US to Stop Burning Afghan Drug Crops

Deadly Day for US Troops in Afghanistan

July 07, 2009
Associated Press

KABUL - Bombs and bullets killed seven American troops while three NATO troops died in a helicopter crash in one of the deadliest days for foreign troops in Afghanistan since the U.S.-led invasion in 2001, officials said Tuesday.

Four of the deaths Monday came in an attack on a team of U.S. military trainers in the relatively peaceful north, Navy Chief Petty Officer Brian Naranjo, a U.S. military spokesman. The deaths brought into focus the question of whether the U.S. is committing enough troops to secure a country larger than Iraq in both population and land mass.

Separately, Taliban militants claimed on a militant Web site that they were holding an American soldier whom the U.S. military says insurgents might have captured last week. The Taliban statement, however, did not include any proof, such as a picture or the soldier's name.

4 US Marines killed in Afghan bomb blasts

July 12, 2009
Associated Press

KABUL – Bomb blasts killed four U.S. Marines in southern Afghanistan, where thousands of American troops have deployed in recent weeks as part of an offensive in the country's dangerous drug-producing region, an official said Sunday.

The four Marines died Saturday in Helmand province, where about 4,000 troops this month launched the largest Marine operation in Afghanistan since 2001. U.S. forces have met little resistance but face the danger of roadside bombs everywhere they travel.

A fifth U.S. service member wounded in June died of wounds in the U.S. on Friday, said Lt. Cmdr. Christine Sidenstricker, who confirmed the deaths of the four Marines. The four killed Saturday were initially identified as Army soldiers.

The five deaths bring to 106 the number of U.S. troops killed in Afghanistan this year — a record pace. Last year 151 U.S. troops died in the country.

The U.S. casualties come on the heels of eight British deaths in Helmand during a 24-hour period that ended Friday, deaths that have triggered a debate in Britain about its role in Afghanistan. Britain has now lost more troops in Afghanistan than it did in Iraq.


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Soldier held in Afghanistan is 23-year-old Idahoan

Associated Press
July 19, 2009

HAILEY, Idaho — A soldier from Idaho who disappeared from his base in Afghanistan has been captured, the Pentagon confirmed Sunday, a day after he was seen in a Taliban video posted online.

The Defense Department released the name of Pfc. Bowe (pronounced BOW) R. Bergdahl, 23, who was serving with an Alaska-based infantry regiment. The private was last seen walking away from his base near the border with Pakistan in an area known to be a Taliban stronghold.

Even before his name became public, two U.S. defense officials confirmed to The Associated Press that the man in that 28-minute video was the captured soldier. The video, in which Bergdahl said he was "scared I won't be able to go home," provided the first public glimpse of the missing American.

The Pentagon statement said Bergdahl's whereabouts became unknown on July 1 and his status was changed July 3 to missing-captured.

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In the video, Bergdahl had his head shaved and was seen with the start of a beard. He was sitting and dressed in a nondescript, gray outfit. Early in the video one captor held the soldier's dog tag up to the camera. His name and ID number were clearly visible. He was shown eating at one point and sitting cross-legged.

He said the date was July 14 and that he was captured when he lagged behind on a patrol. It's clear the video was made no earlier than July 14 because Bergdahl repeated an exaggerated Taliban claim about a Ukrainian helicopter that was shot down that day.

He was interviewed in English by his captors. He was asked his views on the war, which he called extremely hard; his desire to learn more about Islam; and the morale of American soldiers, which he said was low.

Asked how he was doing, the soldier said: "Well I'm scared, scared I won't be able to go home. It is very unnerving to be a prisoner."

He later choked up when discussing his family and his hope to marry his girlfriend.

"I have a very, very good family that I love back home in America. And I miss them every day when I'm gone," he said.

He was prompted by his interrogators to give a message to the American people.

"To my fellow Americans who have loved ones over here, who know what it's like to miss them, you have the power to make our government bring them home," he said. "Please, please bring us home so that we can be back where we belong and not over here, wasting our time and our lives and our precious life that we could be using back in our own country. Please bring us home. It is America and American people who have that power."

A U.S. military spokeswoman in Afghanistan, Lt. Cmdr. Christine Sidenstricker, said the Taliban was using their captive for propaganda.

"I'm glad to see he appears unharmed, but again, this is a Taliban propaganda video," she said. "They are exploiting the soldier in violation of international law."

Bergdahl is a member of 1st Battalion, 501st Parachute Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division, based at Fort Richardson, Alaska.

On July 2, the U.S. military said an American soldier had disappeared after walking off his base in eastern Afghanistan with three Afghan counterparts and was believed to have been taken prisoner.



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Obama approves 13,000 more troops to Afghanistan

WASHINGTON (AFP) – In an unannounced move, President Barack Obama is dispatching an additional 13,000 US troops to Afghanistan beyond the 21,000 he announced publicly in March, The Washington Post reported.

The additional forces are primarily support forces -- such as engineers, medical personnel, intelligence experts and military police -- the Post said, bringing the total buildup Obama has approved for the war-torn nation to 34,000.


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Counter-IED Teams Deploy to Afghanistan

Afghan Corruption Worries McChrystal

quote:

Allegations of widespread fraud in Afghanistan's Aug. 20 presidential election threaten to scuttle the international strategy to combat the burgeoning Taliban insurgency. The elections were marred by claims of ballot box stuffing and voter coercion.

On Tuesday, one U.S. military official said discussions within the Obama administration are ongoing about whether it is even possible to "surge" enough troops to overcome the corruption and how crucial a legitimate government in Afghanistan is to the overall war strategy. The official requested anonymity to describe the confidential discussions.

A decision on whether to hold a runoff election between Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai and chief challenger Abdullah Abdullah, a former Afghan foreign minister, could come as early as Saturday.

Corruption can lead to citizens rejecting their government and, in some cases, aligning with rebel or insurgent groups. That in turn creates chaos that can lead to security problems and long-term instability.

Sending in additional troops would help secure Afghanistan but only in the short term, said Jay Parker, a Georgetown University foreign service professor and retired Army colonel. Troops alone can't fix the corruption, the root of the problem, he said.

UK Sets Conditions for Extra Afghanistan Troops

(Source: UK Ministry of Defence; issued Oct. 14, 2009)


The number of British troops deployed to Afghanistan will now stand at 9,000, increasing to 9,500 only subject to certain conditions, Prime Minister Gordon Brown has announced today, Wednesday 14 October 2009.

UK forces in Afghanistan currently stand at around 9,000, which includes 700 troops deployed until the end of 2009 to cover the period of the Afghan presidential election.

The enduring deployment of 9,000 troops announced by Mr Brown in the House of Commons today means that extra units will be deploying to Afghanistan in the coming weeks with 11 Light Brigade. These units will be announced to Parliament by Written Ministerial Statement tomorrow.

In the Prime Minister's statement today he said that the number of British troops in Afghanistan will increase to 9,500 subject to the following conditions:

-- That a way forward is agreed across the international coalition on fairer burden-sharing;
--That the Afghan National Army and Afghan Government provide sufficient numbers and quality of Afghan National Security Forces in Helmand, in order that they can operate alongside British forces there and be 'partnered' by them, and
--That every British soldier and unit deployed to Afghanistan is fully equipped for the operations they are asked to undertake.

Click here to read the Prime Minister's statement in full.

In a statement on the Prime Minister's announcement Defence Secretary Bob Ainsworth said:

"Our brave forces are making a vital contribution to the national security of this country and I praise them for all they are doing in Afghanistan.

"This force level increase, based on the specific advice of the military chiefs, will help consolidate the considerable progress already made improving security in central Helmand.

"The chiefs and I will continue to ensure that all of our Service personnel are fully equipped for the tasks we ask them to undertake.

"I have made sure that delivering success in Afghanistan and supporting our forces is the main effort of all of us in the Ministry of Defence and the Armed Forces. I am determined that we continue to deliver on this."

Chief of the Defence Staff, Air Chief Marshal Sir Jock Stirrup, said:

"I welcome the Prime Minister's announcement of an increase to our force level for the mission in Afghanistan, subject to the conditions he has set out. This accords with the needs of our operational commanders, as set out to me and agreed by the Chiefs of Staff, and with the military advice I have as a consequence given to the Government.

"Our objective, as part of the 42-nation coalition in Afghanistan, is to reduce the terrorist threat to the United Kingdom. We do this by assisting the Afghans to spread enduring governance to parts of their country that have in the past, and would in the future if abandoned, harbour and provide support to terrorist groups.

"The force uplift announced today will help us to strengthen and deepen security in those areas where we are supporting the development of that governance. At the same time, it will enable us to partner effectively with an increasing number of Afghan National Army units, thus enabling them to take responsibility for their own security at a faster rate.

"We will also continue to provide more and better equipment to our forces as fast as it can be developed and produced. This is an ongoing process, throughout which our commanders in the field will continue to shape their individual operations to ensure that their people are appropriately equipped for the specific tasks being undertaken.

"The increase in force level will provide 11 Light Brigade with the resources they need to sustain and build upon the magnificent, hard-won achievements of 19 Light Brigade over the summer - achievements of which the entire nation can and should be proud."

Chief of the General Staff, General Sir David Richards, said:

"This is the right decision and it reflects the military advice the Prime Minister has received since the summer. We asked for 9,500 and that is what we have got. Having sufficient troops on the ground is the key to this campaign; the additional numbers will enable 11 Brigade to maintain momentum in Helmand, building on the outstanding work of 19 Light Brigade this summer, and will allow us to integrate more closely with the Afghan National Army and improve their capability - essential steps on the road to success.

"I'm confident that the Prime Minister's conditions can be met and we will now get on with the military planning to ensure that soldiers in Afghanistan have the appropriate equipment for the tasks we ask them to undertake.

"I'm also certain that our allies will sustain their commitment to a mission that is as crucial to their security as it is to the people of Afghanistan. We cannot afford to fail and increasing the UK's commitment is the right thing to do."

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Army says morale is down in Afghanistan

WASHINGTON – Morale has fallen among soldiers in Afghanistan, where troops are seeing record violence in the 8-year-old war, while those in Iraq show much improved mental health amid much lower violence, the Army said Friday.

It was the first time since 2004 that soldier suicides in Iraq did not increase. Self-inflicted deaths in Afghanistan were on track to go up this year.

Though findings of two new battlefield surveys are similar in several ways to the last ones taken in 2007, they come at a time of intense scrutiny on Afghanistan as President Barack Obama struggles to craft a new war strategy and planned troop buildup. There is also new focus on the mental health of the force since a shooting rampage at Fort Hood last week in which an Army psychiatrist is charged.

Both surveys showed that soldiers on their third or fourth tours of duty had lower morale and more mental health problems than those with fewer deployments. And an increasing number of troops are having problems with their marriages.

The new survey on Afghanistan found instances of depression, anxiety and post-traumatic stress at about the same as they were in 2007 but double 2005's cases. That was 21.4 percent in 2009, 23.4 percent in 2007 and 10.4 percent in 2005.

That compares to a lower 13.3 percent in Iraq, down from 18.8 percent in 2007 and 22 percent in 2006. (Surveys have been done every year in Iraq, but were only done during three years in Afghanistan.)

The Afghan report also found a shortage of mental health workers to help soldiers who needed it, partly because of the buildup Obama started this year with the dispatch of more than 20,000 extra troops.

Efforts to get more health workers to Afghanistan were made a little harder by last week's shooting. The psychiatrist charged with 13 counts of premeditated murder was slated to go to Afghanistan. Some of the dead and wounded also were to have deployed there to bolster psychological services for soldiers.

Still, officials told a Pentagon press conference that they expect to meet their goal next month of having one mental health worker for every 700 troops — workers that include psychiatrists, social workers, psychiatric nurses and so on. There were 43 in Afghanistan at the time of the survey, while 103 were deemed needed; and since the survey, there has been what Army Surgeon General Lt. Gen. Eric B. Schoomaker on Friday called an aggressive push to send the rest.

The new Afghanistan survey found that individual soldier morale was about the same as previous studies, but that unit morale rates were significantly lower.

For instance, when asked about their own morale, 17.6 percent rated it high or very high, down from 23 percent in 2005. When asked about their unit, only 5.7 percent gave the two highest ratings, a decrease from 10.2 percent in 2007 and 10.5 percent in 2005.

The findings come from surveys and interviews with troops and mental health workers at the wars.


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