DOD EXPLAINS EVOLUTION OF 'USE OF FORCE LAW' TO COVER MULTIPLE MILITARY OPERATIONS

FROM:  U.S. DEFENSE DEPARTMENT
General Counsel Charts Use of Force Law’s Evolution
By Jim Garamone
DoD News, Defense Media Activity

WASHINGTON, April 13, 2015 – Though the very idea of law sounds immutable and concrete, the law evolves as circumstances change, the Defense Department’s general counsel told the American Society of International Law here April 10.

Stephen W. Preston updated the group on the latest thinking behind the legal framework for military options and on how that thinking has changed.
Preston explained the history behind the authorization for the use of military force that allowed operations against al-Qaida in 2001. The AUMF, as it is commonly abbreviated, was not a traditional declaration of war against a state, he said.

“We had been attacked, instead, by a terrorist organization,” he said. “Yes, the Taliban had allowed [Osama] bin Laden and his organization to operate with impunity within Afghanistan. But it was not Afghanistan that had launched the attack. It was bin Laden and his terrorist organization.

“The authorization for the use of military force that Congress passed aimed to give the president all the statutory authority he needed to fight back against bin Laden, his organization and those who supported him, including the Taliban,” Preston added.

Associated Forces

Congress, the executive branch and the courts agreed in 2011 that the 2001 AUMF covered associated forces, too: al-Qaida, the Taliban and certain other terrorist or insurgent groups in Afghanistan; al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula in Yemen; and individuals who are part of al-Qaida in Somalia and Libya, the general counsel said.

“In addition, over the past year, we have conducted military operations under the 2001 AUMF against the Nusrah Front and, specifically, those members of al-Qaida referred to as the Khorasan Group in Syria,” he added. “We have also resumed such operations against the group we fought in Iraq when it was known as al-Qaida in Iraq, which is now known as [the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant].”

Putting groups into this category is done only at the highest levels of the U.S. government, Preston said.

He stressed that American actions against ISIL are consistent with international and domestic law. ISIL grew out of al-Qaida in Iraq, and Americans and American interests have been targets of the terror group since 2004, he said.
ISIL’s recent split from al-Qaida does not change the situation in respect to law, Preston told the group. ISIL considers itself to be the true inheritor of bin Laden’s legacy and groups that have pledged loyalty to ISIL, he explained, adding that this alone covers the group under the 2001 AUMF.

Authorization for Force in Iraq

Preston stressed that the president’s authority to fight ISIL is further reinforced by the 2002 authorization for the use of military force against Iraq. “That AUMF authorized the use of force to, among other things, ‘defend the national security of the United States against the continuing threat posed by Iraq,’” he said.

Though the AUMF was directed against Saddam Hussein’s regime, “the statute … has always been understood to authorize the use of force for the related purposes of helping to establish a stable, democratic Iraq and addressing terrorist threats emanating from Iraq,” he said.

For current operations in Iraq, he noted, the Iraqi government requested American help against ISIL. “In Syria, the United States is using force against ISIL in the collective self-defense of Iraq and U.S. national self-defense, and it has notified the U.N. Security Council that it is taking these actions in Syria consistent with Article 51 of the U.N. Charter,” he said. Article 51 allows for self-defense actions.

Though the NATO combat mission in Afghanistan ended in December, the 2001 AUMF remains valid, Preston said.

“Although our presence in that country has been reduced and our mission there is more limited, the fact is that active hostilities continue,” he said. “As a matter of international law, the United States remains in a state of armed conflict against the Taliban, al-Qaida and associated forces, and the 2001 AUMF continues to stand as statutory authority to use military force.”

The roughly 10,000 U.S. service members in Afghanistan have two missions, Preston told the group. The first -- a NATO mission -- is to continue training Afghan security forces. The second is a counterterrorism mission aimed at the remnants of al-Qaida and to prevent an al-Qaida resurgence or external plotting against the homeland or U.S. targets abroad, the general counsel said.

“The use of force by the U.S. military in Afghanistan is now limited to circumstances in which using force is necessary to execute those two missions or to protect our personnel,” he said.

Adapting Law to the ISIL Fight

Preston then turned to current discussions over an AUMF aimed directly at ISIL. President Barack Obama wants ultimately to repeal the 2001 AUMF and to tailor its authorities to better fit the current fight and the strategy going forward, he said. In February, the president submitted draft legislation authorizing use of “the armed forces of the United States as the president determines to be necessary and appropriate against ISIL or associated persons or forces.”

“This raises the question: If the president already has the authority needed to take action against ISIL, why is he seeking a new authorization?” the general counsel asked. “Most obviously and importantly, as the president has said, the world needs to know we are united behind the effort against ISIL, and the men and women of our military deserve our clear and unified support. Enacting the president’s proposed AUMF will show our fighting forces, the American people, our foreign partners and the enemy that the president and Congress are united in their resolve to degrade and defeat ISIL.”

TROOPS AND TAXPAYERS THANKED FOR SUPPORT BY AFGHAN PRESIDENT GHANI

FROM:  U.S. DEFENSE DEPARTMENT

Right:  U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter, left, shakes hands with Afghan President Ashraf Ghani at the Pentagon, March 23, 2015. Carter hosted Ghani and Afghan Chief Executive Dr. Abdullah Abdullah for a visit. During remarks in the Pentagon's courtyard, Ghani thanked U.S. service members and veterans who served in Afghanistan for their efforts and sacrifices. DoD photo by U.S. Navy Petty Officer 2nd Class Sean Hurt.  

Afghan Leader Thanks U.S. Troops, Taxpayers for Support
By Cheryl Pellerin
DoD News, Defense Media Activity

WASHINGTON, March 23, 2015 – Taking the stage with U.S. leaders early this morning in the Pentagon courtyard, Afghan President Ashraf Ghani thanked U.S. troops and all Americans for their support of his country.

Senior officials joining Ghani included Afghan Chief Executive Dr. Abdullah Abdullah, Secretary of State John F. Kerry, Defense Secretary Ash Carter, Deputy Defense Secretary Bob Work, and other senior officials.
During his introduction of Ghani, Carter told the audience that the Afghan president is here on behalf of all Afghans “to thank all the Americans whose service has kept the United States secure and given hope and opportunity to his countrymen.”

Ghani has deep ties to the United States, the secretary added, naming the Afghan president’s attendance at American University in Beirut and Columbia University in New York, and teaching posts at the University of California-Berkeley and Johns Hopkins University in Maryland.

Easing the Afghan Transition

Later, as a scholar, Carter said, Ghani studied state-building and breaking the cycle of conflict.

“As a practitioner at the World Bank and the United Nations,” the secretary said, “[Ghani] applied those lessons, managing large-scale economic development projects in countries like India and China, and helping ease the transition in Afghanistan after the fall of the Taliban.”

In his career and in his leadership of Afghanistan, Ghani demonstrates that public service is a public trust, Carter said.

“Along with Dr. Abdullah, President Ghani has made clear to the Afghan people that, for all the assistance that the United States, our military and the international community can and will furnish, Afghanistan's future is ultimately for Afghans to grab hold of and for Afghans to decide,” the defense secretary said.

Paying Tribute to the Fallen

Addressing the audience after Carter’s introduction, Ghani said, “I want to first pay tribute to … [the] 2,215 Americans who paid the ultimate sacrifice. To more than 20,000 American soldiers who have been wounded in action … [and] close to a million American service men and women who have gotten to know my country.”

American troops have been in Afghanistan’s most-remote valleys and on the highest peaks, in parched deserts and beautiful valleys, he said, “but also in the most demanding situations. Each one of you has left a legacy, but I also understand that Afghanistan has marked you.”

Ghani added, “When you wake up at night, sometimes you're not sure whether you're back there or here, but what gratifies me as the president of Afghanistan is what I've had the honor to hear repeatedly from American veterans, ‘I have left a piece of my heart in Afghanistan.’ Thank you,” he said to applause.

Each service member deployed to Afghanistan also left a memory in the heart of every Afghan that they encountered, Ghani added.
'Not There Just to Fight'

“You were not there just to fight. … You built schools, you built dams, you build roads, and while the physical infrastructure [has] changed lives, it is the attitude [of caring, discipline and sacrifice] that you brought with it. … The Afghan people, but particularly the Afghan security forces, honor that attitude,” the Afghan president said.

The U.S. combat role in Afghanistan ended on Dec. 31, 2014, and the legacy is a proud Afghan security force “that has dealt with the best of you and emulates the best of your example,” he said.

Ghani told the Pentagon audience that he will name a section of the Marshal Fahim National Defense University in Kabul, where he said generations of Afghans will be trained, in honor of Army Maj. Gen. Harold J. Greene, who served as deputy commanding general of Combined Security Transition Command-Afghanistan.

Greene, whose widow was in the audience this morning, was the first U.S. general officer killed in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. He and more than a dozen others were killed and more were wounded in an attack at the military academy by a lone gunman in August 2014.
Tribute to Tough Partners

Ghani also paid tribute to “tough partners” Carter and Kerry, and to President Barack Obama for their long-standing support of Afghanistan.

And he thanked the American taxpayer, the men and women who are making “your hard-earned dollars available for Afghanistan. And because of that, the government of national unity … is committed to account for every single one of those dollars and pennies.”

This phase of the U.S.-Afghan partnership with the defense community is about building systems, procedures and processes, Ghani said, so the right leadership and the dedicated staff can use those resources for the best purpose.
Speaking Truth to Terror

“We are not going to be a burden,” Ghani added.

“We do not now ask what the United States can do for us, if I can play on President [John] Kennedy. We want to see what Afghanistan will do for itself and for the world. That means we are going to put our house in order,” he said.
He called Afghanistan a front-line state, adding, “We die on a daily basis. … We die, but we will never be defeated.”

Terrorism is a threat, Ghani said to applause, “but we, the people of Afghanistan, are willing to speak truth to terror by saying, ‘No, you will never overwhelm us, you will never subdue us, we are going to overcome.’”
Partnership is Foundational

In this endeavor, he said, “our partnership with the United States is foundational because we will be the first line of defense for freedom globally.”

The Afghan president added, “Thank you. God bless the friendship between the United States and Afghanistan.”

U.S. PERMANENT REPRESENTATIVE TO UN MAKES REMARKS ON AFGHANISTAN

FROM:  U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT
Samantha Power
U.S. Permanent Representative to the United Nations
New York, NY
March 16, 2015
AS DELIVERED

Special Representative Haysom, Ambassador Tanin thank you for your observations today. And on behalf of the United States, I would like to thank you, SRSG Haysom and your team for your dedicated and humane work to help the Afghan people improve their lives, their institutions, and their nation. Today’s unanimous renewal of UNAMA’s mandate shows the Council’s ongoing support for your efforts and for your country.

As we mark the beginning of Afghanistan’s Transformation Decade, we have seen both encouraging advances and enduring challenges. Last year, we saw Afghans take real risks and conquer fear to cast their ballots in an election. We saw two candidates put the country’s future first – forming a unity government and sustaining it as they confront shared challenges, including cabinet formation, electoral reform, and peace and reconciliation. The United States calls on the leaders to put forward urgently a full slate of cabinet nominees who meet the rigorous requirements that they established and who can obtain parliamentary approval.

We commend President Ghani and CEO Abdullah’s shared commitment to prioritizing electoral reform. Last year’s election exposed chronic weaknesses in Afghanistan’s electoral system. Promptly identifying the necessary reforms and implementing them urgently and in a manner consistent with international standards is critical, including to ensure successful parliamentary and district council elections. Establishing the Special Electoral Reform Commission, which the two leaders agreed upon last fall, would be an important step toward that end.

Making fundamental changes to a country’s political and electoral system is challenging under any circumstances. Yet Afghans are undertaking this extraordinary task amid continued attacks by insurgents who seek to destabilize the country.

UNAMA’s exceptional reporting on the toll on civilians – a model for other missions – testifies to the impact of this violence on Afghan society, particularly some of its most vulnerable members. Compared to 2013, civilian casualties increased by 22 percent in 2014. Civilian deaths rose by 25 percent. The number of women casualties increased by 21 percent, and the number of children casualties by 40 percent. 714 children were killed in 2014. 714 kids. UNAMA’s reporting attributes roughly 75 percent of all civilian casualties to the Taliban and affiliated groups.

What statistics cannot capture is the immeasurable impact on the families of those wounded and killed. For example, UNAMA’s report tells us that women left as sole income-providers after their husbands were killed or maimed experienced lasting consequences, “with poverty forcing many women to give their daughters in marriage in exchange for debts or to take their children out of school often to work.” And this does not even capture the emotion and the pain of all the losses.

Afghanistan’s leaders understand the far-reaching impact of violence on the Afghan people, which is one of the many reasons they have committed to bringing peace to their country – a goal we strongly support. We see tremendous bravery exhibited by many Afghans. One unheralded group is de-miners. De-miners venture out day after day to clear minefields so that their fellow citizens are not maimed as they harvest their land or walk to school. Thirty-four de-miners were killed last year, including eleven who were killed on December 13th by insurgents, while they were clearing unexploded ordnance in Helmand province. We see similar dedication in the legions of Afghan teachers who show up to their classrooms every day, despite threats and harassments, to give boys and girls the education they need to build their future, and the future of their country. We also honor Afghan security forces who risk their lives – and in far too many cases, give their lives – protecting their fellow citizens.

The resolve and capabilities of these Afghan forces has improved a great deal. Continued professionalization of the Afghan National Defense and Security Forces – with robust, sustained international support, including through NATO’s Resolute Support Mission – is crucial both to improve effectiveness, and ensure more faithful adherence to international human rights standards.

The abusive tactics reported to UNAMA and catalogued in its recent report on the treatment of Afghan detainees have no place in the pursuit of justice. Nor does the complicity of justice officials who – according to the same report – “overwhelmingly” rely on confessions from defendants in criminal prosecutions, even when credible evidence suggests such confessions may have been obtained through abusive tactics. That is why we applaud the Afghan government’s commitment to eliminate the use of torture.

As you all know, last week we marked International Women’s Day. It was a day for marking a number of inspiring stories from around the world, including Afghanistan – a country where, under Taliban rule, women could not walk outside without a male relative and a burqa.

Last week, members of the Afghanistan Women’s National Cycling team were not only walking outside, they were racing down the country’s roads on their bikes. Team members are pinched for resources, but big on courage. Some drivers yell at them and threaten them, but they ride on. One day, a man on a motorcycle reached out and tried to grab at the captain, causing her to crash and hurt her back.

But today she is back on her bike, leading more than 40 other women training with the team. Imagine what it must feel like to be a little girl, sitting in a car, and to suddenly drive by those 40 women, in a single file, flying down the road. Imagine how inspiring that must be.

One of the team members, Malika Yousufi, wants to become the first Afghan woman to complete the Tour de France. She told a reporter, “Nothing will stop us.” We believe that, if she is given the chance, and if her country stays on the brave but difficult path it has charted, Malika is right. Nothing will stop them. There is so much to lose, and so much left to gain in these difficult days, and the United States will support the Afghan people in every step of their journey to take their place as a stable, peaceful, independent, and democratic nation. Thank you.

COMMANDER U.S. FORCES AFGHANISTAN SAYS TALIBAN UNLIKELY TO TOPPLE GOVERNMENT

FROM:  U.S. DEFENSE DEPARTMENT
Campbell: Taliban Overmatched by Afghan Forces
By Nick Simeone
DoD News, Defense Media Activity

WASHINGTON, March 4, 2015 – While Afghanistan remains a dangerous place with many challenges ahead, it’s unlikely the Taliban have the ability to best Afghan forces on the battlefield or topple the government, the top U.S. general in the country said today.

Army Gen. John F. Campbell, commander of Operation Resolute Support and U.S. Forces Afghanistan, said in prepared remarks to the House Armed Services Committee that while the Taliban has shifted tactics to high-profile attacks against soft targets, it is not capable of overthrowing the Afghan government in Kabul.

While they will continue to test Afghan security forces, “it’s unlikely that the Taliban will be able to overmatch the Afghan national defense and security forces on the battlefield in 2015,” Campbell said.

He predicted that indirect fire, insider attacks and other Taliban offensives will increase during the upcoming fighting season, but “these are not the tactics of an insurgent movement capable of overthrowing the Afghan government.”
Afghans Control Key Territory

With 350,000 Afghan security forces now in charge of the country’s security, Campbell said, the Afghan government has been able to maintain control over all key territory and populated areas including the country’s 34 provincial capitals and its major cities.

Casualties among Afghan security forces were higher last year than in 2013, he said, primarily because of the stepped-up role Afghan forces have taken in security operations at a time when coalition forces were drawing down.
Though U.S. and coalition casualties were lower, “Afghanistan remains a dangerous place,” Campbell said. In the coming months, he added, “we can anticipate we will be targeted and we will suffer casualties.”

Some 10,600 U.S. forces remain in Afghanistan -- out of a total coalition force of 13,000 -- continuing with a mission to train, advise and assist Afghan forces and conduct counterterrorism operations.

“Our primary focus continues to be on preventing Afghanistan from becoming a safe haven again for al-Qaida and other international extremist groups,”

Campbell said, including the Haqqani network. That network, he said, could pose a formidable challenge to the Afghan government and coalition forces.

There is evidence of recruiting efforts in Afghanistan by Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant terrorists and that some Taliban members have rebranded themselves as ISIL, Campbell said. These are developments, he said, that bear watching.

U.S. CONDEMNS TALIBAN ATTACKS ON SCHOOL IN PAKISTAN

FROM:  U.S. DEFENSE DEPARTMENT 
U.S. Stands With Pakistanis, Afghans Against Taliban
By Jim Garamone
DoD News, Defense Media Activity

WASHINGTON, Dec. 16, 2014 – The United States condemns the deadly Taliban attack on a Pakistani school and remains committed to bringing stability to the Afghanistan-Pakistan region, Navy Rear Adm. John Kirby said today, emphasizing that the end of the NATO combat mission does not mean an end to U.S. involvement in the region.

The attack on the school in Peshawar is the latest manifestation of the savagery of the Taliban, Kirby said, noting that Pakistan remains a front-line state in the battle against terrorism and extremists and has suffered major casualties in the struggle against the Taliban. While U.S.-Pakistani relations have been rocky at times over the past decade, both countries share the fight, the admiral said, and added that today’s terrorist attack will not change that.

“I think we have certainly made it clear to Pakistan that we’re willing to help in the wake of this attack should they want or need any,” the admiral said. “There’s been no request for U.S. assistance. But we’ve certainly made it obvious that we’re willing to assist in any way we can.”

The attack on the school killed more than 140 children and teachers.
Across the border in Afghanistan the mission will change, Kirby said, but American and partner nations will continue their commitment to Afghan stability.

With Afghan forces now in charge of security, reporters asked Kirby whether they would be able to defend against an attack like the one in Pakistan. “The Afghan national security forces are very capable,” Kirby said. “They are already leading security operations in their country, and for all intents and purposes, are … conducting all the combat missions inside Afghanistan.”

Afghan forces secured both national elections this year and while there has been an upsurge in violence in Kabul, Afghan forces have handled the situations well, he noted. Officials expected the recent spate of Taliban attacks inside the capital as the NATO mission transitions. Kirby said the attacks are a Taliban tactic to “divert attention from the fact that real progress has been made and that Afghanistan is a more safe and secure environment than it was even just six months ago.”

Afghanistan is still a dangerous place, the admiral said, but no one is walking away from it.

DOD OFFICIAL EXPRESSES CONFIDENCE IN AFGHAN SECURITY FORCES

FROM:  U.S. DEFENSE DEPARTMENT 
Kirby Confident Afghans Can Take Full Security Control Next Month
By Nick Simeone
DoD News, Defense Media Activity

WASHINGTON, Dec. 2, 2014 – With less than a month to go before the U.S-led NATO combat mission ends in Afghanistan, a senior Defense Department official said today Afghan security forces will be ready to take over the job of securing their country come January first.

“We believe that we have achieved the mission of getting Afghan national security forces to that level,” Pentagon Press Secretary Navy Rear Adm. John Kirby told reporters. “They are in the lead right now and by the end of this month they will have full responsibility.”

Some 9,800 U.S. troops are set to remain in Afghanistan next year, as part of Operation Resolute Support. That NATO mission follows 13 years of NATO’s International Security Assistance Force, and will no longer include a combat role but will instead focus on training, advising and assisting Afghan forces.
“There’s still some enabling capabilities that they may need going forward and we’re talking about that. That’s part of the Resolute Support NATO mission,” Kirby added.

In recent days, there has been an increase in attacks claimed by the Taliban on key sites around the country, including in the capital, Kabul. Kirby said the attacks did not signal a Taliban resurgence but were to be expected during periods of transition.

“Those attacks have had no strategic effect and I might add that the Afghan national security forces and police reacted bravely and quickly to each one,” he said.

ST. BERGDAHL RETURNS TO U.S.

FROM:  U.S. DEFENSE DEPARTMENT 

Focus Remains on Bergdahl’s Health, Well-being, Spokesman Says

American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, June 13, 2014 – Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl, held captive by the Taliban for four years, has arrived at the Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio to continue his reintegration process, Pentagon Press Secretary Navy Rear Adm. John Kirby said.

Bergdahl’s captors released him in a May 31 prisoner exchange. He initially was treated at Bagram Airfield, Afghanistan, and later at Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Germany.

In a statement announcing Bergdahl’s arrival for further treatment at Brooke, Kirby said there is no timeline for the process.

“Our focus remains on his health and well-being,” he said, adding that Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel is confident that the Army will continue to ensure that Bergdahl receives the care, time and space he needs to complete his recovery and reintegration.

A proof-of-life video provided by Bergdahl’s captors raised concerns for the soldier’s health, accelerating the pace of negotiations that culminated in the prisoner exchange.

Speaking to reporters on background June 5, officials from the Joint Personnel Recovery Agency explained that when service members or Defense Department civilians are returned after being captured, separated from their unit or otherwise isolated, they enter a three-step reintegration program designed to assist them as they transition back to normal life.

The phases vary in length, depending on the needs of the returnee, and not all returnees will go through every phase, a Defense Department personnel recovery expert with JPRA said. Each phase ends with the recovered individual either being returned to duty or recommended for the next phase in the process, the official added.

In a statement released this morning, Army officials said that after Bergdahl's reintegration, the service will continue its comprehensive review into the circumstances of his disappearance and captivity.

DEFENSE SECRETARY DEFENDS BERGDAHL RECOVERY BEFORE HOUSE ARMED SERVICES COMMITTEE

FROM:  U.S. DEFENSE DEPARTMENT 

Hagel: Bergdahl Recovery Consistent With U.S. Laws, Values

By Jim Garamone

American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, June 11, 2014 – The recovery of Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl from the Taliban was fully consistent with U.S. law, U.S. interests and the U.S. military’s core values, Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel told the House Armed Services Committee today.

The secretary assured the committee that he would not sign off on any decision that wasn’t in the best interests of the United States.

“The prisoner exchange was done legally, with substantial mitigation of risk and in the national interest of our country,” Hagel said.

Since his disappearance in 2009, Bergdahl was officially listed as missing-captured. “No charges were ever brought against him, and there are no charges pending now,” Hagel said, noting that all aspects of government worked to recover the sergeant.

“We never stopped trying to get him back, as the Congress knows, because he is a soldier in the United States Army,” the secretary said.

Any questions about the sergeant’s capture are separate from these facts, Hagel said, “because we do whatever it takes to recover any U.S. service member held in captivity. This pledge is woven into the fabric of our nation and its military.”
In 2011, the Obama administration conducted talks with the Taliban on a detainee exchange involving the five Taliban detainees who ultimately were transferred after the release of Bergdahl. Congress knew of these talks and knew the Taliban broke off these discussions in March 2012, the secretary said. “We have not had direct talks with the Taliban since this time,” he added.

In September 2013, the Qatari government offered to serve as an intermediary with the Taliban, Hagel said, and the United States requested a proof-of-life video of the sergeant.

“In January, we received that video, and it was disturbing,” the secretary said. “It showed a deterioration in his physical appearance and mental state compared to previous videos. The intelligence community carefully analyzed it and concluded that Sergeant Bergdahl’s health was poor, and possibly declining.”

Acting on the exchange therefore became more urgent, he said.

On May 12, the United States and Qatar signed a memorandum of understanding detailing the specific security measures that would be undertaken and enforced by Qatar if any Taliban detainees were transferred to their custody, Hagel told the House panel. These include risk mitigation measures and Qatar’s commitments to travel restrictions, monitoring, information sharing, limitations on activities and more, he said.

Soon after the memo was signed, the secretary continued, Qatari intermediaries said that time was not an ally. “This indicated that the risks to Sergeant Bergdahl’s safety were growing,” Hagel said. “We moved forward with indirect negotiations on how to carry out the exchange of five detainees, and agreed to the mechanics of the exchange on the morning of May 27, following three days of intensive talks.”
Also on May 27, President Barack Obama received a personal commitment from Qatari Amir Tamim bin Hamid al Thani to uphold and enforce the security arrangements. The final decision was made to move forward with the exchange, Hagel said. With recovery imminent, U.S. officials were concerned that any delay, or any leaks, could derail the deal and further endanger Bergdahl, he told the panel.

“We were told by the Qataris that a leak would end the negotiations for Bergdahl’s release,” Hagel said. “We also knew that he would be extremely vulnerable during any movement, and our military personnel conducting the handoff would be exposed to a possible ambush or other deadly scenarios in very dangerous territory. And we had been given no information on where the handoff would occur.”

This was why the military moved “quickly, efficiently, and quietly,” Hagel said. “We believed this exchange was our last, best opportunity to free him.”
After the exchange was set in motion, Hagel said, only 96 hours passed before Bergdahl was in American hands. Uncertainty ruled, he acknowledged.
“We did not know the general area of the handoff until 24 hours before,” Hagel said. “We did not know the precise location until one hour before. And we did not know until the moment Sergeant Bergdahl was handed over safely to U.S. special operations forces that the Taliban would hold up their end of the deal. So it wasn’t until we recovered Bergdahl on May 31 that we moved ahead with the transfer of the five Guantanamo detainees.”

Hagel called Obama’s decision to move forward with the transfer of these detainees a tough call. “But I support it and stand by it,” he added.
The five Afghan Taliban members exchanged for Bergdahl are enemy belligerents and were held in the facility at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. “They have not been implicated in any attacks against the United States, and we had no basis to prosecute them in a federal court or military commission,” Hagel said. “It was appropriate to consider them for an exchange. And if any of these detainees ever try to rejoin the fight, they would be doing so at their own peril.

“The secretary of state, the attorney general, the secretary of homeland security, the director of national intelligence, and the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff all supported this transfer,” the secretary continued. “There was complete unanimity on this decision. The president and I would not have moved forward unless we had complete confidence that we were acting lawfully, in the national interest, and in the best traditions of our military.”

Specifically, the process complied with the National Defense Authorization Act of 2014 by determining that the risk the detainees posed to the United States, American citizens and U.S. interests was substantially mitigated and that the transfer was in the national security interests of the United States, Hagel said, and the recovery fulfilled the U.S. commitment to recover all military personnel held captive.

“We followed the precedent of past wartime prisoner exchanges, a practice in our country that dates back to the Revolutionary War and has occurred in most wars America has fought,” Hagel said.

Bergdahl was not a hostage, but a detained combatant being held by an enemy force, he noted. That being the case, it “was fully consistent with our long-standing policy not to offer concessions to hostage takers,” the secretary said. “The Taliban is our enemy, and we are engaged in an armed conflict with them.”
The effort was consistent with previous congressional briefings, “reflecting our intent to conduct a transfer of this nature with these particular five individuals,” Hagel said.

The administration was supposed to provide 30 days advance notice to Congress before transferring any individuals held at Guantanamo, but Hagel said the circumstances required quick action.

“Under these exceptional circumstances -- a fleeting opportunity to protect the life of an American service member held captive and in danger -- the national security team and the president agreed that we needed to act swiftly,” he said. “In consultation with the Department of Justice, the administration concluded that the transfer of the five could lawfully proceed.”

CHAIRMAN JOINT CHIEFS BELIEVES AFGHAN ELECTIONS SHOW WEAKENING TALIBAN

FROM:  U.S. DEFENSE DEPARTMENT 

U.S. Army Gen. Martin E. Dempsey, left, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, with U.S. Air Force Gen. Philip M. Breedlove, NATO’s supreme allied commander for Europe and commander of U.S. European Command, before NATO Chiefs of Defense meetings in Brussels, May 21, 2014. DOD photo by U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Sean K. Harp.   

Success of Elections Shows Taliban Losing the Afghan People
By Jim Garamone
American Forces Press Service

ABOARD A U.S. MILITARY AIRCRAFT, May 22, 2014 – The Afghan Taliban’s ability to reach a peace agreement with the government in Kabul will continue to erode over time, especially after April’s elections in which Afghans demonstrated they were not going to be intimidated by threats from the militants to boycott the vote, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said today.

“I don’t give military advice to the Taliban, but if I were giving them advice, I’d tell them their negotiating position is not going to improve, it’s going to erode,” Army Gen. Martin E. Dempsey said as he flew back to Washington from NATO meetings in Brussels.

The chairman discussed Afghanistan and the way ahead there with NATO and partner-country chiefs of defense today, and he was pleased with what he has heard.

The Taliban issued their now yearly fighting season threat earlier this month after the Afghan people voted in large number in provincial and presidential elections April 5, in what Dempsey called a clear rejection of the group.
Despite threats to Afghans who took part in the election, “Seven million people chose to ignore the Taliban and that’s a huge statement on the part of the Afghan people to the Taliban,” the chairman said in an interview.

“If [the Taliban] are not experiencing a crisis of purpose, they should be, because they haven’t been able to convince the people of Afghanistan that their future should be with the Taliban and not with an elected government,” he said.
The election was just the latest in a string of Afghan successes by the country’s security forces. Afghan forces protected the loya jirga last November where more than 2,500 local tribal and community leaders again decried the Taliban, saying Afghans’ future is with democratic principles.

A run-off election will be held June 14 between the two top candidates who emerged from the April viote. Both former Foreign Minister Abdullah Abdullah and former Finance Minister Ashraf Ghani have promised to sign the bilateral security agreement with the United States and the Status of Forces agreement with NATO, which would allow for a continued U.S. and coalition military presence in the country after the current NATO mission ends in December.

Once that happens, Dempsey said, “I would think the Taliban would realize their opportunity to reconcile or reintegrate is a wasting opportunity.” If they don’t take advantage of it now they will be in a weaker position later.”

Dempsey described the Afghan security forces as emerging as a capable force. “They can defend their centers of population, they can protect their lines of communication,” he said. “In order to be completely capable there are some things that had to continue to develop: their logistics system and their ability to pay and house and feed and equip their force.”

That’s what U.S. and NATO advisors are working on now, developing the capabilities at these higher levels like building campaign plans, leader development and fusing intelligence and operations.

Marine Corps Gen. Joseph F. Dunford Jr., the NATO commander in Afghanistan, briefed the chiefs of defense, and his principle point was as the NATO footprint gets smaller in Afghanistan and the organization focuses on building the institutions.

“So whether we end up with 10,000 or 15,000 or 5,000 [forces] it’s got to be the right kind of people,” Dempsey said. “If he needs somebody to teach the Afghans how to do a defense budget, you don’t need an infantryman, he needs someone to put a budget together.”

CHAIRMAN JOINT CHIEFS SAYS AFGHAN NATIONAL SECURITY FORCES PERFORMANCE POSITIVE

FROM:  U.S. DEFENSE DEPARTMENT 
Dempsey: Past Year ‘Surprisingly Positive’ for Afghan Forces
By Jim Garamone
American Forces Press Service

ABOARD A U.S. MILITARY AIRCRAFT, Feb. 25, 2014 – By both NATO and Afghan accounts, the past year “has been surprisingly positive” for the Afghan national security forces, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said.
Army Gen. Martin E. Dempsey told reporters traveling with him to Afghanistan that both NATO and Afghan leaders underestimated the abilities of the Afghan security forces -- forces that didn’t really exist a few years ago.

Since taking the lead throughout the country last year, Afghan forces have done very well, the chairman said. The Taliban had a handful of objectives, he added: to reclaim territory, to use several high-profile attacks to return to prominence, and to discredit the Afghan security forces.

The Taliban obviously didn’t have much success, Dempsey said. They never retook territory, they launched few large attacks in the Afghan capital of Kabul, and they have not discredited the security forces. The question now is not how the Afghan forces are doing, he said, but rather how the upcoming Afghan election will come off, and whether there will be a political system to embrace the Afghan forces and their progress in the months ahead.

Afghan forces are in charge of April’s presidential election, providing the security with NATO forces staying far to the rear. Plans now call for limited NATO support for logistics.

The NATO combat mission ends at the end of the year. A follow-on NATO mission -- Operation Resolute Support -- begins Jan. 1, and it calls for NATO forces to stay engaged at the regional level helping to train, advise and assist Afghan army and police formations. It also calls for providing assistance at the Ministry of Defense and the Ministry of the Interior in Kabul.

Before this can happen, Afghan officials must sign the bilateral security agreement that they negotiated with the United States and which a national council of tribal and family elders approved. Afghan President Hamid Karzai said he will leave it to his successor to sign the document. Once the U.S.-Afghan agreement is signed, NATO will negotiate a similar pact.

NATO needs the agreement to legally remain in Afghanistan beyond this year. Dempsey said the “shot clock” is running down, and there is a point at which the regional approach may no longer be feasible. “What I don’t want to do is run out of options for our elected leaders or for Afghanistan,” he said.

Dempsey noted he has made many visits to Afghanistan. “What I’m always struck by is that many of us -- our NATO partners and us -- continue to change jobs,” he said. “So there is always something new to learn, to see, to talk about. But I also end up speaking with the same Afghans time after time after time.”

The chairman said he had the same experience when he served in Iraq. “My counterpart in Iraq has been the chief of defense for eight years,” the chairman said. “So when I would come back to him and talk about what’s new, I’m not sure he could see what was new as readily as I could. But I don’t think I could see what isn’t new as readily as he can.”

The same is true in Afghanistan. “It has always been our challenge to knit those two together -- our ability to see things as they are changing, and maybe our partner’s ability to see the continuity of things,” he said.
Dempsey said he does have some clarity on the retrograde movement out of Afghanistan.

“Our ability to retrograde the entire thing -- should we need to, and which would be unfortunate -- we could retrograde with relatively low risk, given the time available,” he said. “As the time continues to expire, the risk on our ability to retrograde increases, and that’s another thing I need to look them in the eye to make sure I understand it fully.”

REPORTERS TOLD AFGHAN FORCES DOING WELL AGAINST TALIBAN

FROM:  DEFENSE DEPARTMENT 
Afghan Forces Winning Tough Fight Against Taliban
By Amaani Lyle
American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, Jan. 23, 2014 – Afghan National Security Forces are prevailing in their battles against the Taliban and other fighters, a senior U.S. commander told reporters from Afghanistan today.

And, Afghan forces are doing well with minimal assistance from the International Security Assistance Force as the end of the U.S.-led NATO mission in Afghanistan nears, Army Lt. Gen. Mark A. Milley, the commander of ISAF’s Joint Command said as he addressed the Pentagon press corps via satellite.

“Throughout the summer, it was a tough fight and the Afghans stood up … and fought well across the board throughout the provinces and the districts,” Milley said. “The Afghan security forces were tactically overmatching anything that the Taliban … or anybody else could throw at them.”

But Milley acknowledged Afghan casualties have increased 50-70 percent during some 3,000-4,000 firefights in recent years.

The U.S. and its NATO allies, Milley said, have shifted gears in Afghanistan since the invasion following the 9/11 attacks. At that time, he said, there were no Afghan police, and only remnants of the Northern Alliance patched together in small units.
“We came into this country … to prevent [it] from ever again being a platform to carry terrorism to the shores of the United States or any other vital national interest,” Milley said.

Antiterrorism efforts in Afghanistan, Milley explained, were intended to stabilize the country and establish a capable Afghan security force.

In the ensuing years, Afghan forces’ leadership, skills and cohesion have continued to improve, Milley said.

“The Afghans stepped up to the fight,” the general said. “Was it perfect? No. Was it pretty? No. But war is not a pretty thing.”

U.S. CONDEMNS TALIBAN ATTACK ON RESTAURANT IN AFGHANISTAN

FROM:  DEFENSE DEPARTMENT 
Obama Administration Condemns Taliban Attack on Kabul Restaurant

American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, Jan. 18, 2014 – The Obama administration has condemned Friday's deadly Taliban attack on a restaurant in the Afghan capital, Kabul but has commended the Afghan security forces' quick response.

A statement issued by the White House said the United States joins the international community in condemning the attack, which killed 21 civilians and injured others.  "We send condolences to all the victims of the attack and their families, and pray for a speedy recovery for those injured," a statement issued by Press Secretary Jay Carney said.

"There is no possible justification for this attack, which has killed innocent civilians, including Americans, working every day to help the Afghan people achieve a better future with higher education and economic assistance at the American University, United Nations, International Monetary Fund and other organizations," the statement added.

The United States commends the quick and skillful response of the Afghan security services in the aftermath of the attack. "We call again on the Taliban to put down their arms and begin peace talks, which is the surest way to end the conflict in a peaceful manner," the statement concludes.

THE PRESENCE OF THE NYPD IN AFGHANISTAN

FROM:  U.S. DEFENSE DEPARTMENT 
Face of Defense: NYPD Officer Serves in Afghanistan
By Marine Corps Cpl. Paul Peterson
2nd Marine Logistics Group

CAMP LEATHERNECK, Afghanistan, Aug. 30, 2013 - Before the War on Terror, the toppling of the oppressive Taliban regime in Afghanistan, or the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, a young boy from the Bronx knew one thing: he wanted to help.
Marine Corps Sgt. Jonathan L. Vasquez was that boy in New York City. Today, Vasquez is a Marine Corps reservist currently serving with Combat Logistics Regiment 2, Regional Command-Southwest, in Helmand province, Afghanistan
"I've been that way since I was young," said Vasquez, who spent four years persistently applying to become a New York City police officer after joining the military at the age of 17.

"Both the career choices I made happen to help people. It's the best of both worlds, I say," he said.

While already committed to the idea of public service, the attacks on the World Trade Center changed things for the then-12-year-old Vasquez.

"I was in social studies class -- go figure, history," Vasquez recalled. "They actually brought the TV into the classroom and explained to us the World Trade Center was hit. At first they thought it was an accident, but then they told us it wasn't. I actually wish I was older, and I had joined right then."

As Americans paused to grieve and unite, he tightened his focus on the future. It was a five-year wait before he met the age requirements for military service and nearly a decade before he realized his dream of joining the New York City Police Department.

The wait and the right to wear the uniforms were worth it, Vasquez said.

"I don't want to sound corny. It's not like Superman or anything like that, but it feels good," he said. "New York is very patriotic. You get a lot of grace and a lot of thanks. It's an awesome feeling."

Not every day is easy. Both jobs come with separation from family, constant stress, and the burden of responsibility. Not all the right choices are clear, Vasquez said.

"You don't know," he said. "Sometimes you just have to make a decision and go with it. That's a trait of being a leader, especially in the Marine Corps where they grow you to become a leader."

Vasquez said he takes it all in stride. The strain is difficult, but it also forges bonds between him and his fellow service members and police officers. Still, the risks are palpable.

"When you put on that uniform for your shift, you don't know if you're coming home," Vasquez said. "You don't know if you'll [experience] a shooting or deliver a baby that day. It's very stressful, and it's every day of your life."

Vasquez balances the stress with an inherent optimism. Whether he's serving as a vehicle commander on a convoy in Afghanistan or working as a patrol officer out of the 47th Precinct, he's upbeat.

It's in his voice every day, a nasal-heavy New York accent even a Midwesterner could appreciate and a snicker-like smile to back it up. On patrol or drenched in sweat inside the sweltering gym at Camp Leatherneck, Vasquez keeps smiling, laughing and joking.

He's the kind of New Yorker who will interrupt the climax of a perfectly good movie to point out the setting is his city. He's got "attitude."

"Not in a bad way," Vasquez said. "I'm very respectful, and I'll respect anyone as long as they respect me."

Vasquez said his family back home worries about him, but their constant support is a source of strength. He said he finds contact with his daughter particularly uplifting.

"She puts a smile on my face," he said, completely dropping his shield of military toughness. "I can see it in her eyes [when we talk online] that she really misses me ... it feels good."

Vasquez also has deployed to South America, Asia, and Iraq. At every turn, he's brought his love for service with him.

"I'm grateful for all the things the military has done for me as well as the things I try to do for the military," Vasquez said. "It's the same thing for the police department. I'm glad I have a career back home I can go to and also help people."

U.S. TREASURY DESIGNATES AL-QA'IDA OFFICIAL AND A MADRASSA USED TO TRAIN TALIBAN FIGHTERS

FROM:  U.S. TREASURY DEPARTMENT 
Treasury Designates Senior Al-Qa’ida Official and Terrorist Training Center Supporting Lashkar-E Tayyiba and the Taliban
Designations Include First Sanctions Against a Madrassa Used to Train Taliban Fighters

 WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of the Treasury today designated Umar Siddique Kathio Azmarai (Azmarai), a senior Al-Qa’ida official, and Jamia Taleem-Ul-Quran-Wal-Hadith Madrassa, also known as the Ganj Madrassa, a school in Peshawar that serves as a training center and facilitates funding for al-Qa’ida, Lashkar-e Tayyiba, and the Taliban.  The activities of the Ganj Madrassa exemplify how terrorist groups, such as al-Qa’ida, Lashkar-e Tayyiba, and the Taliban, subvert seemingly legitimate institutions, such as religious schools, to divert charitable donations meant for education to support violent acts.  Today’s action is the first designation of a madrassa that is being abused by terrorist organizations.  This action does not generally target madrassas, which often play an essential role in improving literacy and providing humanitarian and developmental aid in many areas of the world, including Pakistan.

“Today’s action strikes at the heart of the financial and logistical support network that abuses charitable donations and provides essential services for various terrorist groups including al-Qa’ida, Lashkar-e Tayyiba, and the Taliban.  These networks provide the fighters, training, and supplies for these terrorist groups to carry out their acts of violence against coalition forces and civilians alike,” said Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence David S. Cohen. “We will continue to work with our partners around the world to dismantle these terrorist networks, especially those that try to conceal their sinister activities behind critical community organizations like madrassas.”

During his long tenure with al-Qa’ida, Azmarai has held a number of important positions.  He is al-Qa’ida’s leader in Sindh and Balochistan provinces, Pakistan, and has been a significant financial facilitator for the group, moving hundreds of thousands of dollars in support of its leadership and operations.  Azmarai has also acted as a courier for al-Qa’ida officials and has managed logistics for family members of senior al-Qa’ida leadership, including Usama bin Laden.  

Treasury today also designated the Ganj Madrassa in Peshawar, Pakistan, which is controlled by designated al-Qa’ida facilitator Fazeel-A-Tul Shaykh Abu Mohammed Ameen Al-Peshawari, also known as Shaykh Aminullah.  Shaykh Aminullah was designated by both the United States and United Nations (UN) in 2009 for providing material support to al-Qa’ida and the Taliban.

The Ganj Madrassa serves as a terrorist training center where students, under the guise of religious studies, have been radicalized to conduct terrorist and insurgent activities.  In some cases, students were trained to become bomb manufacturers and suicide bombers.  Shaykh Aminullah has directed donations provided for the school to terrorist groups such as the Taliban, which use the money to fund the ongoing violence in Afghanistan.

The Ganj Madrassa was designated today pursuant to Executive Order (E.O.) 13224, which targets terrorist and their supporters, for being controlled by Shaykh Aminullah and for providing financial and material support to Lashkar-e Tayyiba and the Taliban.  Azmarai was designated pursuant to E.O. 13224 for acting on behalf of al-Qa’ida.

As a result of today’s designation, any assets these entities may have under U.S. jurisdiction are frozen, and U.S. persons are generally prohibited from doing business with them.

Umar Siddique Kathio Azmarai
In addition to his financial activities on behalf of al-Qa’ida, Azmarai has been active in multiple other facilitation duties for al-Qa’ida.  As of early 2012, Azmarai facilitated the procurement of secure areas in Pakistan for al-Qa’ida to house militants and store vehicles. Azmarai has frequently acted as a courier within Pakistan for al-Qa’ida leaders and other al-Qa’ida facilitators.  As of early 2003, Azmarai was a courier between al-Qa’ida cells in Pakistan and the Persian Gulf and, as of late 2002, was a courier for senior al-Qa’ida operational planner Khalid Shaykh Muhammad.

Azmarai's facilitation duties on behalf of al-Qa’ida have also included providing logistical support to al-Qa’ida members and their families.  As of 2011, Azmarai assisted al-Qa’ida's administrative manager with managing the care of important al-Qa’ida members' families, including facilitating their finances, housing, and medical care.  In 1999, Azmarai assisted in making logistical arrangements for al-Qa’ida members and their families in Karachi, Pakistan.  Azmarai was also specifically responsible for providing support to members of now-deceased al-Qa’ida leader Usama bin Laden's family. Bin Laden's son-in-law selected Azmarai in late 1999 to look after bin Laden's family and, in mid-2000, Azmarai began working directly for bin Laden's family, facilitating their travel, lodging, and medical needs.  From late 2001 through early 2002, Azmarai was responsible for bin Laden's family members in Karachi. In mid-2002, Azmarai worked for bin Laden's son, now-deceased Saad bin Laden.
Ganj Madrassa

Under Shaykh Aminullah’s leadership, the Ganj Madrassa has trained and harbored Taliban fighters who have subsequently been dispatched to Afghanistan.  As recently as early 2013, Shaykh Aminullah was recruiting for Lashkar-e Tayyiba at the Ganj Madrassa and, as of late 2012, was hosting al-Qa’ida operatives there.

Shaykh Aminullah has provided assistance, including funding and recruits, to al-Qaida.  In addition, he directs donations received by the Ganj Madrassa to jihadist fighters battling coalition forces in Afghanistan and also uses the money to train madrassa students to become Taliban fighters.  Shaykh Aminullah frequently travels to the Gulf to obtain charity donations on the madrassa’s behalf.

SECRETARY OF DEFENSE HAGEL SAYS AFGHAN GOVERNMENT IS KEY

Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel responds during a question-and-answer session with students from the University of Nebraska-Omaha in Omaha, Neb., June 19, 2013. DOD photo by Erin A. Kirk-Cuomo


FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
Afghan Government Key to Transition, Hagel Stresses
By Karen Parrish
American Forces Press Service
WASHINGTON, June 20, 2013 - Milestone 2013, which happened June 18 and marked Afghan forces' assumption of the lead in security responsibility for their country, is an unprecedented achievement for the Afghan people, Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel said yesterday.

During a speech in Omaha, Neb., at his alma mater, the University of Nebraska-Omaha, Hagel said the milestone
"keeps us on track to responsibly end the war next year in Afghanistan and allows us to transition to a far more limited, noncombat mission to assist the Afghan government as it takes full responsibility for the country's future."

The secretary noted the United States and other nations will continue to engage in Afghanistan and will work with Afghanistan, Pakistan and India "to advance security in that critically important region in the world."

After his speech, Hagel responded to a question about the role of the Taliban in Afghanistan's future. The group has opened an office in Qatar, he noted, and the United States supports that initiative.

"We've always supported a peaceful resolution to the end of the bloodshed in the war in Afghanistan," Hagel said, noting that acceptable conditions are in place for the United States to accept the possibility of a next set of meetings between Taliban and Afghan government representatives.

He cautioned, however, that the Taliban would have to "agree to certain things" before meetings would involve the United States.

"I think it's worth the risk," he added. "But it can't be done without President [Hamid] Karzai, without the government of Afghanistan."

Hagel pointed out that NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen attended the Milestone 2013 ceremony in the Afghan capital of Kabul, representing the 50 member nations of NATO's International Security Assistance Force. Both NATO and U.S. forces have worked to establish stability in Afghanistan for more than a decade, he noted.

"This is really about the people, or it should be -- giving the people of Afghanistan ... rights and freedom to make their own lives," Hagel said.

The secretary noted that as a senator, he was part of the first congressional delegation to travel to Afghanistan after 9/11. "I've dealt with President Karzai right from the beginning," he said. "I've known him since 2001 and have a very good relationship with him. But he represents his government, his people. He needs to do what he thinks is right."

Hagel acknowledged the process is a bit frustrating. "But we have to continue to work at it," he added, and we will continue to work at it."

Afghanistan's future depends largely on a political situation based on peace, Hagel said. If a politically negotiated settlement is possible, he asked, "Isn't it smarter, isn't it worth some risk, if the terms are right, to try to facilitate some agreement here that would ... give the poor people of Afghanistan some opportunity to not to have to live in constant war that they've had to live in for decades?"

U.S. and NATO leaders are cleared-eyed about the possible obstacles to political settlement, the secretary said.

"But I think we have to continue to work it," he added. "And it can't be done without the government of Afghanistan."

ISAF NEWS FROM AFGHANISTAN FOR MAY 29, 2013

U.S. Army Staff Sgts. Matthew J. Bubb, left, and Jeremy N. Butler use the optic lenses on their weapons to scan rows of grapes after the unit received fire during a traffic control point in the Panjwai district in Afghanistan's Kandahar province, May 23, 2013. Bubb and Butler are assigned to 2nd Battalion, 23rd Infantry Regiment. U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. Shane Hamann

FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Combined Force Arrests Insurgent in Kandahar
From an International Security Assistance Force Joint Command News Release

KABUL, Afghanistan, May 29, 2013 - A combined Afghan and coalition security force arrested an insurgent during a search for a Taliban facilitator in Kandahar province's capital of Kandahar today, military officials reported.

The facilitator builds improvised explosive devices and distributes them to insurgents operating in the Arghandab River Valley and the provincial capital. He also oversees weapons caches and plans attacks against Afghan and coalition forces.

In Afghanistan operations yesterday:

-- A combined force in Balkh province's Chimtal district arrested a senior Taliban leader who plans and conducts IED attacks against Afghan government officials and Afghan and coalition forces. He also facilitates the transfer, manufacturing and testing of IEDs, coordinates and conducts kidnappings for ransom to fund insurgent operations, and coordinates the movement of insurgent fighters.

-- In Logar province's Muhammad Aghah district, a combined force wounded an insurgent during a search for a Taliban facilitator who transports fighters, weapons and suicide bombers. He also controls a group that attacks Afghan and coalition forces, equips suicide bombers with IEDs and coordinates the locations of their attacks.

-- A combined force in Paktia province's Gardez district arrested a Haqqani network leader who coordinates and directs attacks against Afghan and coalition forces and facilitates the movement of weapons, equipment and money to local insurgent cells. He also serves as an intelligence operative for senior Haqqani leadership.

ISAF NEWS FROM AFGHANISTAN FOR MAY 28. 2013

A U.S. Marine offloads a container after conducting a combat logistics patrol to Forward Operating Base Shukvani in Helmand province, Afghanistan, May 19, 2013. U.S. Marine Corps photo by Sgt. Anthony L. Ortiz

FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
Combined Security Force Arrests Haqqani Network Leader
Compiled from International Security Assistance Force Joint Command News Releases
WASHINGTON, May 28, 2013 - A combined Afghan and coalition security force arrested a Haqqani network leader and seven other insurgents during an operation in the Gardez district of Afghanistan's Paktia province today, military officials reported.

The Haqqani leader is responsible for kidnappings of Afghan civilians, coordinates the movement of weapons and plans and executes attacks against Afghan and coalition forces.

In other Afghanistan operations today:

-- A combined force in Kandahar province's Kandahar City arrested a Taliban leader who controls a cell responsible for attacks against Afghan and coalition forces in the Panjwai district. He also is involved in financing insurgent operations, procuring weapons and conducting reconnaissance of Afghan and coalition installations. The security force also arrested another insurgent.

-- In Kandahar's Panjwai district, a combined force arrested three insurgents during a search for a Taliban facilitator who is responsible for acquiring weapons and equipment for attacks against Afghan and coalition forces. He also directs local improvised explosive device operations and manages weapons caches. The security force also seized opium in the operation.

In operations yesterday:

-- A combined force in Baghlan province's Baghlan-e Jadid district killed three insurgents during a search for a senior Taliban leader who facilitates IED attacks and manages insurgent weapon distribution.

-- In Kunar province's Watahpur district, a combined force killed two insurgents during a search for a senior leader who is responsible for al-Qaida operations in the Waygal and Watahpur Valley. He oversees al-Qaida training in Nuristan, and he plans and conducts attacks against Afghan and coalition forces.

-- A combined force in Helmand province's Nad-e Ali district arrested a senior Taliban leader who oversees a cell responsible for attacks against Afghan and coalition forces. He also procures weapons for insurgents and manages Taliban personnel actions in his area. The security force also arrested eight other insurgents and seized three rifles.

-- In Helmand's Nahr-e Saraj district, a combined force arrested a senior Taliban leader who controls insurgents responsible for attacks against Afghan and coalition forces. He also runs IED operations in two districts and has handled logistics for suicide bombings. The security force also arrested another insurgent and seized a pistol.

-- A combined force in Kandahar province's Zharay district arrested a Taliban leader who coordinates IED activity and facilitates Taliban weapon movement. The security force also arrested another insurgent.

In May 26 operations:

-- A combined force killed two insurgents during a search in Paktia province's Sayyid Karam district for a senior Haqqani network leader who is involved with IED attacks, coordinates insurgent movement and attacks, and provides information to senior Haqqani leaders. He also facilitates the movement of IEDs, weapons and money into the area.

-- In Logar province's Pul-e Alam district, a combined force arrested a Haqqani network high-profile attack facilitator who also houses transient Taliban commanders when they pass through his area. The security force also arrested another insurgent and seized more than 50 pounds of bomb-making materials.

-- A combined force arrested a Taliban facilitator who provides weapons and equipment for insurgent groups and coordinates suicide-bombing operations. The security force also arrested another insurgent.

In May 25 operations:

-- Afghan special forces soldiers, local police and coalition forces killed 22 insurgents after insurgents engaged the combined force with fire in Ghazni province's Gelan district. The forces were in the area to discuss the construction of future local police checkpoints with local residents when the incident took place. An Afghan quick reaction force joined the fight shortly after local police radioed the district operations coordination center for reinforcements. Following the engagement, Afghan forces recovered five motorcycles, weapons and ammunition.

-- In Nangarhar province's Achin district, a combined force killed eight insurgents during a search for a senior Taliban leader who has planned, coordinated and executed attacks against Afghan government facilities and against Afghan and coalition forces. He controls insurgent groups and relays operational guidance to them from senior Taliban leadership.

-- A combined force in Paktiya province's Gardez district arrested a Haqqani network high-profile attack facilitator who acquires weapons and equipment and distributes them to local insurgent groups. At the time of this arrest, officials said, he was actively planning an attack involving several suicide bombers. The security force also arrested another insurgent.

-- In Kandahar province's Arghandab district, a combined force arrested a Taliban facilitator responsible for procuring IEDs and distributing them to insurgent groups. He also is involved in indirect-fire attacks against Afghan and coalition forces. The security force also arrested two other insurgents and seized a handgun.

In May 24 operations:

-- Afghan local police killed a Taliban insurgent and wounded two others while defending the Haji Safraz checkpoint in Kunduz province's Archi district. The local police returned fire after Taliban fighters attacked the checkpoint with small-arms fire.

-- In Kandahar province's Mya Neshin district, Afghan special forces and local and uniformed police killed an insurgent while responding to an ambush targeting the district police chief.

-- A combined force in Logar province's Muhammad Aghah district killed two insurgents and wounded two others during a search for a Haqqani network-affiliated Taliban leader who plans, facilitates and executes attacks against Afghan and coalition forces. He purchases and distributes explosives, weapons and equipment for Taliban and Haqqani insurgent cells.

-- Provincial Response Company Ghazni, enabled by coalition forces, found and destroyed more than a ton of potassium chlorate, an ingredient in homemade explosives, in Ghazni province's Dey Yak district.

ISAF NEWS FROM AFGHANISTAN FOR MAY 14. 2013



U.S. Deputy Defense Secretary Ash Carter tours the tunnels that were once the hideout for notorious, and still at large, Taliban leader Mullah Muhammad Omar which is now under the control of Firebase Maholic in Afghanistan, May 14, 2013. The tunnels and nearby Taliban stronghold was captured by U.S. forces in 2001. DOD photo by Glenn Fawcett

FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
Combined Force Kills Taliban Leader in Kunduz Province

From an International Security Assistance Force Joint Command News Release

KABUL, Afghanistan, May 14, 2013 - A combined Afghan and coalition security force killed a mid-level Taliban leader in the Khanabad district of Afghanistan's Kunduz province today, military officials reported.

The deceased Taliban leader had been in charge of a group responsible for attacks against Afghan and coalition forces, and he was involved in trafficking weapons and suicide vests, and had engaged in kidnapping and reconnaissance operations.

In other Afghanistan operations today:

-- A combined force in Kandahar province's Panjwai district arrested a Taliban leader responsible for attacks against Afghan and coalition forces. He manages numerous weapons caches for Taliban insurgent cells. The security force also arrested two other insurgents.

-- In Helmand province's Nahr-e Saraj district, a combined force arrested a Taliban facilitator who is responsible for procuring and distributing weapons and equipment to insurgents in the province's Nad-e Ali and Nahr-e Saraj districts. The facilitator also leads a group responsible for attacks against Afghan and coalition forces. The security force also seized an assault rifle, two pistols, four magazines and ammunition.

In operations yesterday:

-- A combined force in Kandahar province's Maiwand district wounded an insurgent during a search for a Taliban leader who directs the movement of Taliban fighters, bomb-making materials, weapons, ammunition and supplies. He also has operational control of an insurgent group responsible for attacks against Afghan civilians and Afghan and coalition forces.

-- In Helmand province's Marjah district, a combined force arrested a senior Taliban leader who is in charge of at least seven separate Taliban insurgent groups responsible for attacks on Afghan and coalition forces. He is involved in all stages of operations, including procuring weapons and ammunition, planning attacks and executing those plans. He and the insurgents he controls also have been involved in kidnapping Afghan security force members.

-- Afghan special forces soldiers, enabled by coalition forces, killed an insurgent and wounded another after watching them plant a roadside bomb along a patrol route used by Afghan and coalition forces in Herat province's Shindand district. After the engagement, two other insurgents were killed by their own bomb as they were traveling back toward the location of the first one.

ISAF NEWS FROM AFGHANISTAN FOR MAY 13,

 

Marines fire an M777 A2 howitzer during a series of integrated exercises at the Combat Center’s Quakenbush Training Area in Twentynine Palms, Calif., April 26, 2013. The Marines are assigned to 5th Battalion, 14th Marine Regiment. U.S. Marine Corps photo by Cpl. William J. Jackson

FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
Combined Force in Kandahar Province Arrests Taliban Leader
Compiled from International Security Assistance Force Joint Command News Releases


WASHINGTON, May 13, 2013 - A combined Afghan and coalition security force arrested a Taliban leader and two other insurgents in the Dand district of Afghanistan's Kandahar province today, military officials reported.

The leader has operational control over insurgents responsible for attacks against Afghan and coalition forces. He also facilitates the movement of weapons in Kandahar City and is involved in the construction of improvised explosive devices.

Also today, a combined force in Helmand province's Marjah district arrested an insurgent during a search for a senior Taliban leader who is in charge of at least seven groups of Taliban insurgents responsible for attacks on Afghan and coalition forces. He is involved in all stages of operations, including procuring weapons and ammunition, planning attacks and executing those plans. He and his insurgent fighters also kidnap Afghan national security force members. The combined force also seized a rifle and ammunition.

In Afghanistan operations yesterday:

-- An Afghan quick-reaction police force killed three insurgents and wounded two others in Ghazni province's Andar district after two local policemen asked for help. The quick-reaction force found the policemen surrounded and receiving small-arms fire from 10 insurgents. This marked the second instance in less than 48 hours in which multiple Afghan elements, working through the district operation control center, combined efforts to defeat Taliban attacks against Afghan local police positions, officials said.

-- A combined force in Jowzjan province's Faizabad district detained a Taliban leader who is responsible for IED attacks in Jowzjan and Balkh provinces. He obtained weapons and ammunition for a network of Taliban fighters for attacks against Afghan and coalition forces, collected illegal taxes from local civilians to fund insurgency operations, and provided intelligence on coalition force movement to senior Taliban leadership. The security force also arrested another insurgent.

-- In Baghlan province's Burkah district, a combined force arrested a senior insurgent leader with ties to the Taliban and the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan who is in charge of a group of fighters responsible for a wide range of insurgent activities. He and his cell have murdered Afghans, kidnapped civilians for ransom, conducted robberies against local businesses and collected illegal taxes to fund insurgent operations. He also facilitates the movement of weapons and suicide vests. The security force also arrested another insurgent and seized an assault rifle, five rocket-propelled grenades, seven RPG propellants, two fragmentary grenades, ammunition, six magazines and IED-making materials.

-- Also in Baghlan's Burkah district, a combined force arrested an Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan leader who is a known IED expert and has directed suicide-bomber attacks.

-- A combined force in Helmand province's Nahr-e Saraj district arrested two insurgents during a search for a senior Taliban leader who oversees insurgent cells responsible for attacks on Afghan and coalition forces. He and his subordinates are heavily involved in IED operations. He also directs the movement of weapons and connects with other insurgent leaders to report intelligence and receive guidance for his network's activities.

-- In Kandahar province's Arghandab district, a combined force killed a Taliban leader and another insurgent and detained two insurgents. The Taliban leader was in charge of fighters responsible for attacks against Afghan and coalition forces. He also was involved in the obtaining of weapons and equipment for his insurgent group and directed night patrols to harass the local populace. The security force seized IED-making materials, an assault rifle, a pistol and four magazines.

-- A combined force in Wardak province's Sayyidabad district arrested two insurgents during a search for a senior Taliban leader who controls about 70 insurgent fighters responsible for attacks against Afghan and coalition forces. He also oversees local weapons trafficking and reports on insurgent operations to higher-ranking Taliban officials

In May 11 operations:

-- A combined force in Paktia province's Zurmat district arrested a Haqqani network leader who controls an insurgent cell responsible for attacks against Afghan and coalition forces and is involved in IED operations throughout the province. The security force also arrested another insurgent and seized a submachine gun, ammunition and IED-making materials.

-- In Helmand province's Marjah district, a combined force arrested a senior Taliban leader who is in charge of an insurgent cell responsible for attacks against Afghan and coalition forces. He also coordinates IED and suicide-bomber attacks and obtains weapons for insurgents. The security force also arrested two other insurgents.

In May 10 operations:

-- Afghan commandos, advised by coalition forces, detained 28 insurgents in Logar province's Muhhamed Agha district during an operation designed to disrupt insurgent activity in the area.

-- In Zabul province's Shah Joy and Gelan districts, Afghan Provincial Response Company Zabul, enabled by coalition forces, seized and destroyed 350 pounds of ingredients for homemade explosives and other IED components.

-- Responding to an attack on local police, an Afghan quick-reaction force killed 10 insurgents in Ghazni province's Qara Bagh district. The security force recovered three motorcycles, two assault rifles and a rocket-propelled grenade.

ISAF NEWS FROM AFGHANISTAN FOR MAY 8, 2013

 

U.S. Marines stand guard at a mortar range near Camp Shorabak in Afghanistan's Helmand province, May 4, 2013, while instructors with the Regional Corps Battle School train Afghan soldiers to improve proficiency with the 60mm mortar system. The Marines are assigned to 2nd Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment, Regimental Combat Team 7. U.S. Marine Corps photo by Staff Sgt. Ezekiel R. Kitandwe.

FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
Combined Force Arrests Taliban Leader in Kandahar Province
From an International Security Assistance Force Joint Command News Releasek

KABUL, Afghanistan, May 8, 2013 - An Afghan and coalition security force arrested a Taliban leader and three other insurgents during an operation in the Panjwa'i district of Afghanistan's Kandahar province today, military officials reported.

The arrested insurgent leader has coordinated and carried out attacks against tribal elders in the region, as well as against Afghan and coalition forces.

In other Afghanistan operations today:

-- A combined force arrested a Taliban leader in the Marjeh district of Helmand province. The leader planned, directed and took part in attacks against Afghan and coalition forces. He also procures and distributes weapons to insurgent cells in the local area and advises senior insurgent leaders on long-term strategic goals. The security force also seized one AK-47 rifle, three magazines and 250 rounds of ammunition.

-- A combined force arrested three insurgents during a search for a high-ranking Haqqani leader in Paktika province's Ziruk district. The sought-after Haqqani leader directs attacks against Afghan and coalition forces and has led attacks on government facilities throughout Afghanistan, including in Khost and Kabul provinces. The security force also seized ammunition during the operation.

In Afghanistan operations yesterday, Provincial Response Company Logar, enabled by coalition forces, detained four insurgents and discovered a cache of weapons and explosives-making materials while conducting a cordon-and-search operation in Logar province's Pul-e district. The cache, which was destroyed on location, included 15 Chinese 107 mm rockets, one 82 mm recoilless rifle round and two 50-kilogram [110-pound] bags of fertilizer.