Afghanistan

[classicman]

The US and Saudi Arabia are in advanced talks on transferring Osama bin Laden and his Al Qaeda fighting force out of Afghanistan and Pakistan to a new location. His removal would clear Taliban leader Mullah Omar's path to a negotiated end to the war in Afghanistan.

Read more about this proposal and find out what the drums of war beating in Beirut and Damascus are all about in our next issue out Friday.

Debka
I don't know what to make of this.
Are we negotiating the release of bin Laden to end the war or is the Taliban giving him up?

[Shawnee123]

I thought Bin Laden died years ago?

[Spexxvet]

Originally Posted by Shawnee123

I thought Bin Laden died years ago?

Hahahaha. He was right - then or now, whatever it takes.

[xoxoxoBruce]

Mike Yon is back in country, not embedded, checking out USAID projects, that seem to be doing well. I didn't realize there is so much antagonism between the Afghanis and Iran. On Facebook

[tw]

Originally Posted by Shawnee123

I thought Bin Laden died years ago?

That myth was widely promoted by sources with a political agenda.

When asked about bin Laden 6 months ago, the CIA director said he wished he knew where bin Laden was. That the CIA had no solid information - then repeated for emphasis. But they believe he was in tribal areas of Pakistan where the Taliban have many allies.

America has a serious problem. Nations that remain at war for decades end up dying nations 20 years later. Obama constantly demanded an exit strategy from the Generals. Only got requests for more troops. To protect America, we must decide in a few years whether we have been defeated. Hard decisions necessary because some fool invented a myth "Mission Accomplished" rather than achieve victory.

Wars are never resolved on the battlefield. Wars are always resolved at the negotiation table. Expect people such as Holbrook (moderates) to be proposing many ambitious solutions because America is, otherwise, that close to defeat.

Iran does not hate Afghanistan as much as Iran hates the Taliban. Never forget what happened. Iran sent six negotiators to Afghanistan to resolve issues. Bodies came back without heads. Everyone here should know that story - or have a serious problem with their information sources.

The region is full of hatred. Many parts of the Pakistan government regard Afghanistan as allies of India. More hate. By letting bin Laden go free, we got ourselves in a real pickle

[classicman]

I reported that multiple times as it came up in the press.

[casimendocina]

An interview (transcript + video) of an important player in Afghanistan's media. Interesting stuff.

http://www.abc.net.au/lateline/conte...0/s3011854.htm

[gvidas]

First female officers of Afghan National Army graduate, albeit headed exclusively for administrative roles.

KABUL (Reuters) - Afghanistan's army got its first female officers in decades on Thursday when 29 women graduated in a class of new recruits who hope to help take the lead role in national security from foreign forces by 2014.
...

The women will not be sent to the frontline of the fight against the insurgency, which is raging at its strongest since the 2001 overthrow of the Taliban government, and instead will largely be doing administrative work.

Women served in the army of Afghanistan's communist-backed regime in the 1980s but retreated from military service during the civil war and hardline Taliban rule that followed the Soviet retreat from Afghanistan in 1989.

[TheMercenary]

Well I guess it is a start, until we are gone, then I have a felling things are going to fall apart. We will have to see what Obama is going to do next. The latest book by Woodward seems to have some telling insight as the struggle they are having staying on task.

[xoxoxoBruce]

If the Afghans see how much better things can be, than when the Taliban was running things, maybe they'll be more disposed to keeping it when we leave.

[TheMercenary]

We can only hope. But my fear is that they operate and understand a feudal system more than one based on an educated system of democratic potential. I certainly do not have the answers.

[gvidas]

10th-grade Afghan boy builds airplane:

http://www.pajhwok.com/en/2010/10/19...ght-permission

BAMYAN CITY (PAN): A teenage student, who has made what is being called the country’s first home-made plane, is waiting for government permission to fly his aircraft, an official said on Tuesday.
Sabir Shah, a 10th-grader from Jaghori district in southern Ghazni province, was summoned to the capital Kabul by President Hamid Karzai who wanted the plane to undergo a technical check up before allowing it to take flight, district chief, Zafar Sharif, said.

[classicman]

pretty cool.

[classicman]

Troops chafe at restrictive rules of engagement

To the U.S. Army soldiers and Marines serving here, some things seem so obviously true that they are beyond debate. Among those perceived truths: Tthe restrictive rules of engagement that they have to fight under have made serving in combat far more dangerous for them, while allowing the Taliban to return to a position of strength.

"If they use rockets to hit the [forward operating base] we can't shoot back because they were within 500 meters of the village. If they shoot at us and drop their weapon in the process we can't shoot back," said Spc. Charles Brooks, 26, a U.S. Army medic with 1st Battalion, 4th Infantry Regiment, in Zabul province.

Word had come down the morning Brooks spoke to this reporter that watch towers surrounding the base were going to be dismantled because Afghan village elders, some sympathetic to the Taliban, complained they were invading their village privacy. "We have to take down our towers because it offends them and now the Taliban can set up mortars and we can't see them," Brooks added, with disgust.

Wash Examiner:
I thought this changed when Patreus took over?

[classicman]

More on the Tanks to Afghanistan

This article also talks more about Petraeus's mindset on war fighting. There is a wide misconception that Petraeus is all about a soft approach, but I've been clearly reporting since at least 2007 that Petraeus is a straight-up killer. The man doesn't play. He's using more force now than anyone since... the war began. I saw him do this in Iraq. After he kills a bunch of bad guys, he comes back and says, "Hey, care to talk now? Doesn't have to be like this." If they don't want to talk, he goes back to killing.

Mark my words and watch.

Michael Yon

Link