Afghanistan

June 16, 2008 -- The Department of Defense announced today the death of four Marines who were supporting Operation Enduring Freedom.

Sgt. Michael Toussiant-Hyle Washington, 20, of Tacoma, Washington

Lance Cpl. Layton Bradly Crass, 22, of Richmond, Indiana

Pfc. Dawid Pietrek, 24, of Bensenville, Illinois

Pfc. Michael Robert Patton, 19, of Fenton, Missouri

All four Marines died June 14 while supporting combat operations in Farah Province, Afghanistan.

They were assigned to 2nd Battalion, 7th Marines, 1st Marine Division, I Marine Expeditionary Force, Twentynine Palms, Calif.

Source: DOD

Part I of the Committee’s Inquiry into the Treatment of Detainees in U.S. Custody

June 17, 2008 -- Today’s hearing will focus on the origins of aggressive interrogation techniques used against detainees in U.S. custody. We have three panels of witnesses today and I want to thank them for their willingness to voluntarily appear before the Committee.

Intelligence saves lives. Knowing where an insurgent has buried an IED can keep a vehicle carrying Marines in Iraq from being blown up. Knowing that an al Qaeda associate visited an internet café in Kabul could be the key piece of information that unravels a terrorist plot targeting our embassy. Intelligence saves lives.    » read more »

17 June 2008 -- The Pentagon says reports that Taliban forces have taken over several villages in southern Afghanistan are false, and that any Taliban offensive in the area will be defeated.

The Pentagon says a U.S. patrol in the Arghandab district of Kandahar Province Tuesday encountered no Taliban forces.

Troops in Kandahar City, Afghanistan: Photo by Pierre Gazzola (CC)    » read more »

June 16, 2008 -- London -- PRIME MINISTER BROWN: I'm delighted to welcome President Bush and the First Lady back to London. And his visit today is an opportunity to celebrate the historic partnership of shared purpose that unites the United Kingdom and the United States of America. We both share a great love of history and about how we have forged the ideas of democracy and liberty over centuries.

George W. Bush with UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown: White House photo by Eric Draper    » read more »

16 June 2008 -- Democratic presidential contender Barack Obama said Monday he will visit Iraq and Afghanistan sometime before the November election. Obama made the comment after a phone conversation with Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari, who is visiting the United States.

Barack Obama with Al Gore in Michigan: Photo by joscrei (CC)

Campaigning in Michigan, Senator Obama told reporters he would visit Iraq and Afghanistan sometime before the election, but did not give any specifics.    » read more »

16 June 2008 -- Afghanistan's president has threatened to send troops after Taliban militants who take sanctuary in neighboring Pakistan. Analysts say the threat is somewhat hollow. But it does increase the danger of a miscalculation along the Pakistan-Afghan border.

Analysts discount that President Hamid Karzai would actually be able to follow through on his threat to dispatch troops into Pakistan in hot pursuit of Islamic militant fighters. They point out that the Afghan National Army is still relatively weak and that most military and security functions in Afghanistan are handled by NATO forces.

Hilary Synnott, a former British ambassador to Pakistan, also says the NATO security forces policing Afghanistan would try to head off any such action.    » read more »

Kabul/Geneva (ICRC) – The protracted armed conflict in Afghanistan is causing great suffering for ordinary people across the country, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) told the International Conference in Support of Afghanistan, meeting today in Paris.

Afghan child waiting to see doctor: DOD photo.    » read more »

WASHINGTON, June 13, 2008 – The current number of forces in Afghanistan is enough to accomplish the mission, but it’ll take awhile to do so, the U.S. officer who just finished his tour as commander of NATO troops in Afghanistan said here today.

Mortar fire, Afghanistan: Photo by soldiersmediacenter (CC)

“Let’s just say that somebody waved a magic wand, and by gosh, between the Afghans and the international force you’d produced a force that was well over 400,000,” Army Gen. Dan K. McNeill said to reporters at a Pentagon news conference.    » read more »

6/15/2008 - SOUTHWEST ASIA (AFPN) -- Coalition airpower integrated with coalition ground forces in Iraq and the International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan during operations June 14, according to Combined Air and Space Operations Center officials here.

In Afghanistan, Air Force F-15E Strike Eagles dropped guided bomb unit-31s and 38s to destroy anti-Afghan forces in caves in the vicinity of Nangalam. An on-scene joint terminal attack controller confirmed the missions successful.

An F-15E dropped a GBU-31 to destroy anti-Afghan forces with rocket launchers in the vicinity of Orgun-E. A JTAC reported the mission successful.    » read more »

June 12, 2008 -- Washington, DC – Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee Joseph R. Biden, Jr. (D-DE) issued the following statement today after the Administration announced it will provide $10.2 billion in aid to Afghanistan:

“This is a good start – but only a start. We have to remember that one-third of the promised funds have already been delivered by Congress.

As for the remainder, the breakdown of how the funds are distributed and allocated is key: Will there be a genuine increase in development aid and will it actually reach the Afghan people?    » read more »

June 09, 2008 -- FRANKFORT, Ky. – Kentucky Governor Steve Beshear has directed that flags at all state office buildings remain at half-staff in honor of two Fort Campbell soldiers who died June 5 supporting Operation Enduring Freedom.

According to the Department of Defense, Chief Warrant Officer James Carter, 42, of Alabama, and Pfc. Andre D. McNair, Jr., 20, of Fort Pierce, Fla. died at Kandahar Army Airfield, Afghanistan, of injuries sustained when the Kiowa helicopter they were in went down during a test flight. They were assigned to the 96th Aviation Support Battalion, 101st Combat Aviation Brigade, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), Fort Campbell, Ky.

Flags will remain at half-staff until sunset on the day of the funerals, for which arrangements are pending.    » read more »

06/09/2008 -- WASHINGTON, D.C. – Sens. John Kerry, Bob Menendez, Byron Dorgan, and Frank Lautenberg today introduced legislation that will prohibit the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) from using appropriated funds for propaganda and will require the DoD Inspector General and the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to deliver reports to Congress within 90 days.    » read more »

FORWARD OPERATING BASE SALERNO, Afghanistan, June 9, 2008 – Soldiers from Combined Task Force Currahee recently test-drove a new vehicle that could help alleviate some of the problems they have maneuvering through Afghanistan’s mountains and valleys.

Off-road vehicle prototype, Afghanistan: Soldiers from 101st Airborne Division test an enhanced logistic off-road vehicle prototype to see if it meets their standards for operational use in Afghanistan. Three prototype vehicles are being tested. U.S. Army photo.

The enhanced logistic off-road vehicle, known as the ELSORV, may be the answer to navigating Afghanistan’s rugged terrain.    » read more »

6/9/2008 - SOUTHWEST ASIA (AFPN) -- Coalition airpower integrated with coalition ground forces in Iraq and International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan during operations June 8, according to Combined Air and Space Operations Center officials here.

Air Force F-15E Strike Eagle: An Air Force F-15E Strike Eagle aircraft returns to the fight after receiving fuel from a KC-135R Stratotanker during a mission over Afghanistan. U.S. Air Force photo/Master Sgt. Andy Dunaway    » read more »

June 3, 2008 -- Washington, DC -- Yesterday in Kabul, Afghanistan, General Dan McNeil, the American who has led NATO’s International Security Assistance Force (ISAF), handed over his command.

General McNeil told reporters: "This is an under-resourced war and it needs more maneuver units, it needs more flying machines, it needs more intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance apparatus.

US Army and Afghan soldiers in Afghanistan: Afghan National Army and coalition forces soldiers rmove west across a wadi back to Main Supply Route Vermont in the Tagab District, Kapisa Province, Afghanistan Jan. 19, 2008, after a security patrol. U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Johnny R. Aragon    » read more »