9/12/07

Campaigners protest Iraq, Afghan deployments
A anti-war group says it will lobby the Federal Government to withdraw Australian troops from Afghanistan as well as Iraq.
www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2007/12/09/2113724.htm

Now and Forever By Bob Herbert 08 Dec 2007 A report prepared for the Democratic majority on the Joint Economic Committee of the House and Senate warns that without a significant change of course in Iraq, the long-term cost of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan could head into the vicinity of $3.5 trillion. The vast majority of those expenses would be for Iraq… President [sic] Bush’s formal funding requests for Iraq have already exceeded $600 billion… Youngsters who were just starting high school when the U.S. invaded Iraq are in college now. Their children, yet unborn, will be called on to fork over tax money to continue paying for the war. Seriously. How long do we want this madness to last?
www.nytimes.com/2007/12/04/opinion/04herbert.html

British soldier dies in Afghanistan 08 Dec 2007 A British soldier taking part in a major operation to drive the Taliban out of its only major urban Afghan stronghold has been killed, said the Ministry of Defence. The soldier died in the early hours in southern Afghanistan as troops continued their push to take the town of Musa Qala in Helmand Province.
www.guardian.co.uk/uklatest/story/0,,-7137931,00.html

To save mediaeval minarets, Afghans close road
Reuters – USA
KABUL, Dec 8 (Reuters) – Afghanistan has closed a road that threatened the foundation of a group of mediaeval minarets which Kabul wants to see listed among …
www.reuters.com/article/asiaCrisis/idUSSP214621

Bangladeshi hostage freed in Afghanistan: NGO
AFP –
KABUL (AFP) — A Bangladeshi development worker kidnapped in Afghanistan by unknown armed men has been released nearly three months after his abduction, …
afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5hmDxYu4W6qng10ObtIRzS67UlTeg

Diggers to remain in Afghanistan
NEWS.com.au – Australia
AUSTRALIAN troops will remain in Afghanistan until at least 2010, doubling the original two-year commitment. But the decision for troops to stay has not …
www.news.com.au/story/0,23599,22894176-1702,00.html

How we put our foot in it, in Afghanistan
Globe and Mail – Canada
Co-authors Stein and Lang cite Ken Calder, the top civilian policy-maker in the Department of National Defence, saying of Afghanistan in 2003, …
www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story
/RTGAM.20071207.cosimp08/BNStory/Front

Kite Runner’ takes flight
San Francisco Chronicle – CA, USA
The concerns were based on a disturbing scene, set in Afghanistan, in which a boy who is a member of the minority Hazara tribe is raped by a bully who …
www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/
2007/12/07/PKCITKID6.DTL&type=movies

Ambush kills district chief, 5 others in W Afghanistan
Xinhua – China
“Enemies of Afghanistan during an ambush on the convoy of Gulam Yeyi, Chief of Delaram district, killed him, his three bodyguards and two relatives today …
news.xinhuanet.com/english/2007-12/08/content_7219275.htm

One British soldier killed in Afghanistan
Xinhua – China
8 (Xinhua) — British Ministry of Defense confirmed on Saturday that a British soldier was killed in southern Afghanistan. The soldier from 2nd Battalion …
news.xinhuanet.com/english/2007-12/09/content_7219341.htm

British Soldier Killed In Afghanistan Battle
A British soldier has been killed in heavy fighting in Afghanistan, the Ministry of Defence has confirmed.
news.sky.com/skynews/article/0,,30200-1296257,00.html?f=rss

14 Dead In NATO Afghanistan Operation Vs. Taliban
By Breaking News
A NATO and Afghan operation to retake a Taliban-controlled town in southern Afghanistan has killed at least 12 Taliban fighters and two children, the Afghan Defense Ministry said Saturday. In other violence in southern Afghanistan, …
www.breakingnewsusa.com/index.php/2007/12/08/
14-dead-in-nato-afghanistan-operation-vs-taliban/

Someone Had A Bad Day – Afghanistan
MLRS fired at Taliban in Afghanistan.
www.liveleak.com/view?i=59e_1197119488

In Afghanistan, a Do-Over Battle
The fact that it’s unfolding this weekend at Musa Qala in southeastern Afghanistan — a full six years after the Taliban was first routed by coalition forces — is a reminder of how difficult the war is proving for the the US and its …
www.terrorism.com/modules.php?op=modload
&name=News&file=article&sid=84550

Security Firms in Afghanistan: Part of the Problem?
Private security companies are contributing to the rising tide of lawlessness and crime, according to both Afghan and international experts.
www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=v
iewArticle&code=IBR20071208&articleId=7571

US Institute of Peace Discussion on the Afghan-Pakistan Border
Two authors familiar with Afghanistan and Pakistan discuss the history of insurgencies in the region. Ahmed Rashid is a Pakistani journalist and author of “Taliban.” Steve Coll won a Pulitizer Prize for his book “Ghost Wars. …
www.c-span.org/rss/video.asp?MediaID=33713

8/12/07

Bin Laden’s driver confessed, FBI says
Taipei Times – Taiwan
Salim Ahmed Hamdan told interrogators he chauffeured bin Laden around Afghanistan for years and shuttled him between different locations after Sept. …
www.taipeitimes.com/News/world/a
rchives/2007/12/08/2003391689

NATO nations make new offers of troops and equipment to Afghanistan
AFP –
BRUSSELS (AFP) — NATO nations on Friday made new offers of troops and equipment for Afghanistan, but the alliance is still seeking aircraft and at least …
afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5hQ5nIuCcdMhkThRpBfmLJBUxfHiw

Norway fends off calls for more soldiers in Afghanistan
Aftenposten – Oslo,Norway
Norway still doesn’t want to send any of its soldiers into the dangerous areas of southern Afghanistan, and resisted pressure from NATO on Friday to do so. …
www.aftenposten.no/english/local/article2141631.ece

NATO discusses ‘super envoy’ for Afghanistan, Poland offers …
International Herald Tribune – France
Meanwhile, Poland gave a boost to the NATO military mission in Afghanistan, offering eight helicopters to fill a key shortfall in the allied force of 41000. …
www.iht.com/articles/ap/2007/12/07/
europe/EU-GEN-NATO-Afghanistan.php

Kite Runner boys exit Afghanistan
BBC News – UK
The four child stars of The Kite Runner have been flown out of Afghanistan over concerns for their safety, the makers of the film have said. …
news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/7132331.stm

Cannabis is the new drug of choice for Afghanistan’s former opium …
Times Online – UK
Where opium poppies used to colour the plains of northern Afghanistan, towering cannabis plants now sway in the wind, filling the air with their pungent …
www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/asia/article3019414.ece

Afghan and NATO troops storm Taliban stronghold
Canada.com – Hamilton,Ontario,Canada
KANDAHAR AIRFIELD, Afghanistan — The Afghan National Army, supported by international coalition forces, launched an operation Friday to recapture Musa …
www.canada.com/globaltv/national/story.html?id
=bf397e50-fc39-4056-86d4-5d1572146d12&k=7199

3 Taliban die when their own bomb explodes prematurely in southern …
International Herald Tribune – France
AP KABUL, Afghanistan: Three Taliban militants were killed when a roadside bomb they were planting in southern Afghanistan exploded prematurely Friday, …
www.iht.com/articles/ap/2007/12/07/
asia/AS-GEN-Afghan-Violence.php

Photo: An Afghan army soldier stands guard near the bus targeted …
By dancewater(dancewater)
A British soldier has been killed in an explosion in southern Afghanistan, the Ministry of Defence said. The soldier’s next-of-kin have been notified, but no further details were available, it added. Security Incidents on December 5, …
newsaboutafghanistan.blogspot.com/2007/12/
photo-afghan-army-soldier-stands-guard.html

Jordan Commits Troops, Poland Helicopters to Afghanistan
By Human Security Report Project
EXCERPT: Poland has given “a boost to the NATO military mission in Afghanistan, offering eight helicopters to address a key shortage affecting the allied force of 41000 troops. The offer includes four aircraft for transport, …
www.afghanconflictmonitor.org/2007/12/jordan-commits.html

Geraldo having fun in Afghanistan
By Chrish
“The Taliban has shown itself to be a truly resurgent force,” the Senlis Council, an independent think-tank with a permanent presence in Afghanistan, wrote in its study Stumbling into Chaos: Afghanistan on the Brink.” …
www.newshounds.us/2007/12/07/geraldo_having_fun_in_afghanistan.php

Afghanistan: Joint Push Aimed At Recapturing Town
NATO-led forces & Afghan troops in S Afghanistan launched a joint offensive aimed at seizing a town that controlled by Taliban militants.
www.globalsecurity.org/military/library
/news/2007/12/mil-071207-rferl01.htm