BeltwayBlips - Latest Afghanistan News Articles

Levin: Afghan forces key to success

Sun, 29 Nov 2009 21:48:57 +0000

The leading Senate Democrat on military matters says an Afghan surge, not an American surge, is central to succeeding in the 8-year-old war in Afghanistan.

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Australian PM heads for key US talks (AFP)

Sun, 29 Nov 2009 21:29:14 +0000

AFP - Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd was heading to Washington Sunday for key talks with US President Barack Obama to be dominated by climate change and the conflict in Afghanistan.

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Doubts linger over US civilian surge in Afghanistan (AFP)

Sun, 29 Nov 2009 19:51:18 +0000

AFP - The Obama administration is forging ahead with its civilian surge in Afghanistan but some experts say thousands more are needed while others fear the security situation is making the push ineffective.

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Senators Show Doubts on Afghanistan

Sun, 29 Nov 2009 19:02:56 +0000

With President Obama scheduled to explain his new Afghan strategy, senators of both parties laid out a range of reservations.

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Obama prepares to announce Afghan surge (AFP)

Sun, 29 Nov 2009 17:02:23 +0000

AFP - Barack Obama is set to make the boldest strategic move of his presidency on Tuesday and order a surge of tens of thousands more US troops into an increasingly unpopular war in Afghanistan.

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State of the Union: Talking the economy, Afghanistan in Montana

Sun, 29 Nov 2009 16:59:22 +0000

Embedded video from CNN Video

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Senators give Obama advice on Afghanistan strategy speech

Sun, 29 Nov 2009 16:26:27 +0000

Embedded video from CNN Video

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Report: 'Bin Laden was within our grasp'

Sun, 29 Nov 2009 15:25:40 +0000

Washington (CNN) - President Obama got some political cover Sunday for his upcoming announcement on sending more troops to Afghanistan. A report released by the Democratic staff of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee blamed the Bush administration for failing to capture or kill Osama bin Laden when the al Qaeda leader was cornered in Afghanistan's Tora Bora mountain region in December 2001. Bin Laden had written his will, apparently sensing he was trapped, but the lack of sufficient forces to close in for the kill allowed him to escape to tribal areas in Pakistan, according to the report. It said former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld and top U.S. commander Gen. Tommy Franks held back the necessary forces for a "classic sweep-and-block maneuver" that could have prevented bin Laden's escape. Full story

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Report: 'Bin Laden was within our grasp'

Sun, 29 Nov 2009 15:24:45 +0000

President Obama got some political cover Sunday for his upcoming announcement on sending more troops to Afghanistan.

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Obama's expected new Afghan plan sparks debate (AP)

Sun, 29 Nov 2009 14:35:16 +0000

AP - As President Barack Obama gets ready to announce a redrawn battle plan for Afghanistan, lawmakers are weighing in on the expected large increase in U.S. forces there.

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U.S. forces missed chance to get bin Laden: report (Reuters)

Sun, 29 Nov 2009 11:29:15 +0000

Reuters - The U.S. military could have captured or killed Osama bin Laden in 2001 if it had launched a concerted attack on his hideout in Afghanistan, according to a report prepared for the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

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U.S. forces missed chance to get bin Laden: report

Sun, 29 Nov 2009 11:29:15 +0000

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. military could have captured or killed Osama bin Laden in 2001 if it had launched a concerted attack on his hideout in Afghanistan, according to a report prepared for the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

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Obama prepares to announce Afghan surge (AFP)

Sun, 29 Nov 2009 04:41:10 +0000

AFP - Barack Obama is set to make the boldest strategic move of his presidency on Tuesday and order a surge of tens of thousands more US troops into an increasingly unpopular war in Afghanistan.

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9,000 Marines to Helmand after Obama speech: report (AFP)

Sat, 28 Nov 2009 23:37:50 +0000

AFP - The US military will deploy up to 9,000 Marines to Afghanistan's Helmand province -- doubling US presence there -- in the days after President Barack Obama's war strategy announcement this week, the Washington Post said Saturday.

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U.S. will be out of Afghanistan by 2017: White House

Sat, 28 Nov 2009 18:37:03 +0000

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States will not be in Afghanistan eight years from now, the White House said on Wednesday, as President Barack Obama prepared to explain to Americans next week why he is expanding the war effort.

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Afghanistan: CNN poll results

Sat, 28 Nov 2009 18:05:26 +0000

Embedded video from CNN Video

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Afghans Detail a Secret Prison Still Operating on a U.S. Base

Sat, 28 Nov 2009 18:04:45 +0000

A U.S. military detention camp is still holding inmates for sometimes weeks at a time, without access to the International Committee of the Red Cross, according to researchers and former detainees.

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Afghan talks to seek path to security handover (Reuters)

Sat, 28 Nov 2009 17:50:21 +0000

Reuters - Britain will host talks on Afghanistan on January 28, British Prime Minister Gordon Brown said on Saturday, just days before U.S. President Barack Obama sets out his expansion of the war effort next week.

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Senate Report Explores 2001 Escape by bin Laden From Afghan Mountains

Sat, 28 Nov 2009 17:44:53 +0000

The Senate Foreign Relations Committee completed a look back at a failure early in the battle against Al Qaeda: the escape of Osama bin Laden from U.S. forces in the Afghan mountains of Tora Bora in 2001.

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Obama to announce Afghanistan troop strategy Tuesday

Sat, 28 Nov 2009 14:44:28 +0000

Washington (CNN) – President Obama will announce the U.S. troop strategy for Afghanistan in a speech at 8 p.m. ET Tuesday at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, New York, White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said Wednesday. In the speech, Obama will explain why the United States is in Afghanistan, its interests there and his decision-making process, Gibbs said, but "the president does not see this as an open-ended engagement. "Our time there will be limited, and I think that's important for people to understand," he said. Full story

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Obama to host Australian leader for White House talks (AFP)

Fri, 27 Nov 2009 18:40:50 +0000

AFP - US President Barack Obama will host Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd on Monday, a day before announcing his revamped Afghanistan war strategy, the White House said.

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CNN Radio: Obama's Afghanistan announcement

Fri, 27 Nov 2009 18:30:38 +0000

CNN Senior Political Correspondent Candy Crowley tells CNN's John Lisk some of what to expect as President Obama gets ready to make his Tuesday announcement on troop strength in Afghanistan.

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NATO allies may commit 6,000 troops for Afghan war (AP)

Fri, 27 Nov 2009 16:09:59 +0000

AP - NATO governments may increase their fighting forces in Afghanistan by up to 6,000 soldiers in response to President Barack Obama's expected call for tens of thousands of additional U.S. service members, diplomats said Friday.

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German minister quits over Afghan strike fallout (AP)

Fri, 27 Nov 2009 12:46:59 +0000

AP - Germany's labor minister says he is resigning from the Cabinet amid the fallout from an airstrike in northern Afghanistan that already cost the head of the armed forces his job.

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US allies may offer up to 5,000 troops for Afghanistan (AFP)

Fri, 27 Nov 2009 10:01:32 +0000

AFP - US allies are expected to announce reinforcements of 4,000 to 5,000 troops for Afghanistan once President Barack Obama commits to deploying extra soldiers there, a NATO officer said Friday.

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NATO teams train Afghans on the front line (AP)

Fri, 27 Nov 2009 06:48:48 +0000

AP - As President Barack Obama prepares to pour up to 35,000 more U.S. troops into Afghanistan, a much smaller contingent of NATO trainers — many of them European — form a crucial part of the strategy to win the war and get foreign troops home.

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Soviets' Afghan War Informs Surge Debate

Fri, 27 Nov 2009 05:06:06 +0000

With Obama set to announce his decision on sending more troops to Afghanistan, debate is surfacing on the parallels between the U.S. war on the Taliban and the Soviets' war with the mujahedeen.

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Obama must sell base on unpopular war

Fri, 27 Nov 2009 04:26:19 +0000

He must convince his anti-war supporters to back a plan for Afghanistan that would double troop levels.

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Obama must sell base on unpopular war (Politico)

Fri, 27 Nov 2009 04:26:00 +0000

Politico - In his speech to the nation on Tuesday, President Barack Obama must convince supporters who thought they’d voted for an anti-war president to back a plan expected to roughly double the number of troops in Afghanistan from when he took office.

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CNN Radio: The Afghanistan announcement

Thu, 26 Nov 2009 20:01:56 +0000

CNN Political Editor Mark Preston and CNN's John Lisk discuss President Obama's announcement on Afghanistan next week... and talk a little turkey, too.

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Solemn Obama pays tribute to troops on Thanksgiving (AFP)

Thu, 26 Nov 2009 18:16:02 +0000

AFP - Days before he is expected to order more troops to Afghanistan, President Barack Obama paid tribute to the US military Thursday, lamenting families with an empty seat at their Thanksgiving table.

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U.S. will be out of Afghanistan by 2017: White House (Reuters)

Thu, 26 Nov 2009 13:05:40 +0000

Reuters - The United States will not be in Afghanistan eight years from now, the White House said on Wednesday, as President Barack Obama prepared to explain to Americans next week why he is expanding the war effort.

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U.S. will be out of Afghanistan by 2017: White House

Thu, 26 Nov 2009 13:05:40 +0000

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German military's inspector general removed (AP)

Thu, 26 Nov 2009 11:24:44 +0000

AP - The German military's top official was removed Thursday for failing to properly pass on information to political leaders about a September airstrike in Afghanistan in which civilians were killed, the new defense minister said.

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On Afghanistan, Obama finds friend in India (AFP)

Thu, 26 Nov 2009 06:36:41 +0000

AFP - US President Barack Obama, faced with a wary Western public days before he unveils a new strategy on Afghanistan, is embracing the role of India, one of the countries most worried about a Taliban resurgence.

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Obama will unveil Afghan troops move at West Point (AP)

Thu, 26 Nov 2009 03:38:48 +0000

AP - President Barack Obama plans to announce a redrawn battle plan for Afghanistan, including what the military says could be a roughly 50 percent increase in U.S. forces, in a national address Tuesday night from the U.S. Military Academy.

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Will talk of Afghan 'off-ramps' prompt Taliban to hang tough? (McClatchy Newspapers)

Wed, 25 Nov 2009 23:59:00 +0000

McClatchy Newspapers - WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama will unveil his long-awaited Afghanistan strategy in a prime-time address from West Point, N.Y., on Dec. 1, the White House said Wednesday, but the administration's advance remarks have sparked concern that talk of an eventual U.S. withdrawal will encourage Islamist insurgents to persevere.

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Should U.S. taxes rise to pay for Afghanistan war? (McClatchy Newspapers)

Wed, 25 Nov 2009 22:50:00 +0000

McClatchy Newspapers - WASHINGTON — Abraham Lincoln levied the country's first income tax to help pay soldiers and buy rifles for the Civil War.

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U.S. faces 'absolute defeat,' Taliban leader purportedly says

Wed, 25 Nov 2009 22:26:38 +0000

The United States and its allies are facing "an absolute defeat" against the Taliban in Afghanistan even if additional troops are sent, according to a message purportedly from the Taliban's elusive leader, Mullah Mohammed Omar.

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Afghanistan: Pay for it or charge it?

Wed, 25 Nov 2009 22:20:04 +0000

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) - War is expensive, and it's about to get more so if the U.S. government escalates its military efforts in Afghanistan. President Obama is set to announce his strategy next week. And the question of cost hovers in the background of the difficult decision he faces. Over the past eight years, the nearly $1 trillion cost of the military's efforts in Iraq and Afghanistan was essentially charged to the national credit card. Will it be different this time? Full story on CNNMoney.com

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In Kabul, U.N. workers cope by cooking (McClatchy Newspapers)

Wed, 25 Nov 2009 21:55:00 +0000

McClatchy Newspapers - KABUL, Afghanistan — When Susan Marx was awoken before dawn last month with word that United Nations colleagues across town were under attack, the 32-year-old human rights researcher did the only thing she could think of to calm her nerves: Bake.

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Obama to Announce Afghanistan Plan Tues.

Wed, 25 Nov 2009 21:10:00 +0000

President Barack Obama will announce his plan to bolster the war in Afghanistan in a speech Tuesday night from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, his spokesman said

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Obama to outline Afghan endgame in speech (Reuters)

Wed, 25 Nov 2009 17:58:26 +0000

Reuters - President Barack Obama will address Americans on the war in Afghanistan on December 1 and spell out a strategy that would see U.S. forces withdrawing within eight or nine years, the White House said on Wednesday.

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Obama to unveil his Afghan strategy Tuesday at West Point

Wed, 25 Nov 2009 17:33:00 +0000

The president is expected to announce that the U.S. will send more troops to Afghanistan. He also is likely to offer a plan for eventually withdrawing U.S. forces. > President Obama will roll out his new strategy for the Afghanistan war during a televised speech Tuesday at 8 p.m. Eastern time from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, the White House said.

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White House meeting on Tuesday on Afghanistan

Wed, 25 Nov 2009 17:07:43 +0000

Washington (CNN) – President Obama has invited bipartisan bicameral congressional leaders, key committee chairs, and ranking Republicans to come to a meeting on Afghanistan next Tuesday afternoon, according to several congressional aides.

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Obama to Speak From West Point Tuesday on Afghanistan

Wed, 25 Nov 2009 16:24:26 +0000

The White House said President Obama had completed his consultations and would formally announce his decision in a national address in the next week.

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Obama to speak Tuesday on Afghanistan policy

Wed, 25 Nov 2009 15:52:31 +0000

President Barack Obama will address the nation on his new strategy for the war in Afghanistan Tuesday night from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point.

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Obama to announce Afghanistan troop strategy Tuesday

Wed, 25 Nov 2009 15:51:46 +0000

President Obama to make speech at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, New York, White House says.

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Obama to give primetime speech on Afghanistan (Reuters)

Wed, 25 Nov 2009 15:50:09 +0000

Reuters - President Barack Obama will unveil his new strategy for the war in Afghanistan in an address to Americans on December 1, White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said on Wednesday.

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Afghan Surge Targets Taliban Bastion

Wed, 25 Nov 2009 15:33:47 +0000

Military commanders say they will devote most of the 20,000 to 40,000 fresh troops expected from the U.S. to secure Afghanistan's south.

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