Sunday
Aug012010
Afghanistan: Deeper into Stalemate? (Randall/Owen)
Sunday, August 1, 2010 at 9:36 The Independent on Sunday, in an article by David Randall and Jonathan Owen, offers a far different view:
At midnight last night, the United States formally recorded its most lethal month in the seemingly endless war in Afghanistan. Some 66 servicemen died – at least two a day, every day, for 31 days. That was July. June was the deadliest for the coalition as a whole, and the first six months of 2010 were among the bloodiest for civilians since records began in 2007. What will August bring? Or September and October, months which, General David Petraeus, the US commander, has warned may well bring even more intense fighting? By that time, the war will have gone into its 10th year, and so will move towards, and beyond, the landmark when it will have lasted longer than the First and Second World Wars combined.
It is, especially for the Afghan people, a war without end, and one to add to their history of other fruitless conflicts. An Independent on Sunday assessment, using records kept by Professor Marc Herold of the University of New Hampshire and the UN, puts the civilians killed as a direct result of the war since 2001 at 13,746. Last year, the toll of those who died directly or indirectly was estimated by another US academic to be as high as 32,000.
Meanwhile, the US continues to pile in troops. American strength stands at about 95,000, and by the end of August the figure is expected to swell to 100,000 – three times the number in early 2009. As a result, US commanders have been stepping up the fight against the insurgents in their longtime strongholds such as the Arghandab Valley, Panjwaii and Zhari – all on the outskirts of Kandahar city, the biggest urban area in the ethnic Pashtun south, and the Taliban's spiritual birthplace, where support for the insurgency runs deep.
Read rest of article.... (http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/asia/afghanistan-the-unsustainable-in-pursuit-of-the-unbeatable-2040847.html)
Reader Comments (8)
Related: Dutch troops end Afghanistan deployment
The Netherlands has ended its military involvement in Afghanistan, after four years in which its 1,950 troops have won praise for their effectiveness.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-south-asia-10829837" rel="nofollow">http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-south-asia-1082...
And let's not forget.......
July deadliest month for Iraqis since 2008
July was the deadliest month for Iraqis in more than two years, according to newly released figures that show 535 were killed in violence. The monthly toll released late Saturday was the highest since May 2008 when 563 were killed.
http://tinyurl.com/38har8y" rel="nofollow">http://tinyurl.com/38har8y
Portrait of an occupied country
By Evan Hill
The window on Afghanistan provided by the Wikileaks documents is limited and reflects Nato's perspective on the war. As other commentators have noted,the dry, succinct military reports often do not do justice to the reality of events on the ground.
Still, the day-to-day communiques provide a previously unseen glimpse into the thinking of Nato officers thrown into a hostile environment and given the task of helping Afghans rebuild a country that has experienced more than 30 years of near-continuous conflict.
The picture is at once encouraging and bleak. Problems seem intractable, yet many Afghans and Nato officers appear energetically devoted to improving the situation.
http://english.aljazeera.net/focus/2010/07/201072811155152491.html" rel="nofollow">http://english.aljazeera.net/focus/2010/07/2010...
Taliban names removed from U.N. list – how times have changed.
http://blogs.reuters.com/pakistan/2010/07/31/taliban-names-removed-from-u-n-list-how-times-have-changed/" rel="nofollow">http://blogs.reuters.com/pakistan/2010/07/31/ta...
"On Friday, five Taliban members were struck off a U.N. Security Council list of militants subject to sanctions in a move designed to smooth the way for reconciliation talks with insurgents. Among those, two of the five were dead. The other three - Abdul Hakim Mujahid Muhammad Awrang, a former Afghan ambassador to the United Nations, Mullah Abdul Salam Zaeef, the last Taliban ambassador to Islamabad before 9/11, and Abdul Satar Paktin – are no longer subject to the asset freeze and travel ban imposed on those on the list."
"Mullah Zaeef – who now lives in Kabul and says he is no longer an active member of the movement: "The biggest mistake of American policy makers so far might be their profound lack of understanding of their enemy. The U.S. brought an overwhelming force to Afghanistan. They arrived with a superior war machine, trying to swat mosquitoes with sledgehammers, destroying the little that was left of Afghanistan and causing countless casualties on their mission, knocking down many more walls than killing insects. Till this very day, it is this lack of understanding and their own prejudices that they still struggle with.”
WitteKr,
RE your link to an analysis by Indian ambassador M K Bhadrakumar on Asia Times Online? A Persian message for Obama
I get so mad when I think of all the opportunities the Obama admin has squandered!
Some ask : "is it worth the fight?"
Others argue :"Why it's worth the fight."
http://blogs.news.com.au/couriermail/andrewbolt/index.php/couriermail/comments/why_its_worth_the_fight/#commentsmore" rel="nofollow">http://blogs.news.com.au/couriermail/andrewbolt...
Barry
Barry,
I posted a link to that Time artice on an EA last week somewhere because I totally agree with the fact that this has to be prevented. I don't know if a major military campaign is the way, though.
Well if you're going to compare the length of the Afghan war to WWI and WWII to make a point, why dont you compare the casualties between the three? Just like the Somme or Guadalcanal wouln't you say?