Pakistan, Afghanistan, and the TTP

We all know that the Pakistan intelligence agency (Inter-Services Intelligence or ISI) supports the Haqqani Network as well as other insurgent groups that have sanctuary in Pakistan but operate in Afghanistan. What is not so well known is that there are insurgent groups that have sanctuary in Afghanistan's remote and unsecured regions (Nuristan, Kunar, etc.) and that operate against the Pakistan government. Read an informative article about the Pakistan military's fight against the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) in "The Afghan Roots of Pakistan's Zarb-e-Azb Operation" by Umar Farooq, posted on The South Asian Channel (Foreign Policy), September 18, 2014. Additional sources of info on the TTP include info provided by the National Counterterrorism Center (NCTC) and info by WikipediA.

DoD Press Releases - No Afghan News

The Department of Defense press machine has virtually ignored Afghanistan but is providing a mountain of information about Iraq (and Syria). Although there are still over 20,000 (?) U.S. troops still in Afghanistan and only 1,600 (?) in Iraq. This, of course, is intentional. The military and the administration want the public's focus to be on building support for intervention in Iraq (and Syria) and want to push Afghanistan into the background. Read more in "DOD highlights information from Iraq as emphasis shifts away from Afghanistan", Stars and Stripes, September 21, 2014.

How UK Deploys Reapers to Afghanistan

This news article provides a series of photos that show how the United Kingdom deploys its Reapers (drones) to Afghanistan. Call it "drone in a box". Read the news story here in The Aviationist (Sep 19, 2014).

Book Review - "One Million Steps"

Big West has a new book out entitled "One Million Steps". Bing West, a Vietnam veteran, writes about the Marine's fight in Helmand province. The author tracks the fighting of the 3/5 Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment as it secures Sangin district. West is complimentary of the Marine effort in Helmand province but critical of senior military leadership in their implementation of "population centric COIN" country-wide. Read "Book Review: 'One Million Steps' by Bing West", The Wall Street Journal, September 21, 2014.

Australia Takes Stock of Afghanistan and Wonders about Iraq

Australia's objectives in Afghanistan were broad and deep but as time went on the expectations of establishing a modern democracy diminished. Now as it looks to become engaged in Iraq it wonders what lies down the road. The author of this news article compares Australia's involvement in Afghanistan and how hopes and dreams were dashed to the Australia's future involvement in Iraq. Read "Get ready to be mugged by complexity", The Age, September 19, 2014.

Germany's View of the Future of Afghanistan

Germany has held a leading role in Afghanistan from the early days of the conflict. Besides placing a number of personnel to serve on the ISAF and IJC staff they have deployed a significant number of troops to Regional Command North (now called TAAC North). MG Dieter Ernst Warnecke was the deputy commander of the ISAF Joint Command (IJC) in Afghanistan in 2013 and a former commander of Regional Command North in Mazar-i-Shariff. He provides his perspective on the future of Afghanistan in "Afghan combat mission definitely over", Deite Welde (DW), September 21, 2014.

Book Review - "Drone Warfare"

John Kaag and Sarah Kreps have wrote a book entitled Drone Warfare. The book was reviewed by Olivia Mena - a PhD candidate in the Sociology Department at the London School of Economics. She says the book " . . . is an interdisciplinary intervention jointly authored by a political scientist and a philosopher who grapple with how the use of armed drones not only changes the way we wage wars, but also, perhaps our very definitions of war and peace". The book is divided into three sections - the politics of drones, legality of drones, and the morality drones. Read the book review here on the website of the London School of Economics and Political Science.

Transition Timeline

Transition, when referring to Afghanistan, is used to describe " . . . the process by which the lead responsibility for security in Afghanistan is gradually being transitioned from the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) to the Afghan National Security Forces". Transition is said to have been fully achieved by mid-summer 2013. ISAF has published an interactive timeline to explain transition - an informative tool to learn more about transition. You can also learn more about transition in Afghanistan here.

More Pink Slips for Afghan Troops

According to Army Chief of Staff General Ray Odierno more members of the U.S. Army currently deployed to Afghanistan could find out they have lost their job upon their return to the United States. The notifications are part of the force reduction process as a result of the defense budget cuts. Active duty Army end strength will drop from 510,000 to 490,000 in 2015; a reduction of 30,000. Service members usually get 9 months to transition from military duty. Read more in "Odierno: More troops in Afghanistan may get pink slips", Stars and Stripes, September 20, 2014.

Ghani to Name Woman to Supreme Court

The Associated Report says that the new president of Afghanistan Ghani will appoint a woman to the Afghan supreme court. This will cause dismay among conservative Islamic leaders in Afghanistan and win applause from women's rights organizations. Read more in "New Afghan Leader to Name Woman to Supreme Court", AP, September 22, 2014.

Afghan News - Daily Report

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

Ghani Declared Winner of Presidential Election

It finally happened. The Independent Election Commission (IEC) declared Ashraf Ghani Ahmadzai as the new President of Afghanistan (referred to as PoA in the U.S. military). The actual numbers from the elections were not released and it is unknown if they ever will be released. While this might have been a factor in the agreement between the two candidates to move on it does not bode well for the democratic process and transparency of the Afghan election. Under the agreement Ghani will create by presidential decree the position of chief executive for Abdullah - with the intent that the constitution will be amended to create the position of Prime Minister. Read more in "Ghani is new president of Afghanistan, official says", CNN World News, September 22, 2014.

Kunduz province at Risk

In the north of Afghanistan, long considered to be the most non-violent and secure region, there is trouble brewing. The past few years has seen the emergence of insurgent groups that have the capability to overrun district centers and hold them for long periods of time. Kunduz is a particularly troublesome spot with insurgents gaining territory and winning local support among the population. As the European ISAF troops (led by the Germans) collapsed from the east and west of Regional Command North into the center at Camp Marmal (Mazar-e-Sharif) the operational reach of ISAF diminished significantly. Two districts in Kunduz province fell to the Taliban in mid-summer and they were only recently taken back by Afghan security forces. Read a comprehensive review of the situation in Kunduz province in"Taleban Closing in on the City: the next round of the tug-of-war over Kunduz", Afghanistan Analysts Network, September 2, 2014.

Afghan Power-Sharing Agreement Signed

The two presidential candidates (Afghanistan) signed a power-sharing agreement for a 'unity government' that resolves the election crisis. Now the Afghan government can get down to work, the Afghan economy can settle down, and the military and police can resume their counterinsurgency fight against the Taliban. The good news is that Karzai is finally exiting stage left. Read more in "Afghan presidential rivals sign power-sharing agreement", USA Today, September 21, 2014.

White House Happy with Ghani-Abdullah Accord

The White House is "happy" with the final resolution of the Afghan election. It "applauds" the presidential candidates for signing an agreement on the formation of a government of national unity. Read the press release by the White House (September 21, 2014).

U.S. State Department Happy on Ghani-Abdullah Agreement

The United States State Department is quite happy with the two Afghan leaders finally reaching an accommodation on the release of the elections results (did the vote tallies actually get released?) and the ability of the new Afghan government to be formed. Read a State Department press statement by John Kerry (September 21, 2014).

BSA to be Signed Soon

Now that the drama of the Afghan elections is concluded the next big step (from a U.S. perspective) will be to see the quick signing of the Bilateral Security Agreement or BSA. Learn more here in "Ending Afghan Poll Fight Opens Door to Security Pact", The Wall Street Journal, Septmber 21, 2014.

Afghan Soldiers Go AWOL in Cape Cod

Three officers (one major and two captains) from the Afghan National Army who were attending a training exercise at Joint Base Cape Cod have gone missing. Police and military authorities are currently searching for them. They arrived at Camp Edwards (Cape Cod, Massachusetts) on September 11th and disappeared while visiting the Cape Cod Mall in Hyannis, Massachusetts. This is quite normal. The U.S. and other ISAF nations provide opportunities for Afghan police and army personnel to attend training events and courses. Usually the attendees are chosen by higher ranking officials based on political, family, or patronage ties. The "disappearance rate" is fairly predictable - usually two to three personnel from a group of ten or twenty Afghan visitors. The Afghan "disappeared" will make prior arrangements with friends or family who are already located in the United States (or Europe) for pickup once they slip away from their "watchers". Read more on the "Cape Cod Three" in "3 Afghan soldiers missing from Cape Cod base", AOL News, September 22, 2014. UPDATE: The three missing Afghans have been found; they will receive remedial map reading training soon!

Aid Worker Recounts His Afghan Near Escape

An aid worker, Dominic Nutt, provides us with his story of near death in Afghanistan. He discusses the peril of aid work in Afghanistan and other parts of the world. In addition, despite the risks, he tells us why aid workers continue their work when their lives are in danger. Read "Aid workers are there to help - even if some die trying", The Telegraph, September 16, 2014.

Study - Some Wounded Could Have Survived Afghanistan

A team of medical professionals in Washington spent six months reviewing the autopsies of thousands of casualties from Iraq and Afghanistan and determined that some died from survivable wounds. Read more in "Are U.S. Soldiers Dying from Survivable Wounds?", The Wall Street Journal, September 19, 2104.