US to stay in Afghanistan beyond 2011

US to stay in Afghanistan beyond 2011

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

US Defense Secretary Robert Gates says his country will keep a large number of its troops in Afghanistan even after President Barack Obama's 2011 deadline for starting troop withdrawal.

Despite mounting US casualties in the war-torn country, Gates said the US-led forces were making headway in the war.

"I think we need to re-emphasize the message that we are not leaving Afghanistan in July of 2011," Gates told ABC's This Week.

The remarks echoed those of US Vice President Joe Biden, who had earlier hinted that the number of American troops to be withdrawn from Afghanistan in 2011 would be as few as 2,000.

With 66 fatalities, July set the record as the deadliest month for American forces stationed in Afghanistan since the start of the war in 2001.

Gate, however, downplayed the number saying, "We have warned about this for months, that this summer would be very difficult for us. But I think there are tangible signs that this approach is working, this strategy is working."

Meanwhile, the Netherlands is withdrawing its troops from Afghanistan. The Dutch troops joined the US-led war in Afghanistan back in 2006.

The rising number of casualties has increased opposition to the Afghan war in the US and other European states.

JR/MMN

 

 

 

Afghan violence kills two US-led troops

Afghan violence kills two US-led troops 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Two US-led soldiers have been killed in southern Afghanistan as the death toll among foreign troops in the war-crippled county has hit a record high in July.

According to NATO, one foreign soldier was killed by an improvised explosive device and another troop was killed during militants` attacks in Afghanistan's volatile south.

Earlier on Sunday, NATO had declared in statement that a US-led soldier was killed by small-arms fire in southern Afghanistan on Sunday, without disclosing the nationality of the soldier and the exact location of the incident.

The latest fatality brings the number of foreign troops killed so far this year in Afghanistan to 413.

Some 140,000 NATO and US soldiers are stationed in Afghanistan-30,000 of whom are deployed in the southern Taliban heartlands of Helmand and Kandahar provinces.

The fallout comes as the latest tallies show July has been the deadliest month for US troops in Afghanistan since the war began in 2001.

Over 90 foreign troops including 66 American soldiers lost their lives in the war-torn country in July alone.

The increasing number of casualties has fueled public resentment over the prolonged war among Afghan people and in the United States and some European countries alike.

HA/MGH

July 'deadliest' for Afghan civilians

July 'deadliest' for Afghan civilians

The number of civilian casualties in Afghanistan has seen a dramatic increase in July, with as many as 270 civilians and about 560 injured in terrorist attacks, an Afghan official says.

Citing a 29 per cent and a 5 per cent increase in the number of civilian casualties and attacks respectively, in the war-torn country of Afghanistan, the country's Interior Ministry spokesman Zemeri Bashary told a news conference on Sunday that a total of 765 terrorist attacks were mounted in July, a Press TV correspondent reported.

Bashary said the capital city of Kabul, the south and southwest of Afghanistan were the epicentres of the attacks.

According to the Afghan official, 263 people were taken into custody on suspicion of involvement in terrorist activities, while some 673 Taliban militants had been killed in July.

He also noted that some 778 mines had also been discovered and confiscated by the Afghan security forces.

Bashary also added that the deadliest incident occurred on 23 July in the southern Helmand province, where a round of mortar attacks claimed the lives of 52 civilians in a residential area.

The latest tally shows July has shaped up as the bloodiest month for foreign troops in Afghanistan, with 89 foreign soldiers having been killed over the past month.

The tally is based on military reports gathered by news agencies and websites tracking coalition casualties during both Afghanistan and Iraq wars.

So far this year, over 400 foreign soldiers have been killed in the war-stricken country, with nearly 2,000 US-led troops having been killed since the 2001 invasion.

HA/JM/MGH

US chopper down in Afghanistan

US chopper down in Afghanistan

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A US helicopter has crashed in northeastern Afghanistan as the death toll of foreign forces in the volatile country continues to set new records.

The US Air Force chopper went down in the Afghan province of Kunar on Saturday, a Press TV correspondent reported.

The US military's press office in Kunar said the helicopter made an emergency landing in the area due to technical failures.

It added that a number of soldiers have been injured in the incident.

The US-led alliance did not provide further details about the crash and it still remains unclear how many people were aboard the chopper.

Meanwhile, the Taliban claimed they shot the helicopter down by an RPG rocket.

Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said all forces onboard have been killed.

The Taliban have reportedly shot down several NATO helicopters over the past months in different parts of Afghanistan.

The latest incident comes as July has become the deadliest month for American forces stationed in war-torn Afghanistan since the start of the war in 2001.

JR/CS/MMN

Former Afghan warlord killed in Kunduz

Former Afghan warlord killed in Kunduz

 

A former Afghan warlord and his bodyguards have been killed in a bombing at a football game in northern Afghanistan.

Nineteen people, including children, were injured in the attack.

Selab, a former militia commander and a supporter of the current Afghan government, an Afghan policeman, and a relative of Selab who worked as the commander's bodyguard were killed on Saturday evening in Kunduz, the capital of Kunduz province, Afghan Interior Ministry spokesman Zemeri Bashary said.

Selab, who uses only one name, fought in the war against Soviet troops during their occupation of Afghanistan in the 1980s and during the civil war that followed, Associated Press quoted deputy provincial police chief Abdul Rahman Haqtash as saying late on Saturday.

Selab had survived an assassination attempt four months ago when the Taliban planted a mine near his house. The blast killed one person and injured two others.

Meanwhile, an Afghan civilian was killed as he was trying to approach a NATO military base in southern Afghanistan.

A report by the alliance of occupiers said that their troops had chased off a group of insurgents after an armed clash when a man ran toward their base. Despite being ordered to stop, the man continued running and then the troops opened fire on him. He died later of his injuries, the German news agency dpa reported on Saturday.

Over 1,000 Afghan civilians have been killed in the first six months of 2010. In all of 2009, 2,400 civilians were killed, according to the United Nations and human rights groups.

FTP/HGL