The present-day U.S. military qualifies by any measure as highly professional, much more so than its Cold War predecessor. Yet the purpose of today’s professionals is not to preserve peace but to fight unending wars in distant places. Intoxicated by a post-Cold War belief in its own omnipotence, the United States allowed itself to be drawn into a long series of armed conflicts, almost all of them yielding unintended consequences and imposing greater than anticipated costs. Since the end of the Cold War, U.S. forces have destroyed many targets and killed many people. Only rarely, however, have they succeeded in accomplishing their assigned political purposes. . . . [F]rom our present vantage point, it becomes apparent that the “Revolution of ‘89” did not initiate a new era of history. At most, the events of that year fostered various unhelpful illusions that impeded our capacity to recognize and respond to the forces of change that actually matter.

Andrew Bacevich


Monday, January 28, 2013

War News for Monday, January 28, 2013


Reported security incidents
#1: Two police personnel were killed and as many more injured when their vehicle struck an improvised explosive device in Marjah district of Helmand province on Sunday. An IED ripped through a police van in Shingharay area of Marjah, the district police chief Mullah Wilayat Khan told the Afghan Islamic Press (AIP). The injured were taken to the hospital.

#2: Two ANA soldiers killed: HERAT: (AIP): Two Afghan National Army (ANA) soldiers were killed in Herat province, officials said Sunday .The Taliban attacked a vehicle of ANA in the limits of Rabat Sangi district last night, killing two soldiers on the spot, the Herat 207 Zafar military corps operational in-charge Colonel Nizamuddin told the AIP. Two suspects have been arrested in this regard, he added.

#3: A minor lost his leg in a roadside bombing in Nawzad district of Helmand province on Sunday .
The IED blast took place in Nawzad at around 4:30 pm (local time), the district governor Syed Murad Agha told the AIP. A minor lost his leg and sustained critical injuries in the blast, he added.

#4: Fighting between two militant groups has left dozens of rebels dead in part of restive Khyber tribal belt along the Afghan border, officials said on Sunday. The violence began in Tirah valley in the Khyber tribal region three days ago after members of the Tariq faction of the Pakistani Taliban, who operate in Khyber, captured a building belonging to the pro-government group Ansar-ul-Islam. "The Ansar-ul-Islam group re-took their centre after intense fighting, which according to our information has so far killed 30-40 militants on both sides," a senior local administration official told AFP. A senior security official confirmed the approximate death toll and said fighting was ongoing. The area is cut off to journalists and aid workers so it was not possible to confirm the death toll independently.

#5: According to local authorities in northern Samangan province of Afghanistan, at least 10 Afghan civilians were injured following a road traffic incident in this province. The officials further added the incident took place after a civilian bus collided with the NATO troops vehicle in Rabatk highway. Provincial security chief Musadiqullah Muzaffari confirming the report said the incident took place on Monday and accused NATO troops for reckless driving.

#6: According to local authorities in eastern Logar province of Afghanistan, at least three Afghan civlians were killed by NATO-led coaltion security forces in Baraki Barak district. Provincial security chief Raes Khan Abdul Rahimzai confirming the report said the incident took place on Saturday evening while three brothers were on their way towards their home. Mr. Rahimzai further added coalition security forces opened fire on the motorcycle of the three civilians due misperception believing that the three brothers were suspected militants.

Posted by whisker at 3:58 AM

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