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 War
and Terror
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February, March 2011
War's a farce in Afghan truce
village
Recognizing that neither side can win, Taliban and government forces in the
Afghan district of Alasay have decided to peaceably coexist, even agreeing on
alternate times to visit the market and nodding hello at road checkpoints.
Authorities are now divided on whether the town represents a model for a future
peace deal or a total breakdown of governance. - Maiwand Safi
(Mar 30, '11)
US twists Taliban withdrawal
demands
While an announcement by United States defense officials that counter-terrorism
operations will continue in Afghanistan past 2014 appears to scuttle prospects
of a peace deal with the Taliban - a key component of which would be a complete
withdrawal of coalition forces - the Barack Obama administration calculates
that the insurgents will allow a limited US military presence that solely
targets al-Qaeda. - Gareth Porter (Mar 29,
'11)
New bid to break Afghan
stalemate
An exhaustive report released in Washington this week seeks to help find a
political solution to the United States' war in Afghanistan, primarily by
suggesting that the United Nations name a "facilitator" to supervise peace
talks among Afghans and foreign stakeholders. Obstacles to a resolution of the
conflict remain numerous, though. - Barbara Slavin
(Mar 25, '11)
Bin Laden sets alarm bells ringing
"Stunning" intelligence reports point to al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden in
recent weeks criss-crossing the border between Pakistan and Afghanistan for
high-level talks with militant groups. US special forces are already in action,
fearful of a September 11-style attack. Asia Times Online investigations
indicate a broader plot with implications throughout the Muslim world. - Syed
Saleem Shahzad (Mar 24, '11)
Taking the 'war' out of US air
wars
United States air superiority is so now total that "war" no longer accurately
describes its one-sided battles. With the risk to US fighter pilots almost as
slight as for those flying unmanned drones from Nevada, the days of noble
dogfights are over, as Afghans, Pakistanis and now Libyans face attack from a
foe sophisticated and distant enough to be feared as a predatory, malign god. - Tom
Engelhardt (Mar 21, '11)
UN fudges Afghan casualties
A United Nations report that states 80 civilians were killed last year by
United States Special Operations Forces fails to clarify that this accounts for
only 13 out of 73 raids being investigated. This anomaly and a surge in night
raids under General David Petraeus' command suggest the real figure is several
times higher. - Gareth Porter and Shah Noori
(Mar 18, '11)
How a tiny kingdom strong-armed
the US
The bullet that killed a pro-democracy protester in Bahrain last month was
probably paid for by American taxpayers. Just how US bullets make their way
into guns used by the tiny country's troops opens a window on the Pentagon's
relationships with autocratic Arab states that have recently proven more
powerful than American ideals and the United States president. - Nick Turse
(Mar 16, '11)
Taliban step up pressure with
suicide strikes
The Taliban have increased the number of suicide attacks by some 40% in the
past three months, with about 400 people killed, mostly civilians. By targeting
innocents and varying the location and intensity of attacks - a strategy
similar to al-Qaeda's in Iraq and Pakistan - the insurgents can sow fear among
the population while highlighting government incompetence and avoiding
conventional battles. - Mina Habib (Mar 9,
'11)
The disappearance of the
nightmare Arab
By James Carroll Western civilization's ancient mistrust of Arabs, created and
stoked for centuries by the church and exacerbated by 9/11 and its aftermath,
has been rocked by the pace, democratic ideals and Islamic underpinnings of the
Arab revolutions. The absence of "fanatics" and fatwas and presence of
women protesters has left Americans asking: do we actually know anything about
these people, or this religion? - James Carroll
(Mar 9, '11)
Libyan test for refocused
al-Qaeda
In a fundamental shift that began last year when an ideologue questioned a
reliance on terror attacks and the severing of ties with international Islamic
movements, al-Qaeda is positioning itself to support political Islamic parties
in Libya's rebel-held areas. The move is hoped to not only kick-start
al-Qaeda's revised vision, but also to prevent the armed opposition from
falling into the hands of pro-Western agitators. - Syed Saleem Shahzad
(Mar 8, '11)
Iran opposition group seeks US
legitimacy
Attempts to remove Iranian resistance group the Mujahideen-e Khalq from the
United States' terrorism list are gathering pace, with powerful legal and
political supporters in Washington stressing that the MEK has renounced
violence and seeks a democratic Tehran. While the timing appears right for
anti-Iran hawks to support the group, its history of attacks and cult-like
nature could cause problems down the line. - Barbara Slavin
(Mar 2, '11)
Pakistani minister gunned down
Al-Qaeda-linked militants on Wednesday shot dead Pakistan's Federal Minister
for Minorities Shahbaz Bhatti. Pamphlets left at the scene of the killing in
Islamabad said the country's only Christian minister had been eliminated
because of his opposition to a harsh blasphemy law that imposes the death
penalty on those considered to have insulted Islam. - Syed Saleem Shahzad
(Mar 2, '11)
Behind the green door
Arriving at the wind-blown frontier of newly liberated eastern Libya's border, Derek
Henry Flood is greeted by a burly Kevlar-clad Libyan revolutionary with
a massive Soviet-era AK-74 rifle slung round his back who looks a cross between
a shaggy Rambo and an out-of-shape baseball player. From this point all the way
to Benghazi via Tobruk, the so-called rebels show they got have the logistics
of managing a stream of foreign journalists down to a tee.
(Mar 2, '11)
Six vows to support our troops
"Support our troops" is an unconditional American mantra. We're told to
celebrate them as warrior-liberators, as heroes, as the finest fighters the
world has ever known. They're to be put on a pedestal or plinth, holding a
rifle and a flag, icons to American toughness and goodness. What we're not told
to do is listen to them. - William J Astore (Feb
24, '11)
Clinton off the mark on
Afghanistan
A speech by United States Secretary of State Hillary Clinton was meant to
indicate a slight shift in policy towards Afghanistan and the Taliban. It did
not, and among other things Afghan President Hamid Karzai and the Pakistani
military leadership will see it as a ploy to scatter their nascent endeavor to
kickstart an "intra-Afghan" peace process. - M K Bhadrakumar
(Feb 22, '11)
Afghan villagers dispute US
claims
Residents of Kandahar villages razed by Western troops last year as part of
"Operation Dragon Strike" are disputing claims the Taliban had wired all their
homes with improvised explosive devices, citing an example of a pressure cooker
being labeled an IED. An atmosphere of mistrust now prevails as the villagers
anxiously await a reconstruction and compensation package - and the return of
the Taliban. - Shah Noori and Gareth Porter
(Feb 22, '11)
The spies who got it wrong
As after most United States foreign policy debacles, from the Bay of Pigs to
losing the shah in Iran, quarters of the US body politic - armed with hindsight
- are outraged at the intelligence community's failure to predict the Middle
East revolutions and the leadership's coddling of dictators. While dozing spies
can point to unforeseeable forces, this cannot excuse misguided policy at the
helm. - Sreeram Chaulia (Feb 18, '11)
Weapons of mass disruption
Non-violent protests, as in Egypt, have the potential to strangle even the most
brutal regime, if they can definitively threaten the viability of their core
industries. In these circumstances, a mass movement equipped with fearsome
weapons of mass disruption - just like a general strike - can topple a tyrant
equipped with fearsome weapons of mass destruction. - Michael Schwartz
(Feb 16, '11)
US sacrifices truth for war on
Taliban
In deference to claims by the United States' top man in Afghanistan, General
David Petraeus, that special operations forces succeeded in reducing the
Taliban in 2010, the US's National Intelligence Estimate failed to update its
numbers on the growing number of insurgents in Afghanistan. Such sacrifice of
the truth to support war policies is a tradition that harkens all the way back
to General William Westmoreland in Vietnam.
- Gareth Porter (Feb 15, '11)
Driving through the gates of hell
Despite the staggering levels of military might the Pentagon has tried to embed
in the Middle East, as "people power" movements swept democracy and change
through the region, Washington could only watch helplessly in grim confusion.
America's unilaterialist path in the wake of the Cold War is the most likely
culprit for the demons dragging down its pillars of power. - Tom Engelhardt
(Feb 9, '11)
'Taliban were willing to talk'
The much-touted United States mantra that the Taliban would allow al-Qaeda to
return to Afghanistan has been challenged by new evidence of offers by the
Taliban leadership to reconcile with the Hamid Karzai government after the fall
of the Taliban government in late 2001.
- Gareth Porter (Feb 8, '11)
Militants wait in the wings
With the hands of Egypt's security forces fully occupied by the week-long
street protests, thousands of militants who had previously been under strict
control could now be on the loose. They, along with many prisoners sprung from
jail over the past few days, could be a force to reckon with should the Mubarak
government collapse. - Syed Saleem Shahzad (Feb
1, '11)
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ATol Specials
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Syed Saleem Shahzad reports on
the Afghan war from the Taliban side
(Dec '06)
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How
Hezbollah defeated Israel
By
Mark Perry and
Alastair Crooke
(Oct '06)
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Mark Perry and
Alastair Crooke
talk to the 'terrorists'
(Mar, '06)
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The evidence for and against Iran's alleged
nuclear weapons program
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Nir Rosen goes inside the Iraqi
resistance
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Nir Rosen rides with the 3rd
armored cavalry in western Iraq
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Islamism, fascism and
terrorism
by Marc Erikson
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For earlier articles go to:
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