The Afghanistan Weekly Reader: Ten Years Later, No End in Sight
With the tenth anniversary of the invasion of Afghanistan today, retrospectives on the war, from numbers to pictures, are everywhere. All of these have one thing in common: the recognition that peace and stability in Afghanistan is still a long way off, even after ten years. The small victories – like the capture of a Haqqani clan leader – are outweighed by reports of increasing violence, the faltering peace process, and the always troubled US-Pakistan relationship. With so much invested, and so little to show for it, it’s hardly surprising that half of Americans think the was has not been a success.
ASG
10-7-11
The Afghanistan War: Ten Years Later and Counting
Afghanistan Study Group by Mary Kaszynski
We will read many stories similar to these today, the tenth anniversary of the invasion of Afghanistan. These particular quotes, however, are not from October 7, 2011. They are from earlier anniversaries: 2002, 2004, and 2006. Same story, different years.
ARTICLES
10-5-11
Wars in Iraq and Afghanistan not worth the cost, many US veterans say
The Christian Science Monitor by Brad Knickerbocker
One-third of those who have served in Iraq and Afghanistan say neither conflict has been worth the cost, a new Pew report finds. And 84 percent say the US public doesn’t understand their problems.
10-7-11
In Washington, 10-Year Afghanistan War Mark to Pass Quietly
Fox News by the Associated Press
President Obama plans no public events Friday to mark a moment the nation never really expected: 10 years of war in Afghanistan. Out of sight and off the minds of millions of Americans, the war is the most prolonged conflict this country has been engaged in since Vietnam. Obama has gone so far as to declare it “the longest war in American history.”
Coordinated Attacks in Afghanistan Hit U.S. Sites
New York Times by C.J. Chivers
The coordinated attack, apparently timed to mark the 10th anniversary of the start of the Afghan war, caused minimal damage and wounded only one American soldier … But it underscored the frustrating complexities of a war entering its second decade. Most of the high-explosive 107-millimeter rockets striking the outposts were fired from just inside Afghanistan, suggesting that the attack had been prepared and launched from Pakistan, and the rocket crews withdrew there as the Americans fired back.
10-6-11
Musharraf: Afghanistan Is a Proxy War Between India and Pakistan
ABC News by Luis Martinez
Former Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf today described Afghanistan as a proxy war between India and Pakistan. He made his comments as part of the rolling panels at the Washington Ideas Forum taking place at the Newseum.
Hundreds of Afghans demonstrate in Kabul, demand withdrawal of foreign troops
Washington Post by the Associated Press
Hundreds of people marched through the streets of the Afghan capital on Thursday, demanding the immediate withdrawal of international military forces ahead of the 10th anniversary of the U.S. invasion. The peaceful demonstration in downtown Kabul was meant to mark the Oct. 7 invasion of Afghanistan 10 years ago, following the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks against the United States.
9-27-11
Luring Fighters Away from the Taliban: Why an Afghan Plan Is Floundering
TIME by Julius Cavendish
Concerns over the state of reconciliation efforts have been amplified by last week’s assassination of Burhanuddin Rabbani, the government’s designated negotiator with the Taliban. Although his High Peace Council has recorded little tangible progress either in talks with the Taliban leadership or in grassroots efforts to reintegrate the movement’s rank-and-file fighters, the running costs for its joint secretariat stood at $2.3 million as of June 30, while a further $1.5 million had gone to APRP cells within government ministries. By contrast, spending on reintegrating former Taliban fighters stood at $150,000.
OPINION
10-7-11
Our Trojan War in Afghanistan rages into a second decade
Chicago Sun Times by Neil Steinberg
The savvy reader will get where I’m heading by now, since today marks the 10th anniversary of the war, our struggle in Afghanistan, dubbed “Operation Enduring Freedom” in that regrettable habit we have of coining inspirational monikers for our national bloodlettings, as if that helps.
10-6-11
Ten years of war
The Economist by J.B.
As A general rule, the longer outsiders spend in Afghanistan the more depressed they become about the place. Though there are not many foreigners who can boast of more than a few years’ experience here, the West’s decade-long adventure has made the army of diplomats, aid workers and development people positively funereal.
