Afghan War Blog

Wednesday, March 11, 2015

UN Report on Afghanistan

The United Nations has published a report (dated 27 Feb 2015) entitled "The Situation in Afghanistan". This report is published every three months and presented to the UN Security Council and UN General Assembly. The report provides an update on the activities of the United Nations in Afghanistan, including significant humanitarian, development and human rights efforts. It also provides a summary of key political and security developments and regional and international events related to Afghanistan.

www.un.org/en/ga/search/view_doc.asp?symbol=S/2015/151

Preserving Afghan History

Jack Detsch worries about the treasures of antiquity in Afghanistan. He believes more needs to be done to stop the looting of Afghan's historical sites. Read more in "Preserving History: Lessons from Afghanistan and Iraq", The Diplomat, March 10, 2015.

Avalanches in Afghanistan

Afghanistan had a winter with little snowfall - which is a concern for the farmers that rely on the snow melts of the mountains to feed the streams and rivers that irrigate the crops in spring. However, a lot of snow has recently showed up - causing floods, avalanches, deaths, road blockages, and energy shortages. One geologist, Ikramuddin Bahram, feels that the Afghan government and international community could do much more to minimize the damage these natural disasters cause. He provides and explanation of avalanches in Afghanistan and he recommends a series of measures that should be taken before next winter's snowfalls. Read "A Perfect (Snow) Storm: What can be done against avalanche damage in Afghanistan", Afghanistan Analysts Network (AAN), March 10, 2015.

USSOCOM Cdr: Get Counseling

USSOCOM Cdr Tells Troops to get Counseling. Suicides by special operators have fallen for two straight years but rates are still too high. The commander of the United States Special Operations Command (USSOCOM) has received counseling and wants his men to do so as well. "The high rate of special operations suicides as compared to the other services reflects the strain of more than a decade of deployments since the attacks . . . " of 9/11. This trend continues for special operators (who continue to deploy at a steady pace) as the deployments of conventional forces wind down. Read more in "Top U.S. Commando Tells Troops: Get Counseling, I Did", by Kimberly Dozier, The Daily Beast, March 10, 2015.

Afghan Drawdown Needs Modification

A commentator, Thomas F. Lynch III, has called for a modified drawdown plan for Afghanistan. Lynch, a research fellow at the National Defense University (NDU) and someone with significant Afghan experience, states that the need for ". . . a comprehensive policy and strategy review for post-2014 military-intelligence support to Afghanistan needs to be conducted in early 2015". Read his analysis and recommendations in "There is Still Time to Keep Afghanistan from Going the Way of Iraq - If Drawdown Plans are Significantly Modified", Foreign Policy Research Institute (FPRI), March 2015.

Book Review - Code Black

George Vlachonikolis reviews a newly published book entitled "Code Black" by Mark Evans. It is the story of a British Army Officer, Captain Mark Evans, and his deployment to Afghanistan in 2008. The book is about a two month long period where Evans, a small British unit, and an Afghan National Army (ANA) kandak were in intensive fighting in Nad Ali. The book reviewer - Vlachnonikolis - finds that the relationship between Evans and the ANA kandak commander reveals much about how the Afghan War was fought in general. Read the book review below published on March 10, 2105 - "The Trouble With Our Afghan "Led" Campaign".

http://warontherocks.com/2015/03/the-trouble-with-our-afghan-led-campaign/

Daily News Snippets (Mar 11, 2015)

Pajihwok Afghan News reports that 27 people were killed or wounded in a car bomb suicide attack in Lashkergah.

Afghanistan for many years was at the forefront of the "Global War on Terror" (GWOT). However, once President Obama took office, the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq turned into "Overseas Contingency Operations" (OCO). This was an attempt by the administration to 'rebrand' the conflicts, move away from the 'terrorism' narrative, and pave the way for a withdrawal from both Iraq and Afghanistan. Well, the global war on terror is still with us, if under a different name. We are still in Afghanistan and are about to pass the AUMF that authorizes combat operations in Iraq (once again). In recent testimony before the Senate Armed Services Committee, James Clapper - the director of national intelligence - says that the terrorism threat is as bad as it ever has been. Read more in "In campaign against terrorism, U.S. enters period of pessimism and gloom", The Washington Post, March 7, 2015.

Cricket. In a sport that most Americans know little about, Afghanistan seems to be doing well. One commentator feels that the bowlers and batsmen from Kabul have become the world's favorite underdogs. Read more in "Afghanistan's Little Cricket Team That Could", Foreign Policy, March 9, 2015.

The ICRC has been active in Afghanistan for many years. One of the services the ICRC provides is ". . .artificial limbs and physical rehabilitation for people disabled by the war in Afghanistan . . . ".There are seven ICRC centers and the largest is located in Kabul. Take a guided, interactive tour of the Kabul center at the link below:

www.icrcproject.org/interactive/2013-07-orthocenter-kabul.html

Matthew Dearing, an assistant professor at the National Defense University, questions the U.S. implementation of the Leahy Law in regards to Afghanistan. The law prohibits U.S. funds being sent to foreign security forces implicated in human rights violations. A recent report by the Human Rights Watch (HRW) suggests the Leahy Law is applicable. But wouldn't that set back all the advances recently made over the past decade? Read more in "Nation Building is Dirty Business", Foreign Policy, March 10, 2015.

Some security analysts are predicting the defeat of the Haqqani Network - saying that the latest offensive by the Pakistani military in North Waziristan dislodged them from their support base and the groups terrorist activities has caused diminished popular support. Hmmm, we shall see. Read more in "Haqqani Network on verge of collapse, analysts say", Central Asia Online, March 9, 2015.

Guest Bloggers Wanted

The Afghan War News Blog and the Afghan War News website are constantly striving to keep its blog, daily newsletter, and website factual, current, and relevant. If you have a link to a website or document you feel should be shared with the greater community then please send it to us. In addition, we are looking for individuals with some knowledge, experience, and expertise in Afghanistan on a wide range of topics to contribute blog posts and articles to our blog and add content to our website. And naturally, if you see errors, outdated information, or broken links please let us know.

staff@afghanwarnews.info

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Tuesday, March 10, 2015

Afghan Refugee Dilemma

In the last ten weeks almost 52,000 Afghans living in Pakistan have packed up their belongings and crossed the border into Afghanistan. There are two possible reasons for the exodus - 1) the Pakistan military is running operations against militants in the vicinity of refugee camps, 2) the Pakistan government has decided to conduct a repatriation campaign for Afghan refugees, and 3) time is running out for the validity of ID cards for registered refugees in Pakistan. A big problem for the refugees arriving in Afghanistan is the lack of an Afghan government program to receive and resettle refugees and diminished international humanitarian aid for arriving refugees. Christine Roehrs of the Afghanistan Analysts Network (AAN) has been looking into the current politics around the Afghan refugees in Pakistan and the fate that awaits the returnees in their home country of Afghanistan.

Read Christine's article in "The Refugee Dilemma: Afghans in Pakistan between expulsion and failing aid schemes", AAN, March 9, 2015.

USIP Report - Rule of Law (RoL)

The United States Institute of Peace (USIP) has published a report entitled Islamic Law, Customary Law and Afghan Informal Justice - dated March 6, 2015. The author of the report is Hamid Khan, deputy director of the Rule of Law Collaborative at the University of South Carolina. He previously served as a senior rule of law program officer with the Center for Governance, Law and Society at USIP.

"As Afghanistan's nascent democracy works to establish the rule of law across the country, it finds itself contending with the ways that Islamic law converges and diverges from the tribal norms that shape the settling of disputes outside Kabul. Based on surveys conducted in Afghanistan, this report examines the points of tension and agreement between Islamic and customary laws, looking into both of their pasts to suggest a way forward for the Afghan state, particularly in granting greater rights and protections to women".

This could be a helpful reference for current or future Rule of Law advisors working in Essential Function 3 (RoL) at Resolute Support Headquarters in Afghanistan.

www.usip.org/publications/2015/03/06/islamic-law-customary-law-and-afghan-informal-justice

President Ghani to Visit U.S. - His 5 Tasks

President Ghani will soon visit the United States. He will meet with lots of folks to include President Obama. He is taking his Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Abdullah Abdullah in an effort to show his partnership in the National Unity Government (NUG) is strong. The relationship between Afghanistan and the United States became strained because of the antics of the former President Karzai and his refusal to sign the Bilateral Security Agreement. Most observers expect Ghani to ask for a delay in the departure of U.S. troops, advisors and enablers (air support, Intel assets, ISR, etc.). Tamim Asey outlines five tasks that should be accomplished by Ghani in his recent news article.

1. Rebuild Afghanistan's image & U.S. relations
2. Secure long-term security and economic assistance
3. Seek a stronger U.S. role in peace process
4. More U.S. involvement with Afghan regional neighbors
5. Secure U.S. assistance to help Afghanistan become trade, transit, energy hub

Tamin Asey is a Fulbright alumni and a Columbia University graduate. He is currently a Kabul-based researcher and writer. You can read his article in "Afghanistan" Five Tasks for Ghani's Crucial U.S. Visit", The Diplomat, March 9, 2015.

http://thediplomat.com/2015/03/afghanistan-five-tasks-for-ghanis-crucial-u-s-visit/

Peace Efforts with Pakistan Raise Questions

Many Afghans are welcoming the attempt by President Ghani to start peace talks with the Taliban. Some say he is taking the right approach by working with Pakistan to get the Taliban to the peace table. After all, it is the Pakistanis that support the Afghan Taliban with sanctuaries, intelligence, financing, and specialized equipment. However, many Afghans are leery of trusting the Pakistanis. They view the recent shift in Pakistan's position regarding the Afghan Taliban as merely a public relations ploy. Some think that President Ghani is giving way too much in return for very little from Pakistan. Read more in "Afghan Peace Efforts Reopen Wounds Over Pakistan", The New York Times, March 8, 2015.

HRW to be Sued by Afghan Warlord

The international organization "Human Rights Watch" (HRW) has been threatened by a strongman from northern Afghanistan. The Governor of Balkh province, Atta Mohammad Noor, has threatened to sue HRW over its latest report which accused him of controlling and funding local militias implicated in serious rights abuses. The HRW report profiles eight Afghan warlords suspected of human rights violations. Read more in "Afghan Warlord Threatens to Sue Human Rights Watch", Gandhara Blog, March 9, 2015.

Abandonment of COIN . . . But Wait . . .

We have seen the swift rise and fall of Western counterinsurgency (COIN) between 2004 and 2014 as practiced in Afghanistan, Iraq, and a few other places. While, at the same time, Islamic extremist groups and other insurgents, continue to wage hybrid and other forms of insurgent warfare in Afghanistan, Iraq, and many other places. So if COIN is discredited what type of warfare will replace it? Learn more in an article by Michael Evans entitled "The Shirt of Nessus: The Rise and Fall of Western Counterinsurgency", Quadrant Magazine, January 21, 2015.

PSOTEW Workshop (Apr 14-16, 2015)

The US Army Peacekeeping and Stability Operations Institute (PKSOI) will hold the 2015 Peace and Stability Operations Training and Education Workshop (PSOTEW) on April 14-16, 2015 at Fort McNair, National Defense University (NDU) in Washington, DC.

"This workshop brings together trainers, practitioners, planners, and educators from U.S. and international governmental and military organizations, non-governmental organizations, peace and stability training centers, and academic institutions to review training and education efforts in the milieu of stability and peace operations . . .".

http://pksoi.army.mil/conferences/psotew/

NYT's Opinion - No Cause to Delay Pullout

So is our withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan to be time-based or conditions-based? Military leaders now say that it is conditions-based but realists know that President Obama has a timeline. After all, he has his legacy to think of - getting America out of two wars during his presidency. General Campbell, the commander of the Resolute Support mission, says that he is not going to be hesitant in asking for more time if he needs it. Secretary of Defense Ash Carter says the same. President Ghani will soon visit the White House and most all observers think he will ask for a delay in the troop withdrawal timeline. However, not everyone agrees that Afghanistan needs more time. Read "No Cause to Delay the Afghan Pullout", The New York Times, March 9, 2015.

Afghan War News Snippets (Mar 10, 2015)

Kabul Governor. According to recent postings on Twitter the Kabul governor - Abdul Jabbar Taqwa - has resigned for personal reasons.

Marshal Fahim. The one year anniversary of the death of Marshal Mohammad Qasim Fahim has arrived.

Afghan Turkmen. A story about Afghan Turkmen living on the Afghan-Turkmenistan border describes a desperate situation. It seems they are squeezed by the Taliban for taxes and the Afghan government can't do anything to stop it. In addition, attempts to leave their villages to seek medical care are denied by the Taliban. The Turkmenistan government is not quite helping the situation. Read more in "Turkmenistan Keeping Aloof From Afghan Turkmen", Gandhara Blog, March 9, 2015.

Peace Talks in March? There's lots of talk about peace talks with the Taliban. Supposedly China and Pakistan are assisting. Some reports deny there are any peace talks. Some reports say any dialogue is "unofficial". Read more in "Afghan Peace Talks Are Fraught with Stumbling Blocks", Gandhara Blog, March 9, 2015.

ISIS Spreading to Afghanistan. The head of the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) warned that ISIS is spreading to Libya, Afghanistan, and Pakistan while testifying before the Senate defence committee. Read a news article in CBC News dated March 9, 2015.

The War is Boring blog has an article about a the contract helicopter firms that worked in Afghanistan and how the rules were sometimes not followed. Read "A Columbian Merc Firm Was the Pentagon's Shadiest Afghanistan Contractor" March 9, 2015.

An article by Keith Nightingale provides us with information on the "secret file cabinets of the mind" that combat veterans take home with them. Read "Thoughts on coming home from combat: Some things you never leave behind", The Best Defense Blog, March 9, 2015.

It appears that the desertion case of Bowe Bergdahl may be coming to a conclusion. Read "Bowe Bergdahl's Legal Limbo", Foreign Policy, March 9, 2015.

Explore Your Creativity

Daily Newsletter - Afghan War News

Monday, March 9, 2015

First Flights for Afghan A-29 Pilots (March 5th, 2015)

(Photo of A-29 Moody AFB, GA Mar 5, 2015)

The flight training for Afghan pilots who will be flying the A-29 Super Tocano in Afghanistan in late December 2015 or early 2016 has just started. Eight students had their first flight in the A-29 on March 5, 2015 at Moody Air Force Base, Georgia. The A-29 will be used by the AAF to provide critical air support to ground forces.

International Women's Day (Mar 8, 2015)

Sunday, March 8th, 2015 was celebrated around the world as International Women's Day (IWD). Afghanistan had its share of speeches and events as well. Various commentators provided us insight on these speeches, events, and the general situation of women in Afghanistan. Below are some of the dispatches that recently hit the Internet world.

The 2015 International Women of Courage Award Ceremony took place on March 6, 2015. Every year women from across the globe are recognized by the Department of State. The ceremony was hosted by the Deputy Secretary of State Heather Higginbottom and Ambassador Catherine Russell at the Department of State in Washington, D.C. An Afghan female Air Force pilot, Captain Nilofar Rahmani, was one of eight international women recognized. She is awarded the presentation at the 11:00 minute mark of the video. (posted on YouTube.com by Department of State, videos is 30 minutes long).
www.youtube.com/watch?v=FpqqUhuLaYA

AAN - Less Speeches and More Action on IWD. "One Day in a Year: Afghan views on International Women's Day", by Naheed Esar Malikzay of Afghanistan Analysts Network (AAN), March 8, 2015. The writer would like to see less speeches and more action. Also provides a history of the origins of International Women's Day and comments on the current situation of women in Afghanistan.

Lela Gilbert writing for Fox News provides us with a short history of IWD and sums up the status of women in the Islamic world. Read "International Women's Day: Celebrating and remembering", Fox News, March 8, 2015.

National Action Plan. Elizabeth Weingarten and Lella Hilal write in The Weekly Wonk about women in Afghanistan and the United Nation's National Action Plan (NAP). See "Women and Men in Afghanistan Are Taking Action for Peace".

USAID News Report. Joanne Lewa worked on a six-month temporary assignment in Afghanistan for USAID. She writes women's leadership, women in the economy and politics, and education and health for women in Afghanistan. See "From Kenya to Kabul: Women as Decision-Makers, Entrepeneurs, and Leaders", USAID, March 6, 2015.

NATO Channel posted a short video on YouTube.com celebrating women International Women's Day by highlighting the essential role of women in defence and security from high level decision making to serving in the armed forces. Nice pictures and music compressed into 42 seconds published on March 7, 2015. Some text put on screen. www.youtube.com/watch?v=d-BymkxM-qo

EU Factsheet on Promoting Afghan Women Leaders. The European Union lists accomplishments made thus far for Afghan women but notes that more work needs to be done and Afghan women will need continued support and advocacy. The EU has announced new initiatives to specifically focus on offering training opportunities to Afghan women.

IFEX has published a news article entitled "How Afghanistan's female journalists are covering the stories no one else can" (March 6, 2015).

The Institute for War & Peace Reporting (IWPR) has posted comments by Shahla Farid, a law lecturer at Kabul University about IWD. (March 2015).

Margh Militia - Driven by Fear of IS

A new militia group formed in Mazar-e-Sharif has Afghan government officials worried. The members say they have formed up their group to fight off any possible attempt by the Islamic State (IS) to establish a foothold in the Mazar-e-Sharif area in northern Afghanistan. It appears that the group is non-sectarian as it has members who at Tajiks, Uzbeks, Pashtuns, and Hazaras. There are Sunni and Shiite Muslims among their fighters. Not much is known about who is funding or organizing the group (I am sure someone knows but just isn't saying). Read more in "Fear of the Islamic State spawns a renegade Afghan militia", The Washington Post, February 25, 2015.

Security Incidents Increase in Feb 2015

Tolo News has reported that there were 848 security incidents in Afghanistan in February 2015. This was a 22 percent increase over January 2015. Southern Helmand province suffered most of the incidents followed by Nangarhar and Kunar in the east, Herat in the west, Kandahar in the south. Read more in "22 Percent Increase in Security Incidents", Tolo News, March 8, 2015.

Paper - MODA Program

The United States Government Accountability Officer (GAO) has published a report for Congress entitled Building Partner Capacity: DoD Should Improve its Reporting to Congress on Challenges to Expanding Ministry of Defense Advisors Program, February 2015. The GAO report has found that the Department of Defense has expanded the Global Ministry of Defense Advisors (MODA) program more slowly than planned. The Ministry of Defense Advisors (MODA) program partners DoD civilian experts with foreign defense and security officials to build core competencies in key areas such as strategy and policy, human resources management, acquisition and logistics, and financial management. The program began in Afghanistan in July 2010, and Congress authorized the Secretary of Defense, with the concurrence of the Secretary of State, to carry out a program to assign DoD civilian employees as advisors to the ministries of defense of foreign countries. You can read the GAO report here - "Building Partner Capacity" at the PKSOI website. Read a DoD MODA program overview.

Daily News Snippets (Mar 9, 2015)

The Fire and Disaster Police Directorate of the Ministry of Interior (MoI) received 54 new fire trucks. The trucks were financed by the Combined Security Transition Command - Afghanistan (CSTC-A). They will be deployed to fire stations in Kabul and the provinces.
www.eupol-afg.eu/node/548

Hazara Hostages. A few days back the Ministry of Defense issued press reports that a major operation was underway to rescue 30 Hazara hostages taken off two buses in Zabul province. Not a peep since on how the operation is going. Hmmmm.

Afghanistan's National Water Polo Team. So you have no doubt heard that Afghanistan's football, cricket and Taekwondo teams have done very well in the international sports arena. Perhaps you have also heard of the Afghan Women's Cycling Team as well? But did you know about the Afghan National Water Polo Team? Probably not. A U.S. Marine reservist is the coach. Read more in "Marines help coach Afghanistan's first water polo team", Marine Corps Times, March 8, 2015.

Afghan Prison Riot. A number of casualties has occurred during a prison riot and hostage situation in northern Afghanistan in the provincial capital of Shebirghan in Jawzjan province. Two police officers were killed after taken hostage. Read more in a news report by Stars & Stripes, March 8, 2015.

Some Army officers with Fort Bragg ties are heading to or departing Afghanistan. One of them is MG Jeffrey S. Buchanan - he will become the deputy chief of staff for operations of the Resolute Support mission. (Fayetteville Observer, March 8, 2015).

New Zealand awarded military medals to two former Afghan interpreters who worked with NZ forces in Afghanistan. The men and their families were among dozens of Afghan interpreters who were allowed to resettle in NZ in recognition of their service. (TVNZ.co News, March 8, 2015).

Sufi Order Attacked. Unknown gunmen attacked a Sufi Muslim center in Kabul, Afghanistan on Sunday night killing at least five and possibly 11 people. This is the first time that a Sufi spiritual center has been attacked in Afghanistan. Read more in "Afghanistan's ancient Sufi order shocked by deadly attack", LA Times, March 8, 2015.

Guest Bloggers Wanted

Start Your Day with Afghan News

Sunday, March 8, 2015

March 8th - International Women's Day

March 8th is International Women's Day. Things have improved dramatically for women in Afghanistan. Women are members of parliament, they now have access to education, there are many more medical clinics, and there are possibilities that a few women may be appointed to cabinet positions. The country's First Lady, Rula Ghani, is taking a very visible role promoting the cause of Afghan women. While great progress has been made for women in Afghanistan much more work needs to be done. In recognition of this special day Afghan War News presents some informational resources and stories about women in Afghanistan.

Informational Resources about Women in Afghanistan

Afghan War News Resource Page on Women in Afghanistan
www.afghanwarnews.info/women/women.htm

NATO Article - "Women's Struggle"
www.returntohope.com/inDepth/WomensStruggle

Recent News Stories about Women in Afghanistan

"Nilofar Rahmani receives International Women of Courage award 2015". 2nd Lieutenant Rahmani, a female pilot in the Afghan Air Force, has received an award from First Lady Michelle Obama. Read more in a Khaama Press news article on March 7, 2015.

"Female ALP Commander Helps ANA in Helmand Operation", Tolo News, March 6, 2015. The Sistani village in Marja district in southern Helmand has been cleared of militants with the help of a female Afghan Local Police (ALP) commander as part of the "Zulfiqar" operation. Read news article here.

A report by the GSMA organization advances the argument that providing more access to mobile communications to women of developing nations will improve their lot in society. They have published a report that says as much - entitled "Bridging the gender gap: Mobile access and usage in low- and middle-income nations". See the report at the link below.

www.gsma.com/connectedwomen/gender-gap/

An Australian news article profiles Australian Army Colonel Amanda Fielding who attended the graduation of close to 200 Afghan female policewomen from the International Police Training Academy in Sivas, Turkey. The class is only the second group of Afghan females to graduate from the academy and this brings the total number of females in the Afghan Woman's Police Corps of the Afghan National Police to over 3,000.

Gender Equality - USAID Online Training

For those who feel that they are lacking in gender equality awareness (and in the spirit of today being International Women's Day) we refer you to the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) online course - "Gender 101: Gender Equality at USAID". Successful completion of the course fulfills the USAID requirements for employees in gender equality awareness. An overall score of 85% is required to be "Gender Aware"! The online course takes about 90 minutes to complete. Nope. Didn't do it, but maybe you need some gender awareness! Take the plunge at the link below:
http://usaidlearninglab.org/sites/default/files/media/GLS_USAID_Gender101_SCORM_20130918/index.html

Video - Afghan Commandos

This short 3 minute long video by NATO Channel (posted Feb 6, 2015) provides a glimpse of what it takes to be a member of the Afghan Commandos. There are currently nine Commando Kandaks with plans for an additional one (maybe?).

www.youtube.com/watch?v=fT5uklT43hQ

Paper - RoL and Biometrics

In developing countries people have a stereotypical view about judicial systems being slow, rigid, and secretive. In Afghanistan these three views are prevalent as well as a widely-held view of corruption in the Afghan judicial system. This impression exists largely because of the slow judicial process and corruption within the system due to the unavailability of modern age technologies to establish accountability of judicial personnel. Biometric identification technology can help to establish more accurate and secure identification and thus help the judicial system become more efficient, fast, responsible, and user-friendly. Read a report entitled How Biometric Identification Can Help the Judicial Management System, International Network to Promote the Rule of Law (INPROL), February 2015. This report may be useful for Rule of Law advisors in Afghanistan working in the Resolute Support Mission's Essential Function 3 RoL.

Good News Story on an Afghan Interpreter

The Afghan interpreters that tried to get a Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) over the past several years got screwed over (until 2014) by the U.S. State Department. Fortunately, for a few lucky ones anyway, some Afghan interpreters are finding their way to the United States . . . and they are being helped by a former U.S. Army Soldier and former Afghan interpreter who now lives in the United States. Read more in "Matt Zeller and Janis Shinwari Saved Each Other's Lives - and Now Help Others", People.com, February 19, 2015.

Hope for Afghanistan - An Optimist's View

There are a lot of doomsayers expressing concern and doubts about the Resolute Support mission in Afghanistan. Their arguments have many themes to include "the Afghan war is immoral", "U.S. supports warlords", "all Afghans are corrupt", "NATO/US is incompetent", "the intervention failed", "we already won, let's leave", "we already lost", "it is too expensive", "the Taliban will take Kabul", and so on. However, one observer seems more optimistic about Afghanistan. He examines the current situation and provides his outlook on the future of Afghanistan - with a look at the gains made, the challenges ahead, and what needs to be done to secure the future of Afghanistan. David Loyn is the BBC's Afghanistan correspondent. His article - "Don't be so quick to write off Afghanistan" - was posted by The Dallas Morning News on March 6, 2015.

CNN Video on Afghan Interpreters

A former U.S. Army Soldier talks to CNN about the thousands of Iraqi and Afghan linguists who helped U.S. troops and have since been forgotten. Watch a 10 minute long video on the topic.

America's Wartime Interpreters Try to Reach U.S., CNN, February 19, 2015.

Daily News Snippets (March 8, 2015)

John Sifton, writing for Human Rights Watch, claims that the United States continues to fund and support a network of abusive Afghan strongmen in the name of security and says "It's time to stop". Read more in his article - "Afghanistan's U.S.-Funded Torturers and Murderers", Human Rights Watch, March 6, 2015.

www.hrw.org/news/2015/03/06/afghanistan-s-us-funded-torturers-and-murderers

Thomas F. Lynch III says that there is still time to keep Afghanistan from going the way of Iraq. He believes that " . . . a comprehensive policy and strategy review for post-2014 military-intelligence support to Afghanistan needs to be conducted in early 2015." Read more of his analysis in Eurasia Review, March 7, 2015.

CIA Director John Brennan has decided to do a reorganization of the Central Intelligence Agency in light of " . . . the marked increase in the range, diversity, complexity, and immediacy of issues confronting policymakers; and . . . the unprecedented pace and impact of technological advancements". Read of his upcoming changes in a CIA press release dated March 6, 2015 and posted on the CIA website. Some observers see a bigger focus on cyber operations (Reuters, Mar 6, 2015).

A multi-service observation by special operators at Bagram Air Field in Afghanistan on March 4, 2015 was held to remember the 13th anniversary of the death of seven special operators that died during Operation Anaconda. Read more in "Bagram remembers Operation Anaconda's fallen", U.S. Air Force News, March 7, 2015.

Tamim Asey writing for Eurasia Review is wondering whether Afghanistan's grand bargain with Pakistan will pay off. To many observers there seems to be a move by President Ghani to smooth over relations with Pakistan - despite the support that Pakistan's intelligence agency provides to the Haqqani Network and other Afghan insurgent groups. Read more in his analysis (March 6, 2015).

Guest Bloggers

Early Morning News on Afghanistan

Saturday, March 7, 2015

TAAC-North Commander

A new commander has taken over as the leader for the Train, Advise, and Assist Command - North (TAAC-North). TAAC-North is responsible for the TAA mission in northern Afghanistan. The lead nation in TAAC North is Germany and historically this country has always provided the commander. TAAC-North is based at Camp Marmal just outside of Mazar-e Sharif. The new commander is Brigadier General Andreas Hannermann. In 2008-2009 he was the German LNO to AFG GS, AFG MoD, and CSTC-C in Kabul. He replaced BG Harald Gante, who spent one year at Camp Marmal - first as chief of staff and then later as commander. Read more about BG Hannemann and TAAC-North.

Corruption Report by Transparency International

Transparency International has published a comprehensive report on corruption in Afghanistan. Afghanistan ranked 172 out of 175 countries in the 2014 Corruption Perceptions Index. Despite billions of dollars allocated for military training, the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR) reports that just 29 per cent of Afghan Army units have the level of training required to allow them to operate independently with advisors (and many units no longer have advisors attached). The report, entitled Corruption: Lessons from the international mission in Afghanistan, was published in February 2015. The report identifies nine reasons the international community was slow to develop a response to corruption in Afghanistan. It proposes a framework for policy makers to address corruption issues in Afghanistan and in future interventions. There is no doubt that the Resolute Support Advisors working in Essential Function 3 TAO found this report interesting. The report is an Adobe Acrobat PDF, 72 pages long, and 2 MBs big. It can be read online or downloaded at the link below.

www.transparency.org/files/content/pressrelease/2015_Corruption_Lessons_From_Afghanistan_EN.pdf

A-29 CAS Aircraft to be Fielded Dec 2015

A recent press report says that a few of the twenty A-29 Super Tucano turboprop aircraft for the Afghan Air Force (AAF) will start to arrive in Afghanistan in December 2015. This will be just in time for the 2016 fighting season. However, the bulk of the aircraft won't be deployed until 2017 and 2018. The ANSF will have to rely on a variety of stop-gaps until the A-29's arrive and are integrated into combat operations. Some of those stop-gaps were described by General Campbell during his recent testimony before Congress on March 4, 2015 as use of Quick Reaction Forces (QRFs), employment of artillery fires (D-30 122mm Howitzer), employment of organic mortars (82mm Mortar), and the helicopters in the AAF armed with weaponry (such as the Mi-35, MD 530s, and Mi-17s). The fielding of the A-29s was caught up in a contract dispute aggravated by congressional members who were playing politics. Read more in "Afghan Military to Receive A-29 Close Air Support Planes in December", Military.com, March 5, 2015.

A-10 Retirement - AF Math Doesn't Add Up

The U.S. Air Force wants to retire the A-10 Warthog. The close-air-support aircraft provides air support to ground troops, conducts ground attack against tanks, armored formations, enemy positions, enemy troops, and provides an on-scene rescue capability. The Air Force plans to retire the 300 plus A-10 Warthogs so it can afford to field the very expensive, but not quite yet capable F-35. There are many opponents to the A-10 retirement plan - and among those are the very combat troops that need the A-10s support - the Army! An Army officer has done the math and concludes that the Air Force, instead of retiring the entire fleet of A-10s, should just retire one of its six active fighters (F-15, F-16, F-22) and bombers (B-1, B-2, B-52) or end F-35 procurement. The author breaks down the math for us in "The Air Force's Argument to Retire the A-10 Warthog Doesn't Add Up. Here's Why.", Defense in Depth - Council on Foreign Relations, March 5, 2015.

TAPI Pipeline and India's Marginalization

The Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) pipeline promises to bring economic growth and increased prosperity to the four countries participating in this natural gas project. The TAPI pipeline will move natural gas from Turkmenistan to the other three countries. Unfortunately politics, competition, and security are obstacles to be overcome. Current plans are for the much-delayed development project to be completed in 2018. India, once seen as a major benefactor and leader in the pipeline project, is becoming sidelined. Read more in "TAPI and India's Future in Eurasia", The Diplomat, February 27, 2015.

Afghanistan - Doomed Mission from the Start

A former military member who deployed to Afghanistan writes about why the Afghan mission was certain to fail. He states "The United States tried to fight a counterinsurgency in an environment tailor-made for insurgents . . . " and " . . . attempted to promote legitimacy and good governance without honest, reliable Afghan partners . . ." In addition, the U.S. never solved the problem of the insurgency having sanctuaries in Pakistan nor stopped the Pakistanis from providing intelligence, equipment, and financing to the Taliban. Read more in "Our mission in Afghanistan was doomed at the start; nothing could have saved it", Foreign Policy, February 18, 2015.

US Efforts of Reconstruction Misplaced

A recent article by Kiran Nazish in The Diplomat states that the United States had the wrong approach to humanitarian and reconstruction aid provided to Afghanistan. While many look at the senior government officials and their corrupt practices as the principle reason for the failure of much of the reconstruction effort - Nazish puts most of the blame on the United States. Hmmmm. Not sure about that. Read his thoughts on U.S. reconstruction aid to Afghanistan in "The Misplaced Priorities of US Reconstruction Efforts in Afghanistan" dated February 18, 2015.

Daily News Snippets (March 7, 2015)

A recent report released by the Director of National Intelligence predicts that a number of detainees held at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba will return to the Taliban insurgency or terrorism activities if they are released. The report is based on trends identified during the past eleven years. Overall, the number of those confirmed and suspected of reengaging in terrorism is about 29 percent. There are about 122 detainees left in the prison at Guantanamo Bay. Read more in "US intelligence finds Gitmo prisoners returning to fight", The Hill Defense Blog, March 5, 2015.

The Army has recently defined the requirements for the wearing of bronze service stars with the Afghanistan Campaign Medal. Operation Freedom's Sentinel is a qualifying operation for the award. Read more in "Rules for wearing service stars with Afghanistan Medal", Army Times, March 5, 2015.

The German news outlet Deutsche Welle (DW) provides us with their thoughts on why Afghanistan's security forces are dwindling. The news article comments on the recent report issued by SIGAR that states the number of ANA members has declined by more than 8.5 percent since Feb 2014 - the lowest force strength since August 2011. Some of the factors for the smaller force includes combat casualties (up drastically over last year), desertions, discharges (term of service has expired), and some accounting irregularities. Contributing factors are the poppy growing season where soldier go on unauthorized leave to assist with the harvest, excessive absences (not returning at end of leave date), and attending to family matters during an unauthorized absence, and lower morale among the members of the ANSF. (DW, Mar 5, 2015).

Gandhara Blog has a video posted about the ". . . hundreds of female convicts in Afghanistan." Children up to the age of seven live with mothers in the prison. Radio Free Afghanistan correspondent Freba Mohd Zaher visited prisons across Afghanistan to investigate the conditions for the women and children behind bars. (March 5, 2015).
http://gandhara.rferl.org/media/video/afghan-women-prisons/26885157.html

The 2015 MRE menu is out and Duffel Blog has evaluated the top five MRE meals. See if your favorite is at the top of the list. (March 6, 2015).
www.duffelblog.com/2015/03/mre-review-duffel-blog/

The Sayedabad district executive director (Wardak province) was killed by unknown gunmen a few days ago (early March). The incident took place as he was leaving his office heading to his home.

The Georgian 51st Battalion stationed at Bagram Air Field (BAF) carried out a humanitarian mission in its operational area. The mission was performed in the village of Musa Bala in conjunction with U.S. Marines and the Afghan National Security Forces. (The Messenger Online, March 6, 2015).
www.messenger.com.ge/issues/3323_march_6_2015/3323_4.html

The author of Green on Blue, Elliott Ackerman, explains how he came to write his book on Afghanistan. Ackerman spent time as an advisor to Afghan commando units. (Slate.com, March 5, 2105.). Watch a short video with Ackerman. The book can be purchased on www.amazon.com.

Guest Articles Welcomed

Start Your Day w/ Afghan News

Friday, March 6, 2015

Rula Ghani in the Spotlight

Rula Ghani, the wife of President Ghani and Afghanistan's First Lady, has been stepping out into the spotlight recently. In February she conducted a trip to the United States where she conducted a number of interviews in the Washington, D.C. area. During these interviews she provided her perspective on a number of concerns and issues facing Afghanistan. She plans of taking a leading role in some aspects of Afghan life (women's rights, orphaned children, internally displaced people, education, etc.). She has some views on humanitarian aid - saying that it should be provided in a different form than it is currently given. Some aid is temporary but good aid helps people provide for themselves. She presents her take on being a Lebanese Maronite Christian in Muslim Afghanistan - saying it is not a problem for her. Read more in "For the First Time, An Afghan First Lady Steps into the Spotlight", National Public Radio, February 19, 2015.

Book - "Thieves of State"

Sarah Chayes, a true-life subject matter expert (SME) on Afghanistan, has written a book entitled Thieves of State. The book is about corruption and its devastating effects. Chayes is a former journalist, entrepreneur, and government advisor who has spent a lot of time (years) in Afghanistan. Her basic theme is that corruption fuels extremism and violence - as in the insurgency in Afghanistan. Taylor Dibbert, a freelance writer, has penned a review of Chayes's book entitled "Book Review: Thieves of State", Huffington Post Books, March 3, 2015.