NewsCloud.com Afghanistan News http://www.newscloud.com/section/afghanistan Wed, 15 Oct 2008 14:58:42 +0100 FeedCreator 1.7.2 en-us Pakistani tribal chiefs threaten to join Taliban http://www.newscloud.com/read/Pakistani_tribal_chiefs_threaten_to_join_Taliban If the united States continues it's present policy of 'cross-border attacks' (ie, incursions) into western Pakistan from Afghanistan, they will be facing troubles in addition to retaliation from the Pakistani army. Tribal leaders of the western area swear that they will join the Taliban if the incursions and attacks continue. These leaders claim to represent half a million Pakistanis, all of whom would go to the Taliban if the US continues this policy.

]]> tehran times : Pakistan army ordered to hit back at U.S. forces http://www.newscloud.com/read/tehran_times__Pakistan_army_ordered_to_hit_back_at_US_forces TEHRAN (Press TV) -- The Pakistani Army has been given orders to retaliate against any unilateral strike by the Afghanistan-based U.S. troops inside the country.

Army Spokesman Maj Gen Athar Abbas confirmed the orders in a brief interview with Geo News on late Thursday night.

]]> Remote-control bomb kills Afghan governor http://www.newscloud.com/read/Remotecontrol_bomb_kills_Afghan_governor Interesting given this earlier oped piece by the NYT saying that remote control bombing was a priority for Al Qaida. But I'm sure the Republicans think we're winning.

]]> Army suicide rate could top nation's this year - CNN.com http://www.newscloud.com/read/Army_suicide_rate_could_top_nation_s_this_year_CNNcom The rate of suicides among-active duty soldiers is on pace to surpass both last year's numbers and the rate of suicide in the general U.S. population for the first time since the Vietnam war, according to U.S. Army officials. Officials attribute the rise in suicides to anxiety and stress from increased operations and more deployments. Officials attribute the rise in suicides to anxiety and stress from increased operations and more deployments. As of August, 62 Army soldiers have committed suicide, and 31 cases of possible suicide remain under investigation, according to Army statistics. Last year, the Army recorded 115 suicides among its ranks, which was also higher than the previous year.

]]> The Obama candidacy and the new consensus on Afghanistan http://www.newscloud.com/read/The_Obama_candidacy_and_the_new_consensus_on_Afghanistan The statements made by Barack Obama during his visit to Afghanistan over the weekend verify that his campaign for president is the mouthpiece for a significant section of the American ruling elite that is insisting on a shift in US policy in the Middle East and Central Asia. Far from proposing any retreat from militarism, Obama is arguing for a faster drawdown of troop numbers in Iraq and a reduction in tensions with Iran, only in order to facilitate a major escalation of US military operations in Afghanistan, potentially extending them into Pakistan.

]]> Obama meets with Karzai, pledges aid to Afghanistan http://www.newscloud.com/read/Obama_meets_with_Karzai_pledges_aid_to_Afghanistan Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama pledged steadfast aid to Afghanistan in talks with its Western-backed leader Sunday and vowed to pursue the war on terror "with vigor" if he is elected, an Afghan official said.

]]> Suicide Car Blast Kills 41 in Afghan Capital http://www.newscloud.com/read/Suicide_Car_Blast_Kills_41_in_Afghan_Capital A huge blast from a suicide car bomb at the gates of the Indian Embassy in Kabul killed 41 people and wounded more than 130 on Monday in the latest sign of a sharp deterioration in Afghanistan, where combat deaths have surpassed Iraq's in the past two months.

]]> Military Chief: US Doesn't Have Enough Troops To Send To Afghanistan on The Huffington Post http://www.newscloud.com/read/Military_Chief_US_Doesn_t_Have_Enough_Troops_To_Send_To_Afghanistan_on_The_Huffington_Post From The Washington Post: The nation's top military officer said yesterday that more U.S. troops are needed in Afghanistan to tamp down an increasingly violent insurgency, but that the Pentagon does not have sufficient forces to send because they are committed to the war in Iraq. Watch the video:

]]> Pentagon extends tour of Marines in Afghanistan http://www.newscloud.com/read/Pentagon_extends_tour_of_Marines_in_Afghanistan WASHINGTON - The Pentagon has extended the tour of 2,200 Marines in Afghanistan, after insisting for months the unit would come home on time. ADVERTISEMENT The 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit, which is doing combat operations in the volatile south, will stay an extra 30 days and come home in early November rather than October, Marine Col. David Lapan confirmed Thursday. Military leaders as recently as Wednesday stressed the need for additional troops in Afghanistan. Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, has repeatedly praised the work of the 24th MEU in fighting Taliban militants in Helmand Province. Defense Secretary Robert Gates, however, has repeatedly said he did not intend to extend or replace the U.S. Marines in Afghanistan, calling their deployment there

]]> Afghan civilian deaths up 60 per cent http://www.newscloud.com/read/Afghan_civilian_deaths_up_60_per_cent The number of civilians killed in fighting between insurgents and security forces in Afghanistan has soared by two-thirds in the first half of this year, to almost 700 people, a senior UN official said Sunday. The figures are a grim reminder of how the nearly seven-year war has failed to stabilize the country and suggest that ordinary civilians are bearing a heavy toll, particularly from stepped-up militant attacks.

]]> Foreclosures Four Times Higher in Military Towns http://www.newscloud.com/read/Foreclosures_Four_Times_Higher_in_Military_Towns Foreclosure filings in 10 towns and cities within 10 miles of military facilities, including Norfolk, Virginia, home of the Navy's largest base, rose by an average 217 percent from January through April from a year earlier. Nationally, the rate was 59 percent in the same period, according to RealtyTrac, which tallies bank seizures, auctions and default notices.

]]> US uses bullets ill-suited for new ways of war http://www.newscloud.com/read/US_uses_bullets_illsuited_for_new_ways_of_war As an Army sniper, Higgins was one of the select few toting an M14. The long-barreled rifle, an imposing weapon built for wars long past, spits out bullets larger and more deadly than the rounds that fit into the M4 carbines and M16 rifles that most soldiers carry.

]]> Afghan President Karzai Almost Assasinated http://www.newscloud.com/read/Afghan_President_Karzai_Almost_Assasinated Biggest story of the wekeend? Sign of failure of war on terror? The Taliban claimed responsibility for the assault that sent President Hamid Karzai and foreign ambassadors scurrying for cover, underscoring the fragile grip of his U.S.-backed government.

]]> 22-year old with history of domestic abuse reportedly was awarded $300m Pentagon contract to supply http://www.newscloud.com/read/22year_old_with_history_of_domestic_abuse_reportedly_was_awarded_300m_Pentagon_contract_to_supply The Pentagon entrusted a 22-year old previously arrested for domestic violence and having a forged driving licence to be the main supplier of ammunition to Afghan forces at the height of the battle against a resurgent Taliban, it was reported today. AEY, essentially a one-man operation based in an unmarked office in Miami Beach, was awarded a contract worth $300m to supply the Afghan army and police in January last year. The New York Times broke this story earlier today after a lengthy investigation. AEY's president, Efraim Diversoli, 22, supplied stock that was 40 years old and rotting packing material. The vice president of the company was a masseuse.


]]> National security agencies have failed in Iraq, Afghanistan (3/10/08) -- www.GovernmentExecutive.com http://www.newscloud.com/read/National_security_agencies_have_failed_in_Iraq_Afghanistan_31008_wwwGovernmentExecutivecom America's national security institutions have failed and the military has been left holding the bag in places such as Iraq and Afghanistan, conducting nation-building tasks for which it is ill-suited, according to the final report of a House Armed Services Committee panel established in 2007 to examine military roles and missions.

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