Afghan War News by Email Everyday

You can receive the Afghan War News Daily Newsletter each day. It should arrive in your e-mail inbox at 5:00 a.m. U.S. East coast time or just after lunch (1330) in Kabul. It is easy to subscribe. To submit your subscription request go to www.afghanwarnews.blogspot.com and enter your email in the "Follow by Email" dialogue box at the top of the right hand column. The only info needed is your email. No personal data, forms to fill out, or passwords needed. You will receive a confirmation email asking you if you want to subscribe. Just confirm and you are done. It is also easy to unsubscribe. At the bottom of the newsletter click "unsubscribe" and you will be automatically unsubscribed

AAF Hind Gunships: Little Time Left

Mi-35 Gunships Going Away. The Pentagon doesn't want to do business with Russia anymore. This has an effect on the Afghan Air Force which depends on Russian built and maintained helicopters for its Afghan Air Force. One of these helicopters is the Russian 'flying tank' or Mi-35 Hind Attack Helicopter. These Mi-35s will probably not be flying a year from now as they are getting old and falling apart. At one time the AAF had nine Mi-35s but since then they are at between 2 and 4 that are actually flying. Many of the Hinds were cannibalized for spare parts. The U.S. has decided to provide the Afghan Air Force with the MD-530F (made by an American firm of course). The AAF will receive a total of 12 armed MD-530Fs and guns and armor will be added to five other MD-530s that are currently used to train Afghan pilots. The MD-530F is nimble and fast but it carries fewer weapons than the Hind and it doesn't have nearly as much armored protection. The MD-530F is a stop-gap measure until the A-29 Super Tucano is delivered and integrated into operations. Read "Afghanistan's Iconic Hind Gunships Won't Fly Much Longer", by Joseph Trevithick, War is Boring, April 22, 2015.

Trouble Brewing to the East

Afghanistan shares a narrow border with China. To the east of this border lies the province of Xinjiang or Uighuristan - where the Uighurs live. The Uighurs have long been seeking independence from the Chinese (unsuccessfully) and many have fled to neighboring Central Asian countries for refuge and to continue their independence related activities from outside China. However, China is expanding its influence in the Central Asian area and receiving more cooperation from these countries. This is having a dampening effect on the ability of the Uighurs living in exile to conduct their anti-state activities. Read more in "Dreaming of Uighuristan", BBC News, April 16, 2015.
www.bbc.com/news/magazine-32337643

Afghan Taliban Spring Offensive Announced

As they do almost every year the Afghan Taliban have announced their "spring offensive". This years offensive will start on Friday, April 24th. The main targets will be 'foreign occupiers' and the 'stooge regime'. The Quetta Shura has called this year's spring offensive 'Azm' - which means resolve or determination. Sort of similar to 'Resolute Support'. Learn more about the spring offensive in "Afghan Taliban announces new 'spring operations'", The Long War Journal, April 22, 2015.

Event - Kelptocracy & U.S. National Security (April 23)

The Hudson Institute is holding a panel discussion on "Kleptocracy and U.S. National Security" on Thursday, April 23, 2015. It starts at 12:00 pm EST and finishes up an hour later. The event is about corruption in government around the world; so it doesn't focus in on Afghanistan. However, in reading a description of the panel discussion (see below) it just screams Afghanistan. You can watch a live-stream of the event at this link www.hudson.org.

www.hudson.org/events/1241-kleptocracy-and-u-s-national-security42015

"Throughout the world, high-level corruption undermines the rule of law, confidence in public authorities, and human rights. the turmoil following the Arab spring, the increasing violence of narcotics cartels in Latin America, and the war in Ukraine illustrate the threat kleptocracy poses to both international stability and U.S. national security.

Federal law enforcement agencies are increasingly targeting corrupt officials, their illicit assets, and the institutions that enable kleptocracy. Since corrupt agents often look to the Western financial system as a vehicle for legitimizing and protecting their money, the importance of the the U.S. to this system offers far greater leverage over kleptocractic regimes than is currently acknowledge".

Afghan War News Snippets

SIGAR Ltr of Inquiry on Kandahar City Electric Power. The Office of the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR) has wrote to the U.S. Ambassador to Afghanistan, General Campbell, and a few others requesting information on the status of the U.S. government's efforts to develop a reliable and sustainable source of power for Kandahar City after September 2015. Read the April 17, 2015 letter at the link below.

www.sigar.mil/pdf/special%20projects/SIGAR-15-47-SP.pdf

Taliban Beheadings to Increase? A wave of kidnappings and subsequent beheadings have some observers thinking that the Taliban are in competition with ISIS for the headlines. Perhaps the Taliban are trying to show that they can be as brutal as the Islamic State with their decapitation of the Hazaras they have kidnapped. Read more in a news story by The New York Times, April 22, 2015. 

ISIS Bombing in Jalalabad - a Close Examination. The Islamic State claimed credit for the bombing in Jalalabad that claimed 35 lives - and the Taliban denied the attack. The folks at the Afghanistan Analysts Network (AAN) take a closer look at this incident in "First wave of IS attacks? Claim and denial over the Jalalabad bombs", AAN, April 22, 2015.

Pakistan Perceptions of the Taliban. By now everyone should know that, from the Pakistan perspective - there exists the 'Good Taliban" and the "Bad Taliban". But it gets more complex than that. Read "Education and Attitudes in Pakistan: Understanding Perceptions of Terrorism", United States Institute of Peace (USIP), April 21, 2015.

Afghan Interpreter - A Better Life in U.S. is Elusive. In a detailed news story an Afghan interpreter relates his story of working for five years as an interpreter for U.S. forces in Afghanistan, the frustrating journey to get here (that would be visa problems with our State Department), and the difficulties adapting to life in the United States. Read "Where the Grave Isn't Free: An Afghan Interpreter Struggles with US Resettlement", Voice of America, April 22, 2015.

70 % Afghan Police Illiterate. UNESCO has stated that statistics show Afghanistan security institutions are struggling with the issue of illiteracy among its staff - especially in the police force. Read more in "60,000 Afghan Police are Illiterate", Tolo News, April 22, 2015.

CIA  - Help Wanted. The Central Intelligence Agency's National Clandestine Service is looking for summer help. College students can apply for an internship. The pay looks pretty good!

www.cia.gov/careers/student-opportunities/ncs-intern.html

A Cost of War - Sexual Dysfunction. Here is an article I never thought I would read - but it opened my eyes a bit about combat injuries both physical and mental. Read "When the Costs of War Impact the Capacity for Intimacy", Task & Purpose, April 21, 2015.

IC Transparency Report. The Office of the Director of National Intelligence has released its "Calendar Year 2014 Transparency Report", April 22, 2015. This provides data, information, and statistics on the use of national security authorities.

Afghan Turkmen Caught in Middle. Fighting between Taliban militants and Afghan government forces have put some Afghan Turkmen on the northern Afghanistan border in a difficult position. Read more in "Afghan Turkmen Trapped Near Border with Turkmenistan", Eurasianet.org, April 22, 2015.

Contract Drone Pilots. Some companies are offering Air Force drone pilots up to twice as much money to fly drones as contractors. (matthewaid.com, April 22, 2015).

Obama Narrative Threatened by Taliban. The administrations' story-line on Afghanistan is put in question by recent activity of the Taliban. The security situation on the ground may derail the planned departure of the U.S. from Afghanistan. (Fox News, April 22, 2015).

Insufficient Support to Partner Nation SOF Forces. Leading members of the Global Special Operations Forces Foundation (Stuart Bradin and Meaghan Keeler-Pettigrew) say that U.S. security assistance is not supporting enduring programs that build credible special operations partners. They say that we are not selling or giving our partners the capabilities that are critical to defeating the imminent threats they face today in hybrid warfare. Read more in "Special Forces: What U.S. Gets Wrong", CNN News, April 22, 2015.

Why Groups Use Terrorism. A few college academics tell us about terrorism. (Political Violence @ a Glance, April 22, 2015).

Intelligence Reform. David Shedd and Matthew Ferraro provide us with six ways to make sure America's leaders and troops get the intel they need. Read "Intelligence Reform 2.0", Defense One, April 21, 2015.

Augmented Reality Glasses for the Battlefield. The Marines are testing a pair of glasses that provide intelligence to ground troops - using a head-up display and gun-mounted mouse. For a look into the future read this story in Popular Science, April 22, 2015.

Conference - Unmanned Systems 2015. The Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International (AUVSI) is running a conference and trade show on unmanned systems in Atlanta, Georgia on May 4-7, 2015. www.auvsishow.org/auvsi2015/public/enter.aspx

Sign Up for Afghan War Newsletter

You can receive the Afghan War News Daily Newsletter each day. It should arrive in your e-mail inbox at 5:00 a.m. U.S. East coast time or just after lunch (1330) in Kabul. It is easy to subscribe. To submit your subscription request go to www.afghanwarnews.blogspot.com and enter your email in the "Follow by Email" dialogue box at the top of the right hand column. The only info needed is your email. No personal data, forms to fill out, or passwords needed. You will receive a confirmation email asking you if you want to subscribe. Just confirm and you are done. It is also easy to unsubscribe. At the bottom of the newsletter click "unsubscribe" and you will be automatically unsubscribed.

Paper - Helicopter Options for Partner Nations

RAND Corporation has published a report that could be useful to air advisors of TAAC Air who are training, advising, and assisting the Afghan Air Force. The paper, entitled "Cost-Effective Helicopter Options for Partner Nations" was published in April 2015. It is an Adobe Acrobat PDF, 67 pages long, and 4 MBs big. The authors conducted an analysis on several helicopters - both utility and attack. The Mi-17 transport helicopter currently in use by the Afghan Air Force is compared with several other helicopters of a similar class. Some of the research questions that the paper attempts to answer include:

1. What types of missions does the US want partner nations to accomplish?
2. What are the capabilities of various helicopters to execute these missions?
3. What are the most cost-effective helicopters for accomplishing these missions?

www.rand.org/pubs/research_reports/RR141z1.html

Event - Intl Dev Conflict Environments (April 30, 2015)

The International NGO Safety and Security Association (INSSA) is hosting an event (in person and online) entitled "International Development in Conflict / post-Conflict Environments" on Thursday, April 30, 2015. It is taking place at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies (MIIS) and can be viewed on the INSSA Online YouTube channel or the INSSA Live page. The event is from 5:30 PM - 7:30 PM. INSSA is a non-profit global membership association of individuals committed to improving the quality and effectiveness of safety and security for humanitarian relief and development assistance workers operating in complex and dangerous environments.

Afghan War News Snippets

A New Kandahar. The Washington Post's Kabul bureau chief, Sudarsan Raghavan, compares modern-day Kandahar to one he knew in 1996 under Taliban rule. Much has changed. The population has grown ten-fold, it has a modern airport, and the city is thriving economically. Read more in "The last time I saw Kandahar, it was a remote Taliban bastion. How that's changed", April 20, 2015.

Kandahar Explosion. Press reports say that two people were killed and 21 others injured in an explosion in Kandahar city on Tuesday morning. (Khaama Press, April 21, 2015).

205th Coalition Advisory Team (CAT). The Australians are part of the advisory team providing training, advise, and assistance to the 205th ANA Corps in southern Afghanistan. The Aussies are augmented with personnel from the United States and Bulgaria. The 205 CAT provides advisors across a range of functions including operations, intelligence and planning as well as other enabling functions. Read more in a Facebook posting by Resolute Support Hqs, April 21, 2015.

Typical Day for MG Mike Murray - Deputy Cdr USFOR-A. So what does a typical day look like for the commander of U.S. Forces - Afghanistan. Based at Bagram Airfield, the general starts and ends his day with operations update from his staff in the joint operations center (JOC). Then office meetings and sometimes trips off base. Read more in a Facebook posting by USFOR-A, April 21, 2015.

Shiite Hazara Worried. A recent spate of kidnappings of Hazaras over the past few months have put the Harzara community on edge. Read "Kidnappings Rattle Afghan Minority", The Wall Street Journal, April 20, 2015. (subscription needed).

16 New Cabinet Members Approved. Afghanistan is one minister short of having a full cabinet. The remaining empty seat is most likely the most important one. The cabinet nominees were approved by lawmakers in Kabul. Eight ministers had been approved by the Wolesi Jirga earlier. (Radio Free Europe, April 21, 2015).

New MoD Minister Nominee? News reports indicate that the National Unity Government (NUG) leaders have agreed on Abdullah Habibi as their nominee for leadership of the Ministry of Defense (MoD). Habibi hails from Kunar province and has an MA in Military Affairs. (Tolo News, Apr 20, 2015).

Visit to MoI Logistics Facility. On April 20th General Campbell (RSM Cdr) and MG Semonite (CSTC-A Cdr) visited the Ministry of Interior's logistic facility in Wardak province. A large part of continuing the Train-Advise-Assist mission is helping the Afghans develop and maintain systems and processes which will enable long-term sustainability for their security forces. (RSM Facebook, April 21, 2015).

RSM HQs Hosts International Issues Forum. On April 21st the Resolute Support Headquarters hosted forum with representatives from Italy, Germany, United States, European Union, UN, and NATO attending. The topic of the meeting was Afghanistan and NATO's Enduring Partnership and the support that each country / agency provides. (RSM Facebook, April 21, 2015).

UNAMA Meets w/ Kunduz Women. As part of its mandated work to assist the people of Afghanistan inlaying the foundations for peace and development in the country Human Rights officials from the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) meet with rural women in the north-eastern province of Kunduz. The meeting with the women focused on women and their role in peacebuilding. (UNAMA News Update, April 21, 2015).

Friendly Fire Air Crew Returns to Duty. Despite an investigation that found some startling deficiencies no charges have been made. The Air Force B-1B air crew that dropped two bombs that killed five U.S. soldiers that were part of a U.S. Special Forces mission in Zabul province in 2014 in returning to duty. Read the news report in The Washington Times, April 20, 2015.

Funeral Held for Soldier Killed in Afghanistan. A funeral was held on Monday in Massachusetts for a U.S. Army Soldier recently killed from the 101st Airborne Division. (Kentucky.com, April 20, 2015).

Despair in Afghanistan. An Afghan who returned to her country in 2003 after years of exile expresses her disillusionment on the Afghanistan of today. Read "Afghanistan - - Where Is It Headed?", The Huffington Post, April 21, 2015.

Hearing on Global Terrorist Financing. The Committee on Financial Services will be holding a hearing on April 22, 2015 at 10:00 am (EST) on "A Survey of Global Terrorism and Terrorist Financing". Speakers include Dr. Seth Jones - director of International Security and Defense Policy Center, RAND Corporation. Should be able to webcast it to your computer.
http://financialservices.house.gov/calendar/eventsingle.aspx?EventID=398891

Former Army Col Pleads Guilty. A former U.S. Army Colonel pleads guilty in connection with Afghan Mi-17 helicopter procurement contracts. (U.S. Department of Justice, April 20, 2015).

Caliphate - A Powerful Word. Rashid Dar explores the meaning and use of the word in his article "The Other C-Word: 'Caliphate'", Cicero Magazine, April 21, 2015.

Female Rangers. An opinion piece by retired general David Barno and Nora Bensahel says that "Female Rangers will lead the way, sooner or later", War is Boring, April 21, 2015.

Saving Deminers. The National Directorate of Security (NDS) says that at least 19 deminers abducted by militants of the Haqqani Network were rescued by operatives of Afghan intelligence on Tuesday. The militants were from Gardez, Paktia province (home of the 203rd Corps). Read more in a news report by Khaama Press,  April 21, 2015.

Taliban Admit to Beheadings. The insurgents say the beheadings of ANA soldiers took place during clashes last week in the northern province of Badakhshan. Read more in a news report in The Long War Journal, April 21, 2015.

Saving the A-10. Martha McSally, a retired Air Force officer, pilot, and now member of Congress, has penned a piece entitled "Saving a Plane That Saves Lives", The New York Times, April 21, 2015.

Political Process in Afghanistan Criticized. Some Afghan citizens complain that political parties are vehicles for personal advancement rather than public good. Read "Afghans Feel Let Down by Politics", Institute for War & Peace Reporting, April 21, 2015.

Develop Your Writing Skills

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. Frequency of submission is up to you. If you wrote a paper on a relevant topic and would like to share it send it to us for posting on the blog and website.  If I missed an important story about Afghanistan - please let me know. Send the link! And naturally, if you see errors, outdated information, or broken links please let us know.

staff@afghanwarnews.info

Coffee (or Tea) and Afghan News in A.M.

You can receive the Afghan War News Daily Newsletter each day. It should arrive in your e-mail inbox at 5:00 a.m. U.S. East coast time or just after lunch (1330) in Kabul. It is easy to subscribe. To submit your subscription request go to www.afghanwarnews.blogspot.com and enter your email in the "Follow by Email" dialogue box at the top of the right hand column. The only info needed is your email. No personal data, forms to fill out, or passwords needed. You will receive a confirmation email asking you if you want to subscribe. Just confirm and you are done. It is also easy to unsubscribe. At the bottom of the newsletter click "unsubscribe" and you will be automatically unsubscribed.

DoDIG Report - Equipping and Training Afghan Security Forces

The Office of Inspector General for the U.S. Department of Defense has issued a new report dated April 17, 2015 entitled "Equipping and Training Afghan Security Forces". The report states that challenges exist for asset accountability and maintenance and sustainment of vehicles within the Afghan National Security Forces. The reports objective was to determine whether the Combined Security Transition Command - Afghanistan (CSTC-A) and the Government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan's Ministries of Defense and Interior have controls in place to effectively manage asset accountability for vehicles. This 50-page report, DoDIG-2015-107, presents it findings and offers recommendations. This is probably good background reading for those Resolute Support advisors working in Essential Function 5 - Force Sustainment.

Report is available on the DoDIG website at the link below:
www.dodig.mil//pubs/report_summary.cfm?id=6327

UNAMA - Reforms Needed for Afghan Women

The United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) in conjunction with the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (UNOHCHR) has issued a report saying that reforms are needed to ensure women are protected in Afghanistan. The report says that access to justice for women victims of violence needs to be strengthened. It says that while there is a legal framework in place for such cases, there remain many factors hindering access to justice. The report identifies the factors that enable hindering the legal framework. The report provides several recommendations to improve the justice process for women. In the report historical cases are reviewed for how justice was achieved - in one study it was found that less than 5% of the cases brought before adjudication were resolved with punishment for the perpetrators.

UNAMA Press Release:
Reforms needed to ensure justice for women victims of violence, UNAMA, April 15, 2015.

UNAMA Report:
Justice Through the Eyes of Afghan Women: Cases of Violence against Women Addressed through Mediation and Court Adjudication, UNAMA, April 15,  2015.

ISIS in Afghanistan?

The Islamic State has been blamed for and they took credit for the killing of 35 and wounding of over a hundred residents of Jalalabad, Afghanistan in a suicide bombing. (see Military Times story, Apr 18, 2015). In a statement, a group calling itself the "Province of Khorasan", provided the name and photo of the suicide bomber who conducted the attack. Many observers have raised the alarm about the growth of ISIS in Afghanistan while others say it is simply a scattering of independent groups of insurgents changing one insurgent flag for another. In a recent press report from Khaama Press (April 20, 2015) it appears that the two insurgent groups - the Taliban and ISIS - have declared Jihad against each other. One analyst, Michael Kugelman, says that the Jalalabad attack won't be the last (DW.de, Apr 220, 2015).

Anthony Cordesman is interviewed about ISIS in Afghanistan in a five-minute video posted on Public Broadcasting System (PBS). He says that there is a lack of stability due to an Afghan government that is not governing and an Afghan security force that has not met expectation. Watch "Threat of terror groups builds following ISIS suicide bombing in Afghanistan", April 18, 2015.

The possible growth of ISIS in Afghanistan needs to be taken seriously. By all accounts, the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria is extremely organized and well-led. Documents recently recovered showed a sophisticated plan for the growth of ISIS in Syria followed by a push into Iraq. The detailed plans for the organizing of an intelligence structure are an indication of the advanced planning conducted for the establishment of the Caliphate. Learn more about the intelligence structure of ISIS in a very detailed report by Spiegel Online International (April 18, 2015). Should ISIS attain a foothold in Afghanistan it is very likely that this sophisticated organization will prove to be a formidable opponent.

ACME Lab at Bagram Airfield

Forensic Science on the Battlefield. The Afghanistan Captured Material Exploitation (ACME) Laboratory on Bagram Airfield is a U.S. forensic lab in theater. The lab is staffed almost entirely by civilian technicians and scientists. Many of the labs workers come from the Defense Forensic Science Center (DFSC) in Forest Park, Georgia. The ACME lab is subordinate to the joint multi-disciplined intelligence brigade of U.S. Forces - Afghanistan. The lab provides critical forensic analysis including DNA, fingerprint, and weapons technical inspections to identify force protection threats and enable host nation criminal prosecutions. The lab also takes part in the Train, Advise, and Assist mission by training Afghans. Every six weeks the lab trains 30 to 60 Afghan judges, prosecutors, and law enforcement professionals from around Afghanistan at the Afghan National Security Justice Center in Parwan province. Read more in a news story posted on Army.mil, April 18, 2015.
 http://www.army.mil/article/146737/

Afghan War News Snippets

MoI Support & Supply. General Campbell, Resolute Support Mission Cdr, and the Ministry of Interior Minister recently visited MoI support & supply center to assess current capacities and needs. The logistics operation for the Afghan police has been broke for a long time.

Hamid Karzai Visits Germany. Karzai, the ex-president is visiting Germany - he has lots of meetings, interviews, and speeches scheduled. He has been busy traveling overseas quite a bit since his departure from government.

Blood-Clotting Gel. The UK's Forces.TV  (April 20, 2015) is reporting on a battlefield advancement in medical care that could make a huge difference in surviving an injury or wound with severe bleeding. A graduate from Polytechnic Institute of New York University has invented a gel that can stop bleeding and seal serious wounds in 15 seconds. 

http://forces.tv/13424457

Ghani's Calculated Risk With Pakistan. President Ghani is pursuing peace talks with the Taliban and is hoping that Pakistan will cease its support of insurgent groups carrying out attacks against Afghanistan and that Pakistan will steer these insurgent groups to the peace table for talks. Read more in "Afghan President's Taliban predicament", by Aryaman Ghatnager, Observer Research Foundation, April 20, 2015.

India - A Thorny Issue. Stephen Tankel writes about the relationship between India and Afghanistan in "India in Afghanistan: Tackling a Thorny Issue", War on the Rocks, April 201, 2015.

China - and Relationships. China is trying to extend its influence in Central and South Asia for a number of reasons (security, economic, political, etc.). China has to balance a number of issues to ensure relationships with India, Pakistan, Afghanistan, and the U.S. are not damaged - which could affect its aspirations in the region. Read more in "Reimagining the Triangle", Observer Research Foundation (India), April 20, 2015.

Paper on IEDs in Afghanistan. Hannah Bryce and Henry Dodd have a paper posted on the website of The Royal Institute of International Affairs entitled "The Impact of IEDs on the Humanitarian Space in Afghanistan", April 9, 2015. (Adobe Acrobat PDF, 15 pages).

USAID Empowering Women in Animal Health Services. USAID has posted a photo and short story on how it is ensuring women in Afghanistan have access to animal health services.

6th Annual Warrior Competition. The country of Jordan is running its annual Warrior Competition at the King Abdullah Special Operation Training Center. This annual competition pits anti-terrorism squads from 18 different countries against each in shooting and anti-terrorism skills. Afghanistan is sending a team from its Afghan National Security Special Forces (ANASF) to compete - as it has in previous years.

New Zealand Commits to Afghanistan. The Kiwis are staying in the fight until December 2016. Read more in "Extension of NZDF commitment in Afghanistan", Scoop.co.nz, April 20, 2015. See also a news story in The New Zealand Herald, April 20, 2015.

51st Battalion Completes Tour. Georgia's 51st infantry battalion completed its tour of Afghanistan. (Agenda.ge, April 20, 2015). http://agenda.ge/news/33601/eng

Video - BAF Base Defense Exercise. Watch a one-minute long video by US Forces Afghanistan on base defense at Bagram Airfield.

State Department Visit to Central Asia. The DoS is sending an interagency team to Central Asia for consultations about Afghanistan. The team will visit Kazakhstan, Krygyzstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, and Turkmenistan from April 20-24. The group will discuss recent developments in Afghanistan, including the election of the Government of National Unity, the current security situation, and the NATO Resolute Support Mission. Read more in "Interagency Team Travels to Central Asia for Afghanistan Consultations", U.S. Department of State Media Note, April 20, 2015.
www.state.gov/r/pa/prs/ps/2015/04/240890.htm

$1B in Helicopters to Pakistan. A commentator asks "Why Are We Sending This Attack Helicopter to Pakistan?", The Wall Street Journal, April 19, 2015.

Culture Clash in U.S. Miltary. Carl Forsling, as senior columnist for Task & Purpose writes about the departure of military officers and NCOs from the military and reasons for their leaving in "There is a Cultural Clash Erupting Within the Military", April 20, 2015.

Women Now in Ranger School. The first course to allow women to go through the very demanding Ranger School started on Monday, April 20th. As many as 20 women are expected to start this one-time integrated assessment. The assessment is part of a wider effort to determine whether and how to open combat arms positions to women. Read more in "Women to start Ranger School Today", Army Times, April 20, 2015. On the first day the prospective Rangers are administered a physical fitness test early in the morning. 19 women were among the 400 plus students. They were tested (same standards for men and women) in their ability to do a minimum of 49 pushups, 49 situps, six chinups, and a five-mile run in 40 minutes or less. 16 of the 19 female students passed the test (Ledger-Enquirer, April 20, 2015).

Women and Cultural Support Teams (CST). While much talk has been generated about bringing women into combat arms - it would appear that the Special Operations community has been already on board. A few years back the Army created the Cultural Support Team program to work along side Special Forces teams in Afghanistan. Read more about the CSTs in this news report in the New York Post (April 19, 2015)

Army vs Marines & Women in Combat. Unit assignments and gender integration research varies between the services according to Gretel C. Kovach in a news story posted in U~T San Diego, April 18, 2015.

Rumi Spice. A female veteran of the Afghan War and Harvard Business Student has formed a venture that imports saffron to the United States benefiting Afghan farmers and hopefully providing an alternative crop to opium. Learn more in a PBS Newshour report by Larisa Epatko, April 20, 2015. www.pbs.org/newshour/updates/afghan-grown-saffron/

Afghan Women Hindered from Access to Justice. Deutsche Welle (Germany) has published a news story on "How Afghan women are dissuaded from asserting their rights", April 20, 2015.

India Promoting Women's Rights in Afghanistan. Catherine Powell, writing in the Development Channel Blog of Foreign Policy (April 20, 2015) tells us that India can be a useful partner in promoting Afghan stability and advancing the future of Afghan women.

Export of Opium to India Trucks carrying opium from Afghanistan through Pakistan are entering India and the drug problem in India is getting bigger. Read more in "Kashmir's Heroin Highway", Slate.com, by Michael Edison Hayden, April 2015.

Trouble South of Border. Ambreen Agha writes about the enduring tragedy in Balochistan, Pakistan in Eurasia Review, April 20, 2015.

Obama's Drone Problem. Read "All the President's Drones: Obama's Targeting-Killing Problem", The National Interest, April 20, 2015 for Rachel Stohl's explanation of why the White House's secrecy regarding the U.S. drone program has not done it any favors. 

Author Interview. A fiction book wrote 40 years ago provides us a look at the military-civilian divide during the Vietnam War. The author says that the divide is more wide now (2015) than during the Vietnam War. Read an interview with the author of a science fiction war story called "The Forever War" in War is Boring, April 19, 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. Frequency of submission is up to you. If you wrote a paper on a relevant topic and would like to share it send it to us for posting on the blog and website.  If I missed an important story about Afghanistan - please let me know. Send the link! And naturally, if you see errors, outdated information, or broken links please let us know.

staff@afghanwarnews.info

Sign Up for Daily AWN Newsletter

You can receive the Afghan War News Daily Newsletter each day. It should arrive in your e-mail inbox at 5:00 a.m. U.S. East coast time or just after lunch (1330) in Kabul. It is easy to subscribe. To submit your subscription request go to www.afghanwarnews.blogspot.com and enter your email in the "Follow by Email" dialogue box at the top of the right hand column. The only info needed is your email. No personal data, forms to fill out, or passwords needed. You will receive a confirmation email asking you if you want to subscribe. Just confirm and you are done. It is also easy to unsubscribe. At the bottom of the newsletter click "unsubscribe" and you will be automatically unsubscribed.

LOFTA Under Attack

A United Nations sponsored report has found that Afghanistan government officials who headed up an organization that provided oversight of the Afghan police has not been doing their job. The report found that only 9 cases of 2,000 were referred for prosecution. The senior Afghan police officials suppressed corruption complaints against the police. The report was commissioned by the Law and Order Trust Fund of Afghanistan (LOTFA) late last year. It was completed in January 2015 but never shown to senior UN officials. LOFTA has received around $3.6 billion from international donors to pay for Afghan police force salaries and other expenses but investigation after investigation finds that the money is re-routed into the personal accounts of senior police officials. (Those villas in Dubai can be expensive!).

Read News Reports:

"UN investigation finds corruption in Afghan police oversight division", Thomson Reuters Foundation, April 19, 2015.
www.trust.org/item/20150419043015-b3w06/

Additional Resources about LOFTA:

Ministry of Finance Afghanistan Explanation of LOFTA
United Nations Development Program - LOFTA
Bahum Newsletter - LOFTA Monthly Newsletter

Pakistan's "Deep State"

Understanding Pakistan helps us to understand the conflict in Afghanistan. There is a reason for the existence of the term AFPAK; the two countries are intertwined when it comes to security issues in South Asia. Christine Fair, a well-known expert on Pakistan, is interviewed by Aasim Zafar Kahn - a columnist with The News International - a widely read English daily in Pakistan. Christine says that the 'deep state' term is a way of describing how the Pakistan Army runs the country behind the scenes. She discounts the 'independence' of Pakistan's intelligence service from the Pakistan Army and provides us with her understanding of why Pakistan supports terrorist groups that attack India and the Afghan Taliban that are running amok in Afghanistan. Read the interview in "Pakistan Army continues to run and ruin the country: Fair", Alternative.co, April 19, 2015.

www.alternarrative.co/pakistan-army-continues-to-run-and-ruin-the-country-fair/

Assessing DoD Efforts to Inform, Influence, & Persuade

If you are in the Strategic Communications field in a conflict area then the below listed three references from the RAND Corporation may be useful to your line of work. These could be useful to the Resolute Support advisors working in Essential Function 8 - STRATCOM.

"DoD has struggled with assessing the progress and effectiveness of its IIP efforts and in presenting the results of these assessments to stakeholders and decisionmakers. To address these challenges, a RAND study compiled examples of strong assessment practices across sectors, including defense, marketing, public relations, and academia, distilling and synthesizing insights and advice for the assessment of DoD IIP efforts and programs. These insights and attendant best practices will be useful to personnel who plan and assess DoD IPP efforts and those who make decisions based on assessments, particularly those in DoD and Congress who are responsible for setting national defense priorities and allocating the necessary resources."

Assessing and Evaluating Department of Defense Efforts to Inform, Influence, and Persuade
RAND Corporation, April 17, 2015

Desk Reference 

www.rand.org/pubs/research_reports/RR809z1.html

Handbook for Practitioners
www.rand.org/pubs/research_reports/RR809z2.html

Annotated Reading List

www.rand.org/pubs/research_reports/RR809z3.html

Webcast - "Advancing Gender Equality" (20 April, 2015)

The Center for Strategic & International Studies (CSIS) will be hosting a panel discussion on "Advancing Global Gender Equality" on Monday, April 20, 2015. The event will take place at CSIS in Washington, D.C. but can also be viewed online as well. The panel is moderated and hosted by Bob Schieffer (Chief Washington Correspondent for CBS News) and panelists include Catherine Russel (Ambassador-at-Large for Global Women's Issues, U.S. Department of State), Carrie Hessler-Radelet (Director, U.S. Peace Corps), and Dr. Sarah E. Mendelson (Senior Advisor and Director, CSIS Human Rights Initiative).

Monday, April 20, 2015, 4:45 PM - 6:30 PM. Register for webcast online at link below.
http://my.csis.org/csis/CSIS1700/CSISEventRegistration.aspx?eventcode=2015_149

Afghan War News Snippets

Ghani and Iran. Iran says it is ready to cooperate with Afghanistan in the fight against terrorism in the region. Yep. They said that. I saw it on Twitter so it must be true. President Ghani is on a two-day (starting Sunday) visit to Iran to discuss security, drug trafficking, and refugee issues.

MoD Minister Nominated? News reports say that General Abdullah Khan has been nominated to head up the Ministry of Defense.

General Campbell on Key to Peace. General Campbell, in a DoD News video says the key to Afghan peace is the Taliban to engage in the political process. (April 17, 2015).
www.defense.gov/video/default.aspx?mediaid=2001038941

Nangarahar Bombing. The death toll from the suicide bomber on a motorcycle is around 33 fatalities with many more injured. The Taliban issued a statement saying they are not the guilty party; ISIS has claimed the responsibility. Resolute Support HQs issued a statement condemning the bombing on Facebook.

Afghan Law and Sharia Faculties in Competition. The U.S. Department of State's Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs funded the 2014-2015 Afghanistan National Rounds of the Jessup International Law Moot Court Competition. Teams from nearly 550 law schools in more than 80 countries take part in the competition. Two Afghan teams took part in the competition outside of Afghanistan. Read more in a news report by the U.S. Embassy in Kabul, April 19, 2015.  http://kabul.usembassy.gov/pr-04192015.html

ISIS and Afghanistan. Matt Chiavenz writes about "Afghanistan's Growing War With ISIS" in The Atlantic, April 18, 2015.

Lashkar Gar Police Station Attacked. Gunmen attacked a police station in Lashkar Gar, Helmand province on Sunday wounding two officers and a civilian. (Military Times, Apr 19, 2015).

Obama's Failed Afghan Peace Strategy. One commentator feels that Obama is fooling himself if he thinks he can get a peace settlement with the Taliban. Read his column in Project-Syndicate.org (India), April 15, 2015.

Controversial Border Security Trench. Pakistan is making good progress on the digging of a security trench along the Afghan-Pak border. The purpose of the trench is to limit cross-border activity of militants; however, Afghan officials have objected to the trench saying it will escalate tensions between the two countries. The 8 ft deep and 10 ft wide trench, when completed, will be 470 miles long and will travel along the Durand Line - which Afghanistan objects to - as it separates the Pashtun people on both sides of the border. Read a news report in UPI, apr 17, 2015.

Torture in Uzbekistan. A country to the north of Afghanistan is under the spotlight due to a report issued by Amnesty International that says that "Torture has become a defining feature of the Uzbekistani criminal justice system". Read more in "Turning a Blind Eye to Torture in Uzbekistan", by Catherine Putz, The Diplomat, April 16, 2015.

Central Asia Evolving. Read one commentators view of how Central Asia will become integrated with Europe, Russia and China. (Asia Times, Apr 18, 2015).

Deminers Abducted. Afghan officials report that 19 deminers were kidnapped by insurgents in Paktia province on Sunday.

Develop Your Writing Skills!

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. Frequency of submission is up to you. If you wrote a paper on a relevant topic and would like to share it send it to us for posting on the blog and website.  If I missed an important story about Afghanistan - please let me know. Send the link! And naturally, if you see errors, outdated information, or broken links please let us know.

staff@afghanwarnews.info

Afghan News in a Newsletter

You can receive the Afghan War News Daily Newsletter each day. It should arrive in your e-mail inbox at 5:00 a.m. U.S. East coast time or just after lunch (1330) in Kabul. It is easy to subscribe. To submit your subscription request go to www.afghanwarnews.blogspot.com and enter your email in the "Follow by Email" dialogue box at the top of the right hand column. The only info needed is your email. No personal data, forms to fill out, or passwords needed. You will receive a confirmation email asking you if you want to subscribe. Just confirm and you are done. It is also easy to unsubscribe. At the bottom of the newsletter click "unsubscribe" and you will be automatically unsubscribed.

Day in the Life of a RoL Advisor

One of the hardest jobs in Afghanistan is that of a Rule of Law advisor. I have known and worked with several RoL advisors and trainers and they had a frustrating job. On one hand there were the Afghans that had no clue what RoL was (and if they did, had no desire to observe it) and on the other hand were American military officers that brushed the whole concept aside - at least in the early and mid years of the Afghan conflict. Even in a later period of the war (just a few years back) I can recall RoL advisors at the national level working at ISAF being reassigned to other jobs because there was not much progress being made in RoL within the Afghan government, military, and police. It wasn't all gloom and doom for the RoL advisor - there were some success stories and some progress; just not enough.

With President Ghani now running the government and the appointment of new ministers to the cabinet perhaps the Rule of Law advisors working in Resolute Support Essential Function 3 will see the doors open a little wider and be able to assist the Afghans with some measurable and meaningful progress.

Jade Wu, a former Rule of Law advisor in Afghanistan, provides us her perspective on the Rule of Law advisor assignment in "A Day in the Life of a Rule of Law Advisor", International Policy Digest, April 17, 2015. Jade is a foreign policy analyst, author, and lawyer. She has worked on humanitarian assignments in Iraq, Kosovo, Philippines, Germany, and Malawi. She is currently writing a book with the working title "Moments that Flashed". You can follow her on Twitter at @jadejournal.

Paper - "Body Count"

The Physicians for Social Responsibility (PSR) has published an extensive study of the deaths caused by the wars in Afghanistan, Iraq and Pakistan. The short name of the paper is "Body Count"; the long name is "Body Count: Casualty Figures after 10 years of the War on Terror". For those that can remember (yes, I do) the term 'body count' gained much attention during the Vietnam War. One of the methods the military command in Vietnam measured progress on the battlefield in Vietnam was using a body count metric - how many of the enemy were killed during a certain operation or period. It became a focus of the military during the 'Five O'clock Follies" - the public affairs office briefings to the press that occurred in Saigon every day at 5:00 pm. The military, in an effort to show progress, would trot out charts depicting the latest body count information. Unfortunately, this public affairs practice turned into a negative. As a result, the US has learned to not release enemy casualty figures; and when they do, they are not tallied from day to day. So it is not surprising that the PSR 'borrows' the term for the title of their paper; as the negative association of the term fits their political agenda and resonates with many of their readership and will likely influence others beyond their usual audience. The paper by PSR attempts to fill the information gap of the casualties not tracked by the U.S. in Afghanistan (and Iraq and Pakistan as well). The paper is dated March 2015, is an Adobe Acrobat PDF, and is over 100 pages of graphs, charts, maps, pictures, figures, etc. In regards to Afghanistan, the paper provides estimates of the number of war deaths from October 7, 2001 to December 31, 2011. It examines the casualty figures of civilians, Afghan security forces, ISAF and OEF Soldiers, private security contractors, civilian employees of the US government, journalists, and insurgents.

www.psr.org/assets/pdfs/body-count.pdf

Afghan War News Snippets

Parliament Approves Ministers. It appears that President Ghani's cabinet is growing. The parliament has approved many of the more recent nominees for ministry positions. Perhaps the Afghan government can start governing now that the ministries have some leadership. Evidently enough bribes were paid to enough MPs to get all 16 ministers approved. Now if only folks could agree on the MoD minister - because, like, there's a war going on. Kate Clark, of the Afghanistan Analysts Network, provides us a detailed look at the ministers and the approval process.

Ghani Visits Troubled Badakhshan. President Ghani visited this contested province and provided a speech calling Afghans to unite against the insurgents and to support the Afghan National Army. He indicated that the province's leadership was poor and dominated by a few powerful individuals. 

Jalalabad Suicide Bombing kills Scores. There were a lot of fatalities in Jalalabad on Saturday from a suicide bomb blast. Estimates indicate that there were about 35 fatalities with over 100 wounded. The Taliban have said they are not responsible; the Islamic State has claimed responsibility. News reports are below:

The Washington Post
Gandhara Blog - Radio Free Europe
UNAMA

Islamic State and Afghanistan. This news story covers a broad range of topics including the fear of the growth of the Islamic State in Afghanistan, persecution of the Hazaras, Afghan Local Police, militias, and warlords. Read "Has the Caliphate Come to Kabul?", by Leela Jacinto, Foreign Policy, March 23, 2015.

India and Pakistan - Proxy War in Afghanistan. Catherine Putz provides us with a summary of the involvement of India and Pakistan in the Afghan conflict and the evolving relationship between Afghanistan and Pakistan. Learn more about why ". . . we may be fighting the wrong enemy in the wrong country". (The Diplomat, April 15, 2015).

Iran Shoring up the Shiites? President Ghani's charm offensive seems to be working. He has reached out to regional neighbors requesting assistance. Iran has responded with a statement by the Iranian Interior Minister (April 13th) that Iran was willing to execute joint operations with Afghanistan. Hmmmm. Does that mean providing stability to neighboring Herat and Ghor provinces (and maybe even Bamian) through advisors or even security forces ensuring that the Shiites are protected and that their favorite strongman is shored up (is that still Ismail Khan?). This could all be part of the wider Sunni-Shiite War currently engulfing the Middle East. Perhaps Iran is worried about Islamic State penetration in Afghanistan - a bordering neighbor to its east. So, Iranian advisors in Afghanistan working side by side with American advisors. Just like in Iraq! Actually they would probably be engaged with the Spanish and Italians in TAAC West. Are the Spanish and Italians in Iraq? Likelihood of it happening? 1%.

Russia Fearing Islamic State? On April 15th the Russian Foreign Minister said that his nation was prepared to support Afghanistan. This fight would be against terrorism and drug trafficking. A big part of the opium grown in Afghanistan finds its way to Russia's many addicts. In addition, Russia does not want to see the Islamic State make any inroads into Central Asia - an area of the region that Russia feels is in its sphere of influence - economically, politically, and militarily. Russia back in Afghanistan - wouldn't that be simply lovely. So . . . Russian advisors, probably assisting in northern Afghanistan working side-by-side with their TAAC North NATO allies at Camp Marmal in Mazer-e-Sharif. Wouldn't that be special. Likelihood of it happening? 1 %.

Cast Your Vote for "Return to Hope". NATOs web movie is one of three contestants for the 19th Annual Webby Awards. It is nicely done. You can cast your vote at webbyawards.com.

Britain Suspends $ for MoI/ANP Pay. Britain has suspended payments to a multi-billion pound aid project in Afghanistan following allegations of corruption and mismanagement of a UN-led payroll contract. Read "Corruption claims halt police aid for Afghanistan", The Times, April 17, 2015. Ahhh, good old Afghan corruption.

Book Review - "The CIA in Hollywood". Julius Taranto reviews a book about how the CIA helps out Hollywood in the film business and improves its public image (Lawfare, Apr 17, 2015).

Georgian CoS visits RS HQs. The Chief of General Staff of the Georgian Armed Forces visited Resolute Support officials and Georgian troops currently supporting the RS mission at Bagram Airfield, Mazar-e-Sharif, and Kabul. Georgia has been assisting in the counterinsurgency fight since 2004 and they are currently the second largest contributing nation in Afghanistan. Read a news report by RS HQs, April 18, 2015.

'Muhajideen Special Group" training camp. The Movement of the Taliban in Pakistan released a lengthy video of some fighters attending the "Mujahideen Special Group" training camp in Pakistan. This group is the movements version of  'special forces'. The film was released on April 17th by Umar Media - the official propaganda unit of the the Movement of the Taliban in Pakistan. Read more in a news story by Bill Roggio, The Long War Journal, April 18, 2015.

United Nations Women Peacekeepers. The UN has provided an info piece that shows women have become an increasingly part of the peacekeeping family. (UN, April 17, 2015).
www.un.org/en/peacekeeping/issues/women/womeninpk.shtml

Capital Guardians Heading to CENTCOM. The D.C. National Guard's 276th Military Police Company is heading to the Resolute Support Mission. They will actually be at Camp Arifjan, Kuwait assisting in the management of the Theater Field Detention Facility. (ReadMedia, Apr 17, 2015).

High Cost of Afghan Weddings. Read Joseph Goldstein's story in The New York Times about Afghan weddings (April 18, 2015) - "At Afghan Weddings, His Side, Her Side, and 600 Strangers".

The F-35 We Can't Afford. A new report by the GAO says America can't afford the replacement for the A-10 and other types of aircraft. Read a news story on War is Boring, by Matthew Gault, April 18, 2015. You can read the GAO report here.

Afghan Novelist Reminisces. Rahnaward Zaryab is interviewed in this New York Times story by Mujib Mashal (April 17, 2015) - "Writer Retreats to a Kabul That Lives Only in His Memories and Books".

DCGS-A. The Big Army's IO machine is at work again trying to convince us that the Distributed Common Ground System - Army or DCGS-A is a good deal getting better. Read more in "Army says intelligence system is getting easier to use", Defense Systems, April 17, 2015.

New Acronym - "CF / SOF I3". You learn something new everyday while traveling through the Internet. www.specialforcestraining.info/glossary/glossary_C.htm

Send in News to Add to Newsletter

If I missed an important story about Afghanistan - please let me know. Send the link!

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. Frequency of submission is up to you. If you wrote a paper on a relevant topic and would like to share it send it to us for posting on the blog and website. And naturally, if you see errors, outdated information, or broken links please let us know.

staff@afghanwarnews.info

Afghan News with Your Morning Tea

You can receive the Afghan War News Daily Newsletter each day. It should arrive in your e-mail inbox at 5:00 a.m. U.S. East coast time or just after lunch (1330) in Kabul. It is easy to subscribe. To submit your subscription request go to www.afghanwarnews.blogspot.com and enter your email in the "Follow by Email" dialogue box at the top of the right hand column. The only info needed is your email. No personal data, forms to fill out, or passwords needed. You will receive a confirmation email asking you if you want to subscribe. Just confirm and you are done. It is also easy to unsubscribe. At the bottom of the newsletter click "unsubscribe" and you will be automatically unsubscribed.

Social Media and Afghanistan

"Social media is another component of unconventional strategies, and the security environment in general, that is playing a central role in recruiting individuals to causes. We must therefore develop our ability to interact with key influencers through this medium, or else risk blinding ourselves to this important conduit of information and influence in unfolding crises. We all must view this space as routine operational area; it is redefining how humans interact. Our success in leveraging these tools will be determined by how well we cultivate the networks in which we participate; it is important to note that these are not 'our' networks - the very nature of these relationship tools is decentralized and participatory, rather than centrally controlled. We require new thinking on this subject". Statement of General Joseph Votel, USSOCOM Commander, before the House Armed Services Committee, March 18, 2015.

By now everyone who studies or works within the conflict area in today's world should be aware of the growth of importance of social media. Some of our opponents have proved very adept at the use of social media to recruit fighters and supporters for their cause and to influence the conversation about their movement. One obvious example is the Islamic State.

Unknown to many Americans is the fact that there are a few U.S. organizations that are actively engaged in a 'Twitter' fight with the Islamic State. The effectiveness of this fight is still to be determined. It is ". . . like most governmental campaigns, long on bureaucracy and short on details". Adam Weinstein has several recommendations for the U.S. government social media organizations. You can read them in "Here's How the US Should Fight ISIS with Social Media" (Wired.com, March 12, 2015). Some of these recommendations could be of use in Afghanistan.

The U.S. Department of State's Center Strategic Counterterrorism Communications (CSCC) is America's combatant in the social media area. The website for the Center for Strategic Counterterrorism Communications is www.state.gov/r/cscc/. Read a news report on the CSCC by Hayes Brown (Think Progress, September 18, 2014) - "Meet the State Department Team Trying to Troll ISIS into Oblivion".

Social media is also important in a counterinsurgency fight - like the one taking place in Afghanistan. Many observers see the Afghan counterinsurgency effort focused on three areas; security, governance, and development. Some COIN adherents would add a fourth - information operations, inform and influence activities, or social media - pick your favorite phrase.

In the past ISAF has had a dismal record in the information operations field and ISAF was clearly outclassed by the Taliban. The Taliban could post a video of a roadside IED attack against a Coalition convoy on social media within an hour of the incident. ISAF would comment on it one or two days later. For the most part the Taliban smoked ISAF in the IO fight; although ISAF did have some bright moments and effective practices (use of the RIAB for instance). ISAF would tell you there are an abundance of TVs, radio stations, and print media where the Afghan government's message is being carried. But the reach of those media outlets is limited mostly to urban areas; where households have radios, TVs, and are sometimes literate. In the rural areas, the contested areas where the COIN fight takes place, a 'night letter' tacked on a villagers front door by insurgents has much greater effect.

Resolute Support HQs (replacing ISAF) is continuing the IO effort; with some success stories. They are doing a much better job at informing the public through its use of Facebook, Twitter and their website. At the same time RS HQs has reduced the frequency of 'cheerleader' news releases that discredited their message - something which plagued ISAF in the past with reduced credibility.

While the Coalition continues its efforts in this area of the conflict (IO and the use of social media) it is also working to improve the Afghan capability to conduct Strategic Communications through its advisors working in Essential Function 8 - STRATCOM. One good example of the Afghans conducting work in this field is the Afghan RMIC located in Mazar-e-Sharif (TAAC North's AO - the Europeans can take some credit for this). The RMIC has their own website (Bayanshamal) up and running supporting the Afghan governments message. The RMIC is something the other TAACs should check out. It is worth the visit to Camp Marmal to see what right looks like when it comes to Afghan IO. And you can always sneak into one of the many discreet pubs for a beer or two! The Rose Garden (all allowed except U.S.) or GPPT pub (invitation only) comes to mind.