From the category archives:

Pakistan

Means-testing the Drone War

by Joshua Foust

The London Times runs a story claiming that the U.S. drone war in Northwest Pakistan is creating fear and paranoia:
The effects of the campaign, however, are beginning to veer dramatically off course as the strikes intensify, according to tribesmen. “Before the drone attacks began the Taleban weren’t so obvious among us and the militancy wasn’t [...]

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The Death of Optimism

by Joshua Foust

The Washington Post captures the Mullah Baradar zeitgeist:
The capture of senior Afghan Taliban leaders in Pakistan represents the culmination of months of pressure by the Obama administration on Pakistan’s powerful security forces to side with the United States as its troops wage war in Afghanistan, according to U.S. and Pakistani officials.
Indeed, it forms the basis [...]

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Fun With Names and Insurgencies

by Joshua Foust

Newsweek reports:
Another leader of the Afghan Taliban has been captured by authorities in Pakistan working in partnership with U.S. intelligence officials. Taliban sources in the region and a counterterrorism officials in Washington have identified the detained insurgent leader as Mullah Abdul Salam, described as the Taliban movement’s “shadow governor” of Afghanistan’s Kunduz province.
Described by whom, [...]

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“Crime is a way to use the city”

by Asher Kohn

When reading one of the most recent pieces on BLDGBlog, I was struck by how the writer describes how criminals and crime-fighters use the urban space to defeat their opponent. It’s like chess, sure, but without rules: climbing through elevator shafts, breaking through walls and ceilings, and basically using any which way to get through [...]

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“Af-Pak” Quick Links

by Matthew Kuhl

A few quick hits from chilly* middle Georgia (lows in the 20s! inconceivable!):

Well, it looks as if the Bagram prison will soon be the Afghans’ problem. I’m skeptical that this will result in any real changes.
Two articles opinions on drones: First, we have a column from Dawn questioning the effects that drone strikes purportedly have in [...]

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I want YOU to mumble a few words of Pashto

by Asher Kohn

The US Military’s Joint Chiefs of Staff, or I suppose someone on that board, came up with a moderate reorganization of the military. The plan is for a corps of experts in Afghanistan and Pakistan to help drive military goals and make sure that their operations won’t blow up in their faces. I really don’t [...]

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AmPak unity

by Dafydd

Interesting opinion piece from Dawn.Com.
Noting a convergence of Pakistani and US interests in Afghanistan.
Much may seem obvious, but it is kind of warming to hear it coming out of the Pakistani media.
Obama has been much criticised for his reference to “18 months”, and criticised some more for rowing back from that (a little).
Here at least [...]

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Next stop – Peshawar

by Dafydd

I have been wondering how it was going in South Waziristan and went surfing to see what I could find out.
Dawn.com has this take on the situation.
Basically, they are saying that to releive the pressure they are feeling in South Waziristan, the TTP are opening a new front in the south/south west suburbs of Peshawar.
This [...]

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Comrade Kalashnikov and his ubiquitous, eponymous invention

by Joe Harlan

As I watched Al Jazeera this morning, I saw that Mikhail Kalashnikov turned 90 yesterday.
I thought this was as good a time as any to reflect on the weapon that bears his name and is used by both Afghanistan and Pakistan, and of course the Central Asian former SSRs. And, interestingly, by [...]

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Are we quitting?

by Dafydd

Today in asia times on line there is the claim that the US/NATO persuaded Abdullah Abdullah to quit the second round of the Afghan election.
If that weren’t enough, they also make the claim that the US has agreed that the Pakistani Army will mediate between the US and the Taliban to find a (face saving) [...]

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