by 14 per cent in the last year (2013). The United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) report states that it was the worst year since 2009 in terms of the number of women and children killed or injured as a result of conflict-related violence. The 2013 Annual Report on Protection of Civilians in Armed Conflict produced by UNAMA reflects a 7 per cent increase in deaths and a 17 per cent increase in injuries as compared to 2012. Read more about the UN report here in "Civilian casualties in Afghanistan up 14 per cent last year, says new UN report", UN News Centre, February 8, 2014. One of the tenets of the ISAF information operations campaign is that the Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF) is fully capable of protecting the Afghan population now that the ANSF is in the lead for security. Perhaps that should be re-worded a bit to say that the ASNF was 14% less capable in 2013 than they were in 2012 to protect the Afghan population. ISAF, in their never-ending attempt to inject a little sunshine into a cloudy day has released their news release about the discouraging news by UNAMA of the 14% increase in civilian casualties. See "UNAMA report released", DVIDS, February 8, 2014.

Sweden's SOG in Afghanistan

Sweden has been a consistent and dependable ally for the United States and the NATO troop contributing nations. In addition to the large Swedish presence in Regional Command North the Swedes have also deployed members of the Swedish Special Operations Group or SOG to Afghanistan. Read more in "Inside Secret Raids Performed by Swedish Special Operators", Business Insider, February 4, 2014.

New Commander for ISAF Joint Command (IJC)

ISAF Joint Command (IJC) has a new commander - LTG Joseph Anderson. In a ceremony in Kabul, LTG Mark Milley handed over command of IJC to LTG Anderson. Read more in "New No. 2 US commander takes reins in Afghanistan", The Washington Post, February 8, 2014.

Purdue University Partners with Herat University in Agricultural Program

The College of Agriculture at Purdue University will embark on a three-year venture funded by the State Department to improve agriculture in Afghanistan. The program will be in partnership with Herat University in western Afghanistan. The program will help the faculty at Herat University to provide academic programs supporting their nation's agriculture. Read more in "University readies another Afghan training program", AgriNews.com, February 1, 2014. Learn more about agriculture in Afghanistan.

Three Haqqani Operatives Assets Are Frozen

The United States has frozen the assets for three Haqqani operatives. Read more in "US freezes assets of three Afghan 'Haqqani militants'", BBC News Asia, February 6, 2014.

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You can receive the Afghan War News Daily Newsletter each day. It should arrive in your e-mail inbox at 5:00 am Eastern Standard Time. It is easy to subscribe. Send an e-mail to staff@afghanwarnews.info or go to www.afghanwarnews.blogspot.com and submit your subscription request in the "Follow by Email" dialogue box in the top of the right hand column. It is easy to unsubscribe. At the bottom of the newsletter click "unsubscribe" and you will be automatically unsubscribed.

Drones, Resolute Support, and Bilateral Security Agreement

All eyes are currently focused on the upcoming Afghan elections scheduled for April and the non-signing of the Bilateral Security Agreement by Karzai. The Bilateral Security Agreement will provide the legal basis for a continued troop presence in Afghanistan beyond December 2014 - which will be called Resolute Support. It is anticipated that the troop level will be 10,000 U.S. and 6,000 NATO. The Resolute Support mission will be two-fold. Counter-terrorism against remnants of al Qaeda and other high value targets and conducting an advise and assist mission  - now called functionally-based Security Force Assistance. An important part of the counter-terrorist mission is providing for a secure base from which to operate and support the use of drones (by both the military and the CIA). Read more on the importance of the ability to stage drones in Afghanistan post-2104 in "How Much is a Drone Base Worth?", The National Interest, January 27, 2014.

Religious Sect of U.S. Marines Demand Recognition and Rights for Norse Paganism Practice

On January 22, 2014 the Department of Defense issued a change to DoD Instruction 1300.17 entitled "Accommodation of Religious Practices Within the Military Services" (view DoDI 1300.7 here). According to a U.S. Department of Defense news release (see DoD Releases New Religious Accommodation Instruction, American Forces Press Service, January 22, 2014) the new instruction details its updated policy on making religious accommodations requested by service members. The new policy states that military departments will accommodate requests for the wearing of beards, turbans, religious apparel, and other tenets of their respective religions. The updated DoD instruction is quite specific as to which religious sects are covered by the new policy - including Sikh, Muslim, and Jewish members. However, one group of U.S. Marines is quite unhappy with the new policy as they feel their specific religious sect has been left out. This small religious group is comprised of members from Camp LeJeune, North Carolina who have converted to Norse Paganism and are now demanding that they be authorized to wear horns and wings on their helmets. The Marines have not as yet officially responded to the demands although there are unofficial reports that a working group has been established to determine the actual garb and equipment that Vikings wore into battle as they ravaged their way through England, France, Italy, Netherlands, Turkey, North Africa, Russia, and New Zealand. Read more in "Marines Convert to Norse Paganism, Demand Horns and Wings on Helmets", DD Blog, January 30, 2014.