
Contents: Defense Sec’y Carter visits Afghanistan, warns of ISIS and resurgent Taliban; Taliban victories in Helmand put Obama’s Afghan withdrawal policy in doubt; Obama’s 30,000 troop Afghan ‘surge’ strategy now in seventh year
by John J. Xenakis21 Dec 2015, 4:00 AM PST0

Contents: Taliban scores major strategic victory in Afghanistan, capturing Kunduz; The Afghan Taliban return to Kunduz after fourteen years; Repercussions for Central Asia
by John J. Xenakis29 Sep 2015, 6:16 AM PST0

Afghan President Ashraf Ghani reportedly said the solution to combating the entrenched corruption endemic at all levels of the government in Afghanistan is to wage “national jihad,” or holy war, against it.
by Edwin Mora3 Sep 2015, 5:59 PM PST0

The first-ever planned national security-level talks between India and Pakistan were called off this week after Pakistan refused to back down from meeting with separatists from the disputed, Indian-controlled region of Kashmir.
by Adelle Nazarian26 Aug 2015, 6:09 PM PST0

The Taliban is running wild in Kabul, killing and maiming Afghan soldiers on a daily basis, and Afghan President Ashraf Ghani told a national audience Monday night that neighboring Pakistan is partly to blame for the chaos in his country.
by Jordan Schachtel11 Aug 2015, 7:50 PM PST0

Contents: Lashkar-e-Jhangvi leader Malik Ishaq killed in gunfight in Pakistan; Bizarre Mullah Omar death announcement seals fate of Afghan peace talks; Mullah Omar’s impossible conditions for Afghan peace talks
by John J. Xenakis30 Jul 2015, 4:00 AM PST0

Gen. Martin Dempsey, the highest-ranking military officer in the U.S. armed forces, and Afghan President Ashraf Ghani discussed the possibility of forming a ten-year regional counterterrorism effort against the Islamic State (ISIS/ISIL).
by Edwin Mora23 Jul 2015, 11:00 AM PST0

American troops in Afghanistan raided the home of a local anti-Taliban commander and proceeded to blow up a munition cache inside his home, an action that shows U.S. forces are carrying out combat missions beyond their stated train, advise, and assist role, reports The New York Times (NYT).
by Edwin Mora30 Jun 2015, 7:57 PM PST0

The Taliban, after waging a war on the Afghan government for more than a decade, causing thousands of Americans and Afghans to lose their lives, signaled a willingness to engage in peace negotiations, even as insurgents launched their annual warm-weather offensive across Afghanistan.
by Edwin Mora4 May 2015, 8:58 AM PST0

The Islamic State (ISIS/ISIL) took credit for the suicide attack in Jalalabad, Afghanistan, on Saturday, which killed 35 people and wounded 125. If the claim is true, it is the first appearance on this scale of the terrorist group in Afghanistan.
by Mary Chastain20 Apr 2015, 5:29 AM PST0

ISIS claims responsibility of major terrorist attack in east Afghanistan; Afghanistan becomes more ungovernable as US-led coalition withdraws; Greece scrapes the bottom of the barrel as bankruptcy talk increases
by John J. Xenakis19 Apr 2015, 9:22 AM PST0

Afghanistan’s President Ashraf Ghani gave an hour-long address to Congress on Wednesday, in which he mused that his country’s longstanding position as the graveyard of empires is quite exhausting to the Afghan people. Having established their reputation as fierce, stubborn fighters, they would really like to move on to a more productive future. “‘Ordinary’ is what has escaped us, and what we’d really like is to lead totally ordinary lives,” he said.
by John Hayward25 Mar 2015, 11:02 AM PST0

The newly-elected president of Afghanistan, Ashraf Ghani, told U.S. soldiers on Monday that he was grateful for their help in helping to secure the promise of a better future for his country.
by Jordan Schachtel24 Mar 2015, 12:04 PM PST0

Afghan President Ashraf Ghani indicated that peace negotiations between Afghanistan and the Taliban are within reach now, more than 13 years after the war began, following the 9/11 terrorist attacks on the U.S. homeland.
by Edwin Mora22 Feb 2015, 6:05 PM PST0

President Obama is considering slowing the pace of the U.S. military exit from Afghanistan after more than 13 years of war “to ensure that hard-won progress lasts,” said new Defense Secretary Ash Carter.
by Edwin Mora21 Feb 2015, 6:07 PM PST0