70,000 Troops To Be Withdrawn From Afghanistan In The Next Three Years

U.S. Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Shawn Cole provides security during a patrol in the Garmsir district of Afghanistan's Helmand province, April 30, 2011. Cole is assigned to the 1st Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment. A female engagement team accompanied the patrol with the purpose of interacting with the female population and identifying the needs of the women in the area. U.S. Marine Corps photo by Cpl. Colby Brown

US To Withdraw 70,000 Troops From Afghanistan In Next Three Years In Favour Of Special Forces -- The Telegraph

America would withdraw 70,000 troops from Afghanistan over the next three years and rely increasingly on special forces to lead operations in plans being discussed by the White House.

Commandos would continue missions to kill or capture insurgents and to train Afghan forces while conventional troops begin leaving in July according to reports.

The plan is being debated as commanders are said to be proposing Barack Obama begin the withdrawal by pulling out up to 10,000 troops by the end of this year.

The commander of British forces in Afghanistan warned on Tuesday that the Taliban will exploit a power vacuum in Afghanistan after the 2014 security handover to local forces and that the West must not abandon the country.

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My Comment: I am skeptical that the conditions on the ground will warrant such a withdrawal. To put it bluntly .... from where I am standing .... I have yet to see the light at the end of the tunnel.

Taliban Launch Multiple Attacks In Kandahar City

Taliban Launch Multi-Pronged Attack On City Of Kandahar -- The Guardian

Gunmen and suicide bombers hit at least five targets as insurgents aim to take control of provincial capital.

The Taliban launched an unprecedented, multi-pronged attack on Kandahar, with commanders claiming they aimed to "take control of the city".

The assault by gunmen and suicide bombers on at least five targets in the southern city began at midday and, according to insurgents who talked to the Observer by phone during the fighting, involved hundreds of attackers.

The sustained attack on government buildings wounded at least 24 people and created chaos in the capital of a province Nato has spent the past year trying to secure.

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More News On Yesterday's Taliban Attack In Kandahar

Taliban launch wave of attacks in Afghanistan's Kandahar -- Reuters
Deaths, injuries in Taliban assault on Kandahar -- CNN
Deadly Attack by Insurgents in Kandahar -- New York Times
Taliban attack government buildings in Kandahar -- Star Telegram
Taliban strikes targets in Kandahar -- UPI
Taliban multiple attacks kill 8, wounds 29 in S. Afghanistan -- Xinhuanet
Kandahar attacks were bin Laden 'revenge': Karzai -- AFP

US Army Report Reveals Discipline Breakdown In "Kill Team Brigade"

In this image, soldier Jeremy Morlock poses with the same corpse. The US Army apologized last Monday for the behavior of the soldiers involved in the "kill team." A week ago, a US military tribunal convicted the 22-year-old army specialist to 24 years in prison after pleading guilty to being part of the "kill team." Morlock is testifying against his fellow soldiers as part of a plea bargain.

Report Reveals Discipline Breakdown in Kill Team Brigade -- Spiegel Online

A secret US Army investigative report has revealed a breakdown of discipline in the 5th Stryker Brigade, home to the "kill team" that allegedly murdered Afghan civilians. According to the report, which has been obtained by SPIEGEL, the commander helped to create an environment where misconduct could occur.

The case of the so-called "kill team," a group of US soldiers who allegedly murdered innocent civilians in Afghanistan, has made headlines around the world. So far, the focus has been on the individual troops and the question of how they could have committed such brutal acts, which have been compared to the abuses perpetrated at Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq.

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My Comment: This is a story that begs for more investigation and reporting. Unfortunately .... for their own reasons the press has gone completely AWOL on this story.

What is my take .... no one wants to dwell too deep in this story .... and those who made a bone about Abu Ghraib a few years ago, are choosing to stay quiet in this case because their 'man" is in the White House. The only one who has come out publicly on this double standard from the media is former U.S. Secretary of Defense Rumsfeld ... but no one is listening to him.

 

Posted by War News