The Sandbox and Areas Reports Thread (June 2006)

[GAP]

I am starting this thread for one reason only. I constantly see new threads started on
each and every incident or political issue regarding Afghanistan and the surrounding countries

Nowhere is there one thread that compiles the incidents in a sequential manner
WITHOUT commentary.

This is not intended as a commentary thread, but as a sequential listing of
reports regarding the action.
Please add reports you come across, with a source
link. This way anyone wanting to view the progression of action, political issues and misguided
adventures of whomever it concerns is able to see it in one snapshot.

I would like to point out that the commentary threads, whether giving condolances to fallen or
injured, or on issues, are terrific and should continue, but not on this thread. If we keep it simple,
maybe with a link to the commentary thread for that subject, it will make good reading and an easy reference.

Thanks
Gord

 

[GAP]

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20060626.wafghan0626/BNStory/International/home

Coalition soldier killed in Afghan fighting
TINI TRAN

Associated Press

KABUL — A U.S.-led coalition soldier has been killed fighting insurgents in eastern Afghanistan, while a suicide car bomber targeted a military convoy and wounded two Afghan boys Monday, officials said.

Complete report available at the link above

 

[GAP]

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/06/25/AR2006062500866.html
Afghan Leader Losing Support
Foreign, Local Allies Cite Weak Karzai Leadership

By Pamela Constable
Washington Post Foreign Service
Monday, June 26, 2006;

KABUL, Afghanistan, June 25 -- Many Afghans and some foreign supporters say they are losing faith in President Hamid Karzai's government, which is besieged by an escalating insurgency and endemic corruption and is unable to protect or administer large areas of the country.

As a sense of insecurity spreads, a rift is growing between the president and some of the foreign civilian and military establishments whose money and firepower have helped rebuild and defend the country for nearly five years. While the U.S. commitment to Karzai appears solid, several European governments are expressing serious concerns about his leadership.

Full 2 page article available at the link above

The Washington Post Staff Writer comments about it

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/06/27/AR2006062700254.html

Rice Challenges Report on Afghan President
By Glenn Kessler
Washington Post Staff Writer
Tuesday, June 27, 2006; 8:50 AM

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan, June 27 -- Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, who arrived here Tuesday at the start of a trip that will also take her to Russia, announced she will go to Afghanistan on Wednesday morning to bolster support for embattled Afghan President Hamid Karzai.

article available at the link above

 

[GAP]

http://www.csmonitor.com/2006/0622/p07s02-wosc.html

Killing scares media away from Waziristan


A journalist's body found last week has sent a warning to media: Stay out of this corner of Pakistan.
By David Montero | Correspondent of The Christian Science Monitor

PESHAWAR, PAKISTAN – Journalist Hayatullah Khan took a photo of something Pakistan's government said was never there. Within days he disappeared without a trace, dragged off by masked men.
Last week, six months after his abduction, his body was found dumped in North Waziristan, handcuffed and shot in the back.
The tragic news has startled the nation, sparking protests, and Wednesday the government ordered a judicial probe into his death. It also sent a chilling message about the risks of reporting the conflict in Waziristan, one of the premier fronts in the war on terror. The rest of the article can be seen at the link above

 

[GAP]

Pakistan's tribal strategy

Pakistan's Prime Minister met with Bush Tuesday to discuss the war on terror.
from the January 25, 2006 edition

http://www.csmonitor.com/2006/0125/p06s02-wosc.html?s=widep

By David Montero | Correspondent of The Christian Science Monitor

The rest of the article can be seen at the link above

 

[GAP]

American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, June 27, 2006 -

Afghan National Army soldiers and coalition forces killed 10 extremists yesterday in a raid on a Taliban compound belonging to a known weapons and bomb distributor, U.S. military officials reported.

No injuries to civilians were observed during the operation, which was conducted in Uruzgan province, officials said.

"We will continue to intensify our pursuit of extremists hiding in southern Afghanistan," said Army Lt. Col. Paul Fitzpatrick, a Combined Joint Task Force 76 spokesman. "We call on the extremists to reconcile with the government of Afghanistan. Our efforts are to improve security, economic development and stable governance for the Afghan people."

Also, Afghan National Police discovered an unarmed bomb June 23 in Khowst province. Immediately after finding the device, the police notified coalition forces, according to coalition reports.

Task Force Wolf Pack, which consists of the 4th Battalion, 25th Field Artillery Regiment from Fort Drum, N.Y., as well as attached personnel, arrived shortly after the Afghan police reported their find and discovered the area was already secure.

"It's significant that the Afghan National Police were able to spot the device and secure the perimeter before coalition forces arrived," Army Maj. Eric Zenk, a U.S. military spokesman, said. "This shows that the security forces of Afghanistan are making progress and their training is paying off."
(Compiled from Combined Forces Command Afghanistan news releases.)



Related Sites:

Combined Forces Command Afghanistan [http://www.cfc-a.centcom.mil/]

Combined Joint Task Force 76 [http://cjtf76.army.mil/main.html]

 

[GAP]

An older report, but gives a bit of insight of the type of justice that prevails in the region

In Pakistan, tribal laws under fire

A jailed toddler and the hunt for Al Qaeda in Waziristan have renewed a debate on tribal law.
By Owais Tohid | Correspondent of The Christian Science Monitor
October 27, 2004 edition

http://www.csmonitor.com/2004/1027/p06s02-wosc.html?s=widep

ISLAMABAD, PAKISTAN – Zarmineh Khan, a 2-year-old girl, has been sentenced to spend three years of her childhood behind prison bars in Pakistan. She and 15 relatives, including women and other children, have been in jail since May because of alleged criminal activity by Zarmineh's uncle, who has fled.
The family is a victim of an enduring practice of collective punishment set up by the British in the 19th century to control unruly Pashtuns in the semiautonomous tribal region bordering Afghanistan.

Click link for rest of article

 

[GAP]

US Army equipment costs in Iraq, Afghanistan may triple
But decision to send old equipment back to US could signal future troop reductions.
By Tom Regan  | csmonitor.com
http://www.csmonitor.com/2006/0627/dailyUpdate.html

 

[GAP]

Canadian troops clash with Taliban
Soldiers forced to cancel planned village medical clinics

http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/Article_Type1&c=Article&cid=1151148011716&call_pageid=1140433364397&col=1140433364286

Jun. 24, 2006. 10:41 AM
CANADIAN PRESS AND ASSOCIATED PRESS

 

[GAP]

Four Afghan men found decapitated
Jun. 23, 2006. 01:49 PM
ASSOCIATED PRESS

http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/Article_Type1&c=Article&cid=1151057948251&call_pageid=1140433364397&col=1140433364286

 

[GAP]

Too much bloodshed, Karzai tells coalition
Afghan leader criticizes death toll from military operations

In newly released video, bin Laden's deputy urges resistance
Jun. 23, 2006. 01:00 AM
TINI TRAN
ASSOCIATED PRESS

http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/Article_Type1&c=Article&cid=1151013012527&call_pageid=1140433364397&col=1140433364286

 

[GAP]

A bloody day in Kandahar
Six Canadian soldiers hurt in attacks
Taliban under pressure, step up assaults
Jun. 22, 2006. 05:28 AM
JOHN COTTER
CANADIAN PRESS

http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/Article_Type1&c=Article&cid=1150927811455&call_pageid=1140433364397&col=1140433364286

 

[GAP]

Rather then postings older stories I have provided the Headline and link:

These are from the Toronto Star:

Afghan fighting leaves 20 militants dead
Jun. 21, 2006. 01:54 AM
http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/Article_Type1&c=Article&cid=1150841199852&call_pageid=1140433364397&col=1140433364286

Afghan blast kills Romanian soldier
Jun. 20, 2006. 08:32 AM
NOOR KHAN
ASSOCIATED PRESS

http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/Article_Type1&c=Article&cid=1150796887295&call_pageid=1140433364397&col=1140433364286

30 killed in Taliban ambush
Jun. 19, 2006. 05:49 AM
NOOR KHAN
ASSOCIATED PRESS

http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/Article_Type1&c=Article&cid=1150710544958&call_pageid=1140433364397&col=1140433364286

Coalition forces kill 45 Afghan militants
Jun. 17, 2006. 02:04 AM

http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/Article_Type1&c=Article&cid=1150494611652&call_pageid=1140433364397&col=1140433364286

Taliban can't run us off: NATO chief
Warns insurgents `will be dealt with very robustly'
Says he is pleased at Tory increase in military spending
Jun. 16, 2006. 05:24 AM
GRAHAM FRASER AND BRUCE CAMPION-SMITH
OTTAWA BUREAU

http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/Article_Type1&c=Article&cid=1150408211028&call_pageid=1140433364397&col=1140433364286

Afghan bus bomb kills 10
Jun. 15, 2006. 12:40 AM

http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/Article_Type1&c=Article&cid=1150321813177&call_pageid=1140433364397&col=1140433364286

Taking fight to Taliban
Mountain Thrust to last all summer

26 rebels killed, on eve of offensive
Jun. 15, 2006. 01:00 AM
JASON STRAZIUSO
ASSOCIATED PRESS

http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/Article_Type1&c=Article&cid=1150321812599&call_pageid=1140433364397&col=1140433364286

Interpreters among 10 dead in Kandahar blast
Bomb attack targeted Afghans working for the coalition
Jun. 15, 2006. 03:21 PM
CANADIAN PRESS

http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/Article_Type1&c=Article&cid=1150367946023&call_pageid=1140433364397&col=1140433364286

2 Canadians wounded in Afghan fight
Jun. 13, 2006. 01:00 AM

http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/Article_Type1&c=Article&cid=1150149009917&call_pageid=1140433364397&col=1140433364286

Canadians on the hunt near Kandahar
Jun. 12, 2006. 06:14 AM
JOHN COTTER
CANADIAN PRESS

http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/Article_Type1&c=Article&cid=1150107185759&call_pageid=1140433364397&col=1140433364286

Canadian troops open fort in Taliban territory
Jun. 10, 2006. 04:47 PM
CANADIAN PRESS

http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/Article_Type1&c=Article&cid=1149938052331&call_pageid=1140433364397&col=1140433364286

Generals cast envious glance at Canada's gear
Romanians stuck with Soviet-era carriers

Impressed by battle-proven Nyala, LAV III
Jun. 10, 2006. 01:00 AM
JOHN COTTER
CANADIAN PRESS

http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/Article_Type1&c=Article&cid=1149889810658&call_pageid=1140433364397&col=1140433364286

Prisoner hand-off policy in Afghanistan defended
Prisoner hand-off concerns dismissed

Actions fuel terror threat, critics say
Jun. 9, 2006. 01:00 AM
TONDA MACCHARLES
OTTAWA BUREAU

http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/Article_Type1&c=Article&cid=1149803410355&call_pageid=1140433364397&col=1140433364286

Debt traps Afghan opium growers
Traders use debt to keep Afghan farmers in cycle of drug production
Jun. 8, 2006. 12:27 PM
CANADIAN PRESS

http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/Article_Type1&c=Article&cid=1149762910216&call_pageid=1140433364397&col=1140433364286

Taliban's power increasing, report warns
Local residents in some southern areas now consider them to be in power
Jun. 7, 2006. 12:14 PM
CANADIAN PRESS

http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/Article_Type1&c=Article&cid=1149674414934&call_pageid=1140433364397&col=1140433364286

Bloody Afghan summer ahead
Coalition vows to hit Taliban hard

Kandahar to see `massive influx'
Jun. 5, 2006. 01:00 AM
BOB WEBER
CANADIAN PRESS

http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/Article_Type1&c=Article&cid=1149460818046&call_pageid=1140433364397&col=1140433364286

Bomb injures Canadian soldiers
May 26, 2006. 12:10 AM

http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/Article_Type1&c=Article&cid=1148593812338&call_pageid=1140433364397&col=1140433364286

 

[GAP]

Received today:

By Donna Miles
American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, June 27, 2006 - The highest priority in funding the global war on terror is to ensure that the military members fighting it have all they need to win, a senior defense official told Pentagon reporters today.

The Defense Department has obligated $295 billion for the war on terror from Sept. 11, 2001, through March 2006, Whitman said.

Those costs can be broken down into three major operations, he explained. The bulk of the expenditure, $210 billion, has funded Operation Iraqi Freedom. Another $57 billion has gone to Operation Enduring Freedom, most of it for activities in Afghanistan; and $28 billion for Operation Noble Eagle, the homeland defense mission.

Current costs for these efforts amount to about $7 billion a month. Of this monthly cost, activities in Iraq are costing about $6 billion and in Afghanistan and in other locations that make up Operation Enduring Freedom, about $1 billion, he said. Whitman noted that the cost of activities in Afghanistan is up slightly, from $900 million a month, due to the increased pace of operations there.

Costs in funding the terror war are "somewhat unpredictable," because they are based not only on the pace of operations, but also on conditions on the ground, he said. "It's a dynamic and evolving environment," he said.

Warfighting costs are largely misunderstood by the American people, many of whom don't realize that there's no way to fund contingency operations within the normal defense budget, Army Lt. Col. Brian Maka, a Pentagon spokesman, explained.

"That means that every time we fight a war, we have to have a supplemental (budget request)," he said. But as the United States fights its first protracted war since Vietnam, the public tends to perceive supplemental budget requests as "out of the ordinary," Maka said.

Congress approved $66.6 billion in supplemental appropriations June 15 to cover the incremental costs of fighting the global war on terror. The amount was about $100 million less than what President Bush requested through the fiscal 2006 supplemental budget request.

"The troops have done everything that's been asked of them, and they've done so with courage," Rumsfeld told members of the Senate Appropriations Defense Subcommittee during his May 17 testimony. "And we owe it to them and to the country that they have sworn to protect to see that we provide the resources and the capabilities that will not only win today's wars, but also best assure peace in the decades ahead."


NOTE: View the original version of this web page on DefenseLINK,
the official website of the U.S. Department of Defense, at
http://www.defenselink.mil/news/Jun2006/20060627_5524.html.

 

[GAP]

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20060623.wxafghan23/BNStory/International/home

An oasis of relative calm in a sea of violence
Quick funding, tactical targeting of U.S. projects reaping rewards
GRAEME SMITH

From Friday's Globe and Mail


http://www.canada.com/nationalpost/news/editorialsletters/story.html?id=69b11b88-ae15-449b-b66d-f1ba3d6256c9
Helicopter SNAFU  
  National Post
Published: Tuesday, June 27, 2006


Canadians extend helping hands
Medical personel bring supplies, security to Taliban country in Afghanistan
By JOHN COTTER The Canadian Press
http://thechronicleherald.ca/World/512790.html

 

[GAP]

Canada's top soldier in Afghanistan speaks out in support of President Karzai  

John Cotter, Canadian Press
Published: Tuesday, June 27, 2006
http://www.canada.com/calgaryherald/news/story.html?id=0aef91b4-02fd-4fd6-9c27-eccc1b6ff19b&k=91628


Tuesday, Jun 27, 2006      MyTelus.com
Canadian troops in Kandahar long for simple things often taken for granted

http://www.mytelus.com/news/article.do?pageID=world_home&articleID=2305010

UK soldier killed in Afghanistan
AfghanNews.net
27. June 2006, 01:20
BBC News
http://www.afghannews.net/index.php?action=show&type=news&id=809




Pakistan beefing up anti-militant forces
Another 10,000 troops to join frontier hunt for Taliban, al Qaeda

Tuesday, June 27, 2006 Posted: 2123 GMT (0523 HKT)
http://edition.cnn.com/2006/WORLD/asiapcf/06/27/afghan.pakistan/index.html

Dozens killed in Afghan battle
Victims include 2 UK soldiers, 4 Afghans, 29 Taliban militants

Tuesday, June 27, 2006 Posted: 1540 GMT (2340 HKT)
http://edition.cnn.com/2006/WORLD/asiapcf/06/27/afghan.fighting/index.html

Afghans tell troops: 'No security, no help'
Without safety guarantees, villagers are reluctant to help US-led coalition forces against insurgents.
By Brian Calvert | Contributor to The Christian Science Monitor
from the June 28, 2006 edition
http://www.csmonitor.com/2006/0628/p07s01-wosc.html

Why the Taliban appeal to Pakistani youth
The tribal system that once grounded young people no longer provides enough opportunities.
By David Montero | Correspondent of The Christian Science Monitor
from the June 16, 2006 edition
http://www.csmonitor.com/2006/0616/p07s02-wosc.html

 

[GAP]

Afghan power brokers

Wielding the Koran with a pro-Western tilt

from the June 10, 2002 edition
http://www.csmonitor.com/2002/0610/p01s03c-wosc.html

 

[GAP]

How Afghanistan was being reported in 1980

from the December 22, 1980 edition

Afghanistan: The Soviet price one year later; Soviets toughen Afghan strategyBy Edward Girardet, Special correspondent of The Christian Science Monitor
http://www.csmonitor.com/1980/1222/122235.html

from the December 26, 1980 edition
Saudis, Gulf states, Pakistan try to forge their own security ties
By John Yemma, Staff correspondent of The Christian Science Monitor
http://www.csmonitor.com/1980/1226/122646.html

from the March 04, 1981 edition
Soviet Union's forces tighten grip on Wakhan corridor in Afghanistan
By Carol Honsa, Special to The Christian Science Monitor
http://www.csmonitor.com/1981/0304/030435.html

from the April 06, 1981 edition
Arm the Afghan freedom fighters
By Louis Dupree; Louis Dupree, with the American Universities Field Staff, is adjunct professor of anthropology at the Pennsylvania State University and author of "Afghanistan."
http://www.csmonitor.com/1981/0406/040631.html

from the January 12, 1981 edition
Pakistan, Karmal regime move closer
By Louis Wiznitzer, Special correspondent of The Christian Science Monitor
http://www.csmonitor.com/1981/0112/011241.html

 

[GAP]

They're Back: A New, Vicious Taliban Take Shape in Afghanistan
Opium Drug Trade Funding New Type of Taliban Army
By GRETCHEN PETERS
KABUL, Afghanistan June 27, 2006 — - Coalition forces battling the Taliban across southern Afghanistan aren't fighting the same bearded extremists they toppled in October 2001.

http://abcnews.go.com/International/story?id=2124643&page=1

U.S. Afghan policy costing Cdn. lives: think-tank
Updated Wed. Jun. 28 2006 7:50 AM ET

CTV.ca News Staff

Futile American policies aimed at eradicating the opium poppy crop in southern Afghanistan are costing the lives of both locals and Canadian soldiers, charged the London-based Senlis Council in a report released Wednesday.

"Canadian troops have been handed an impossible mission
http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20060627/afghanistan_report_060628/20060628?hub=TopStories

Cameraman Sheds Light on al-Qaeda Videos
AP Enterprise: Cameraman Sheds Light on al-Qaida Video Production Line
By KATHY GANNON
The Associated Press
PESHAWAR, Pakistan Jun 25, 2006
http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory?id=2116626

Karzai: Taliban Pose No Long-Term Threat
Reacting to Purported Omar Tape, Karzai Says Taliban Pose No Long-Term Threat to Stability
By TINI TRAN
The Associated Press
KABUL, Afghanistan Jun 25, 2006 (AP)
http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory?id=2117705&page=1

U.S. Back at Full War Footing in Afghanistan
June 20, 2006 11:07 AM

Brian Ross Reports:
http://blogs.abcnews.com/theblotter/2006/06/us_back_at_full.html

 

[GAP]

Taliban Kills Former Afghan Official and 4 of His Bodyguards, Then Slays 25 Members of His Family
By NOOR KHAN
KANDAHAR, Afghanistan Jun 19, 2006 (AP)
http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory?id=2092430


Taliban Attacks Kill 30 in Afghanistan
KANDAHAR, Afghanistan Jun 19, 2006 (AP)—
http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory?id=2092430

Afghan Coalition Forces Kill 40 Insurgents
U.S.-Led Coalition Kills 40 Insurgents in Eastern Afghanistan

KABUL, Afghanistan Jun 16, 2006 (AP)—
http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory?id=2083497