Michael Hughes: In a famous memorandum dated October 16, 2003 then U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld put forth challenging questions to Joint Chiefs Chairman Richard Myers and other top-level Pentagon officials about the uncertainty around whether the United States was making progress in the struggle against terrorism worldwide. “Today, we lack metrics to know if we are
VOA News January 1, 2018 Ayaz Gul ISLAMABAD — U.S. President Donald Trump is again accusing Pakistan of sheltering terrorists whom American forces are fighting in neighboring Afghanistan. In his first Twitter message of 2018, Trump wrote, “The United States has foolishly given Pakistan more than 33 billion dollars in aid over the last 15 years,
VOA News / December 31, 2017 ISLAMABAD — A suicide bomber killed at least 18 people in an attack targeting the funeral of former district chief in eastern Afghanistan’s Nangarhar province. Afghan forces have had frequent clashes with Islamic State militants in the area in recent weeks. There was no immediate claim of responsibility. The Taliban
VOA News / December 30, 2017 Ayaz Gul ISLAMABAD — A powerful Afghanistan governor returned to his office Saturday and chaired an official meeting in violation of a presidential decree that ousted him from his post earlier this month. The escalating political uncertainty comes as the United States and its allies step up military efforts in
Ayaz Gul VOA News / December 28, 2017 ISLAMABAD — Afghan officials say more than 40 people have been killed and 84 others wounded in a suicide attack on a building in Kabul that houses a Shi’ite Muslim cultural center with ties to Iran. A spokesman for Afghan Ministry of Public Health told reporters four women
Press TV / December 25, 2017 At least six civilians have been killed and three others wounded in another Daesh bomb attack near an Afghan intelligence agency compound in the capital, Kabul. Afghan Interior Ministry spokesman Najib Danish said a bomber blew himself up near the entrance of the compound belonging to the National Directorate
Ayaz Gul VOA News December 23, 2017 ISLAMABAD — Russia has estimated there are about 10,000 Islamic State militants in Afghanistan and their number is growing because fighters fleeing Syria and Iraq also are heading to the war-ravaged country. Russian media on Saturday quoted Zamir Kabulov, Russia’s special presidential envoy for Afghanistan, as saying Moscow is
Ayaz Gul VOA News / December 22, 2017 ISLAMABAD — Afghan officials say a suicide bombing early Friday killed at least six policemen and wounded 10 others, including an area commander, in southern Kandahar province. The bomber rammed his explosives-filed four-wheel drive military light truck, commonly known as Humvee, into a police station in the Maiwand
Press TV / December 17, 2017 The Taliban militants have killed at least 11 Afghan policemen in separate attacks on checkpoints in the volatile province of Helmand in southern Afghanistan, officials say. In the latest blow to the war-ravaged country’s beleaguered security forces, Taliban militants launched coordinated attacks against two police checkpoints in the Qalai Sang
VOA Deewa Service December 15, 2017 ISLAMABAD, PAKISTAN — The Taliban, known for its extreme Islamic rule before U.S. forces ousted the group from power in Afghanistan, have largely devolved into groups of criminals and terrorists, the country’s ambassador to Pakistan says. The change is critical as Afghanistan tries to create a lasting peace after decades