The Afghanistan Weekly Reader – February 25, 2011
We are seeing increasing signs that the surge in Afghanistan is not working—U.S. troops are pulling back from what was once billed as a key strategic location and the nighttime raids that neo-conservatives claim have been so effective are actually killing many civilians, souring the Afghanistan public on the American presence. The story of the week, of course, came from Rolling Stone magazine, and asserted that the U.S. military has been conducting psy-ops on members of Congress and even Joint Chiefs Chairman, Admiral Mike Mullen. To top it off, despite loud calls for shrinking the deficit, the Republican defense budget is slated to be even LARGER in the next year.
On the good side of the ledger, the U.S. is reported to be talking to the Taliban in hopes of breaking its alliance with al Qaeda – a top recommendation of last fall’s Afghanistan Study Group report. And Governor Mike Huckabee, who may run for president in 2012, spoke very critically of Afghanistan, wondering what the end game is. We’re hopeful it will spark a real debate within the Republican primary and among the public at large.
Here are some of the most important pieces we’ve written or read this week.
U.S. Pulling Back in Afghan Valley it Called Vital to War
The New York Times by C.J. Chivers, Alissa J. Rubin and Wesley Morgan
KABUL, Afghanistan — After years of fighting for control of a prominent valley in the rugged mountains of eastern Afghanistan, the United States military has begun to pull back most of its forces from ground it once insisted was central to the campaign against the Taliban and Al Qaeda.
Another Runaway General: Army Deploys Psy-Ops on U.S. Senators
The Rolling Stone by Michael Hastings
The U.S. Army illegally ordered a team of soldiers specializing in ’psychological operations’ to manipulate visiting American senators into providing more troops and funding for the war, Rolling Stone has learned – and when an officer tried to stop the operation, he was railroaded by military investigators.
NATO’s Afghan Night Raids Come with High Civilian Cost
Reuters by Emmo Graham-Harrison
A few minutes and a few bullets were enough to turn Abdullah from an 11th grade student with dreams of becoming a translator to the despairing head of a family of more than a dozen. His father and oldest brother were shot dead last August at the start of a midnight assault by NATO-led troops on their house in Afghanistan’s east. Abdullah himself was hooded, handcuffed and flown to prison, where he was detained for questioning and then released.
Huckabee Sees No Endgame in Afghanistan
The Washington Post by Dan Balz
Former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee, setting himself apart from most other Republicans, said Wednesday he sees no obvious endgame to the war in Afghanistan and expressed grave doubts about how the United States extricates itself from a conflict that is now nearly a decade old.
Afghan Security the Worst in a Decade: UN
ABC News – AFP
The security situation in Afghanistan has worsened to its lowest point since the toppling of the Taliban a decade ago and attacks on aid workers are at unprecedented levels, a United Nations envoy said. Robert Watkins, the outgoing UN deputy special representative of the Secretary General for Afghanistan, says from a humanitarian perspective, security “is on everyone’s minds”.
U.S. Entering Direct Talks with Taliban: Report
Reuters
The United States has entered into direct talks with leaders of the Taliban in Afghanistan, but contacts are exploratory and not yet a peace negotiation, according to an article on Saturday in The New Yorker magazine.
Secretary Gates’ View from the Afghanistan Front
Afghanistan Study Group by Will Keola Thomas
In a candid interview with the Weekly Standard’s Stephen Hayes, Defense Secretary Gates offers an upbeat view of the war in Afghanistan that suggests he is still wearing Pentagon-issue rose-colored glasses. Unfortunately, he doesn’t offer any hard evidence that would allow the American public to double-check his prescription. However, Secretary Gates does put forward an argument on presumed progress in Afghanistan that should leave Americans rubbing their eyes.
Psy-ops and Afghanistan: Stop Spinning the American Public
Afghanistan Study Group by Will Keola Thomas
The goal of the U.S. Militarys psychological operations in Afghanistan is to use propaganda to influence the emotions and behaviors of hostile foreign groups. But according to a shocking story by Michael Hastings in Rolling Stone, it is visiting members of Congress and the American public that are being targeted.
