tagged w/ Operation Moshtarak
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International Red Cross affiliate the Afghan Red Crescent Society says about 500 families in Afghanistan’s Helmand Province were forced out of their homes following recent military operations there by Afghan government and NATO forces. The refugee affairs department says over 2,000 of up to 4,000 families displaced from their homes in the Marjah area during a large-scale military operation in February have remained in Lashkargah for security reasons.International Red Cross affiliate the Afghan Red Crescent Society says about 500... more
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In one of the least examined aspects of President Obama's escalation of the Afghan war, armed private security contractors are being killed in action by the hundreds -- at a rate more than four times that of U.S. troops, according to a previously unreported congressional study.In one of the least examined aspects of President Obama's escalation of the... more
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Afghanistan city. In a bleak report warning of record Taliban violence and rising civilian deaths across the country by the Afghanistan NGO Security Office, which monitors trends in violence on behalf of aid organizations, the group says NATO's counter-insurgency strategy is not showing any signs of succeeding amid rising violence, the unchecked establishment of local militias and a huge increase in attacks on private development workers across the country.Afghanistan city. In a bleak report warning of record Taliban violence and rising... more
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Website Raw Story reports that the Pulitzer Prize winning journalist who helped break the story that detainees at Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq were being tortured by their US jailers is now saying that American soldiers are executing prisoners in Afghanistan.Website Raw Story reports that the Pulitzer Prize winning journalist who helped break... more
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A civilian was shot dead in eastern Afghanistan last week after police fired at thousands of villagers protesting against NATO raids which they say killed 11 civilians.A civilian was shot dead in eastern Afghanistan last week after police fired at... more
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Although it's just beginning, the U.S.-led effort to pacify the Taliban's spiritual capital in southern Afghanistan already appears to be faltering.
Key military operations have been delayed until the fall, efforts to improve local government are having little impact and a Taliban assassination campaign has brought a sense of dread to Kandahar's streets.Although it's just beginning, the U.S.-led effort to pacify the Taliban's... more
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The US and NATO commander in Afghanistan, General Stanley McChrystal, who was boasting of military progress only three months ago, confessed last week that "nobody is winning".The US and NATO commander in Afghanistan, General Stanley McChrystal, who was boasting... more
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An independent government report raises new questions about the likelihood of success for President Barack Obama's Afghanistan policy, which nearly doubles the number of U.S. troops there.
The report, by the Government Accountability Office, found that despite the boost in U.S. troops, the Taliban remain a resilient fighting force, and it suggests many factors remain in place that will allow the Taliban to survive U.S. efforts to eradicate them.An independent government report raises new questions about the likelihood of success... more
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Afghanistan’s drug and corruption economy of $5.3 billion in 2009 was more than the $4.4 billion earmarked in 2010 for running the government and financing the development budget.Afghanistan’s drug and corruption economy of $5.3 billion in 2009 was more than... more
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Afghanistan’s Interior Ministry says that civilian casualties there are on the rise as U.S. and NATO reinforcements stream into the country as part of a military buildup to combat the resurgent Taliban.Afghanistan’s Interior Ministry says that civilian casualties there are on the... more
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US Special Forces raided the home of a prominent Afghan Minister of Parliament, killing one of her relatives in an operation that provoked public protests this past week.US Special Forces raided the home of a prominent Afghan Minister of Parliament,... more
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A Pentagon report presents a sobering new assessment of the Taliban-led insurgency in Afghanistan, saying that its abilities are expanding and its operations are increasing in sophistication, despite recent major offensives by U.S. forces in the militants' heartland.
The report concludes that Afghan people support or are sympathetic to the insurgency in 92 of 121 districts identified by the U.S. military as key terrain for stabilizing the country. Popular support for Karzai's government is strong in only 29 of those districts.A Pentagon report presents a sobering new assessment of the Taliban-led insurgency in... more
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More than 800 complaints have been filed by families of civilians killed in US military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan.More than 800 complaints have been filed by families of civilians killed in US... more
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Nearly two of every three male juveniles arrested in Afghanistan are physically abused, according to a study based on interviews with 40 percent of all those now incarcerated in the country's juvenile justice system.
The study, carried out by U.S. defense attorney Kimberly Motley for the international children's rights organization Terre des Hommes, reveals a justice system that subjects juveniles, many of whom are already innocent victims, to torture, forced confessions and blatant violation of their rights in court.Nearly two of every three male juveniles arrested in Afghanistan are physically... more
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After initially denying involvement or any cover-up in the deaths of three Afghan women --two of whom were pregnant-- during a US Special Operations assault in February, the US-led military command now admits that its forces had, in fact, killed the women during the nighttime raid.After initially denying involvement or any cover-up in the deaths of three Afghan... more
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According to the New York Times, since the US offensive in the Afghan region of Marja in February, the Marines have been flooding the area with hundreds of thousands of dollars a week. The tactic is to win over wary residents by paying them compensation for property damage or putting men to work that would otherwise look to the Taliban for support.
But in Marja, where the Taliban seem to know everything — and most of the time it is impossible to even tell who they are — they have already found ways to thwart the strategy in many places, including killing or beating some who take the Marines’ money, or pocketing it themselves.According to the New York Times, since the US offensive in the Afghan region of Marja... more
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Britain’s defense department has decided that British journalists' access to military operations in Afghanistan will be restricted during the UK’s general election campaign season.Britain’s defense department has decided that British journalists' access... more
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For weeks, the U.S. public followed the biggest offensive of the Afghanistan War against what it was told was a city of 80,000 people as well as the logistical hub of the Taliban. That idea was a central element in the overall impression built up in February that Marja was a major strategic objective, more important than other district centers in Helmand province.
But as Inter Press Service’s Gareth Porter points out, the picture of Marja presented by military officials and major news media was one of dramatic misinformation, apparently aimed at hyping the offensive as a historic turning point in the conflict.
In reality, Marja is not a city or even a real town, but either a few clusters of farmers' homes or a large agricultural area covering much of the southern Helmand River Valley.For weeks, the U.S. public followed the biggest offensive of the Afghanistan War... more
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Rights groups say people living on the front line of a major US-led offensive against Taliban militants in southern Afghanistan are trapped in their homes with little access to food and health care and that thousands more who fled the area before the fighting began are receiving little help in harsh winter conditions.Rights groups say people living on the front line of a major US-led offensive against... more
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As the US-led military campaign escalates in Afghanistan, so too have the number of innocent civilians killed as a consequence of Operation Moshtarak. An airstrike in a remote part of Oruzgan province capped a bloody week for Afghan civilians that has seen some 60 innocent people killed by NATO weapons.As the US-led military campaign escalates in Afghanistan, so too have the number of... more
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