Afghanistan News Center

Afghanistan News January 26, 2012: Today's headlines.....

A Taliban ‘Rope-a-Dope’ Strategy?
By Karl F. Inderfurth Wednesday, January 25, 2012 Foreign Policy
The on-again, off-again effort by the Obama administration to begin preliminary peace talks with the Taliban is still struggling to get off the ground. The first move focuses on a statement by the Taliban against international terrorism and in support of a peace process and the opening of a Taliban office in Qatar. For this the Taliban have called for the release of its prisoners held at Guantánamo Bay.

New U.N. Envoy Urges Afghans to Take Part in Peace Process
New York Times By ALISSA J. RUBIN January 25, 2012
KABUL, Afghanistan - The new United Nations representative to Afghanistan urged Afghans on Wednesday to embrace an inclusive peace process in which all the elements of society would have a voice.

Suicide Bomber Attacks Reconstruction Team in Afghanistan
VOA News January 26, 2012
Afghan officials say a suicide car bomber has killed four civilians in an attack on a NATO-affiliated provincial reconstruction team in southern Afghanistan.

Taliban leader captured in Afghan Helmand province: NATO
KABUL, Jan. 26 (Xinhua) -- Afghan and the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) on Thursday detained a local Taliban leader in Helmand province, 555 km south of capital Kabul, the alliance said in a statement. "An Afghan led and coalition supported security forces captured a Taliban leader during an operation in Nahr-e Saraj district, Helmand province, today,"said the statement.

Afghan jailed for 16 years for spying for Iran
AFP 25/01/2012
HERAT - An Afghan man found in possession of photographs of NATO bases in Afghanistan has been jailed for 16 years for spying for neighbouring Iran, officials said Wednesday.

How Iran Controls Afghanistan
FoxNews.com By Fariba Nawa January 25, 2012
Afghanistan has suffered from foreign meddling since its inception. But while Pakistan’s role has been widely discussed -- most Afghans will point to concrete examples -- Iran’s involvement is more subtle.

The Afghan divide
Is the United States succeeding in Afghanistan? It depends on what you measure and whom you ask.
Los Angles Times By Sarah Chayes January 26, 2012 Op-Ed
How should we measure success in Afghanistan? It's a crucial question, but there isn't much agreement on an answer.
In mid-January, this newspaper ran a story on the latest National Intelligence Estimate on Afghanistan, a classified assessment drafted by analysts at more than a dozen U.S. intelligence agencies. According to The Times, the report "warns that security gains from an increase in troops have been undercut by pervasive corruption, incompetent governance and Taliban fighters operating from neighboring Pakistan."

Germany begins cutting troops in Afghanistan
DW 25/01/2012
The German parliament is starting to lower the number of soldiers stationed in Afghanistan. Two years ahead of the planned complete withdrawal of troops, many questions remain unresolved.

The Swede Who Convinced Taliban To Allow Girls Schools
January 26, 2012 Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty Abubakar Siddique
These days Anders Fange, 65, lectures on Afghanistan in his native Sweden. His main challenge is to convince skeptical audiences to shed preconceptions when they think about Afghanistan. He hones this point by drawing on nearly three decades of experience in that mountainous country.

Pakistan’s three-way power struggle: a dispute with much at stake
Washington Post By Editorial Board Thursday, January 26, 2012
THE CRISIS IN U.S. relations with Pakistan has been overtaken, in Pakistan itself, by a power struggle among three competing authorities: the civilian government, the military and the judiciary. Its outcome could determine whether Pakistan will seek to repair its alliance with the United States or become a more open adversary

Afghan Olive Farms Waiting for Water
Once-thriving industry now in poor shape.
IWPR By Mina Habib 25 Jan 12
Afghanistan - The southeastern Afghan province of Nangarhar was once home to thousands of hectares of olive groves, but residents say water and electricity shortages, combined with land-grabs and war, have left the industry devastated.