Afghanistan war

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US Military Amputees Increase in Afghan War

Numbers are up as more go on foot patrols

(Newser) - A new Pentagon report has some rough stats, mostly from the Afghan war:
  • The number of troops who have had amputations rose from 86 in 2009 to 187 last year. The pace continues this year, with 147 so far.
  • The number of troops who lost two or three limbs rose
...

Taliban: Peace Talks Lured Rabbani to His Doom

Assassin promised to bring Taliban leaders to the table

(Newser) - Former Afghan president Burhanuddin Rabbani was assassinated yesterday by a pair of "articulate and well-trained" fighters who won his trust by promising peace talks, a Taliban spokesman gloats. The killer—a suicide attacker who blew up a bomb in his turban—and his accomplice "were telling Rabbani that...

Ex-Afghan President Rabbani Assassinated

Suicide bomber entered his Kabul home with explosives in turban

(Newser) - Former Afghan President Burhanuddin Rabbani was assassinated today, dealing a harsh blow to peace efforts after a decade of war. Officials say a suicide bomber concealing explosives in his turban entered Rabbani's house in Kabul and blew himself up; four of Rabbani's bodyguards also died and a key...

Obama Has Beer With Medal of Honor Marine

Dakota Meyer will be recognized at ceremony today

(Newser) - At just 21 years old, Dakota Meyer charged into a firefight in Afghanistan—five times—to save 36 lives from an ambush, and today he will become the first living Marine to receive the Medal of Honor since the Vietnam War. But before the ceremony honoring his actions on September...

In Prep for US Embassy Siege, Militants Wore Burkas

Siege is over, nearly 21 hours after it began

(Newser) - This morning—almost 21 hours after the attack on the US embassy and other buildings in Kabul began—the last of the six attackers have been killed and the area is locked down. But questions are being raised about why it took so long to secure the high-rise building used...

Afghan Bombing Injures 77 Americans

Taliban claim responsibility for suicide bomber at outpost

(Newser) - Nearly 80 American soldiers were wounded and two Afghan civilians were killed in a Taliban truck bombing targeting an American base in eastern Afghanistan, NATO said today, a stark reminder that the war in Afghanistan still rages 10 years after the Sept. 11 terror attacks. The attack was carried out...

Pentagon Late Fees for Storage Boxes: $720M

Overdue containers can cost $2,200 each

(Newser) - The Pentagon has racked up a few late fees for metal containers it has rented and failed to return on time. Nothing serious—just a little more than $720 million during the past 10 years. Used for storage, building material, and shelter in Iraq and Afghanistan, the 20-foot containers can...

US Troops May Stay in Afghanistan Until 2024

Telegraph : Deal would keep 'thousands'

(Newser) - The US already has spent a decade fighting in Afghanistan, and the Telegraph suggests it might spend a decade or so more. The British paper reports that US and Afghan officials are close to a deal that would keep "thousands" of US troops in the country until 2024—not...

10 Dead in Attack on British Council in Kabul

Five insurgents involved; Taliban claims responsibility

(Newser) - A coordinated attack today on a British compound in Kabul involving two suicide bombers and a five-hour long firefight between Afghan security troops and attackers who penetrated the complex killed at least 10 people, Afghan officials say. The attack on the British Council occurred as Afghans celebrated Independence Day, marking...

Time for a War Tax to Cover Our Debts

10% surcharge could cover next year's bill: Walter Pincus

(Newser) - With the debt supercommittee looking to slash the deficit, some in Washington are raising an old question, notes Walter Pincus in the Washington Post : What about a tax on the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan? “These wars ought to be paid for and not put on a credit card...

Witnesses Recount Helicopter Tragedy

Chinook burst into flames, crashed in pieces

(Newser) - As soon as the Chinook helicopter carrying 30 American troops and eight Afghans was hit by a rocket-propelled grenade fired from a hillside, it burst into flames, a witness tells the AP . "After it started burning, it crashed. It came down in three pieces. We could see it burning...

US-Taliban Talks Collapse
 US-Taliban Talks Collapse 
Aug 11, 2011 10:07 AM CDT

US-Taliban Talks Collapse

Taliban unhappy over media leaks

(Newser) - The US-Taliban talks have been cut off, thanks to media leaks. Western diplomats tell the Telegraph that confidentiality was a key condition of the talks, held in Germany and Qatar in March and April, but they were halted after just three meetings because details were leaked. Among other things, the...

Obama Visits Dover to Salute Fallen SEALs

He will meet privately with troops' families today

(Newser) - President Obama made an unannounced visit to Dover Air Force Base today to be on hand as the coffins of 30 US troops were carried off a plane, reports USA Today . The ceremony was closed to the press. The troops, many of them members of an elite Navy SEALS unit,...

Was Crashed Copter's Rescue Mission Necessary?

Investigators probing that question

(Newser) - A heartbreaking twist in the helicopter tragedy that claimed 38 US and Afghan lives: The rescue mission the troops were en route to may not even have been necessary. Special Operations forces in the remote Tangi Valley requested assistance after coming under fire from "several" insurgents, even though they...

NATO: Taliban Rocket Likely Downed Helicopter

Officials working to recover every single piece

(Newser) - The helicopter that crashed over the weekend in Afghanistan, killing 30 US troops and eight others, was likely shot down by a Taliban rocket, NATO forces said today. Though the Taliban was quick to claim responsibility, Western officials had been tight-lipped until today's announcement, Reuters notes. The Navy SEALs...

AP: Crash Victims Include SEALs Who Killed bin Laden
SEALs From Elite Unit Killed in Afghan Crash
updated
Aug 6, 2011 11:40 AM CDT

SEALs From Elite Unit Killed in Afghan Crash

They weren't the same men who got bin Laden, however

(Newser) - US officials tell the Associated Press that they believe none of the Navy SEALs who died in today's helicopter crash in Afghanistan had participated in the raid that killed Osama bin Laden, although they were from the same unit that carried out the bin Laden mission. In all, 30...

30 US Troops Die in Afghan Chopper Crash

Deadliest incident in decade-old war; Karzai sends condolences

(Newser) - A helicopter crash in Afghanistan's eastern Wardak province has killed 30 US special operation troops and seven Afghan soldiers, Hamid Karzai said today. (The US figure was revised from 31.) It was the highest number of casualties recorded in a single incident in the decade-long war. NATO confirmed...

Roadside Bombs Kill 19 in Afghanistan

UN: Number of Afghan civilians killed in war-related violence up 15%

(Newser) - Two roadside bombs killed 19 people and wounded four today in Afghanistan as civilians are increasingly being caught in crossfire of the fighting between the Taliban and the US-led coalition. A minibus ran over a bomb in Nahri Sarraj district of Helmand province, with the blast killing all 18 passengers,...

Kandahar Mayor Assassinated
 Kandahar Mayor Assassinated 
Jul 27, 2011 8:49 AM CDT

Kandahar Mayor Assassinated

Taliban claims responsibility, says it was over demolition dispute

(Newser) - A suicide bomber hiding explosives in his turban assassinated the mayor of Kandahar today, just two weeks after President Hamid Karzai's powerful half brother was slain in the southern province that is critical to the US-led war effort. Mayor Ghulam Haider Hamidi, 65, was the third powerbroker from southern...

Taliban Hangs 8-Year-Old Afghan Boy

Father refused to give militants a police vehicle

(Newser) - The Taliban has hanged an 8-year-old boy, in tragic retribution after the boy's cop father refused to give militants a police vehicle, reports CNN. The child was kidnapped Friday in the southern province of Helmand, and killed at an unknown point after that. President Hamid Karzai condemned the boy'...

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