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


Tuesday, January 8, 2013

War News for Tuesday, January 08, 2013

The MoD is reporting the death of a British ISAF soldier from small arms fire during an insider attack from a suspected ANA soldier at Patrol Base Hazrat in the Nahr-e Saraj district, Helmand province, Afghanistan on Monday, January 8th. News reports that three additional soldiers were wounded in the attack. Here's the ISAF release.


Georgian Defence Ministry: 93 Georgian soldiers wounded in Afghanistan in 2010-2012


Reported security incidents
#1: A Pakistan International Airlines aircraft was on the runway at Afghanistan's Kandahar airport when it was attacked with rockets today though there were no casualties or damage to property, officials said. The aircraft with 44 people on board was ready to take off for Quetta. It later flew to Quetta, the capital of Pakistan's Balochistan province, though the flight was delayed by over an hour, PIA officials said.

Unknown attackers on Tuesday fired eight to 10 rockets on the airport in Kandahar from multiple directions. There have been no reports of casualties or damage and no group has yet claimed responsibility for the attack.

#2: Several missiles fired from American drones slammed into a compound near the Afghan border in Pakistan early today, killing eight suspected militants, Pakistan officials said. The two intelligence officials said the compound was located near the town of Mir Ali in the North Waziristan tribal area

#3: Three policemen injured when unidentified outlaws apparently threw hand grenade on them in Swabi district on Tuesday, police said. Police constables Asad Zaman, Amir Zia and Saddam Hussain were on routine patrolling in Swabi bazaar when came under attack with hand grenade about 930 am.

#4: Afghan forces have killed two Taliban commanders and arrested two others in Nagarhar province 120 km east of Kabul, spokesman for provincial administration Ahmad Zia Abdulzai said Tuesday. "Afghan forces backed by the NATO-led coalition troops raided a Taliban hideout in Khogyani district late Monday night and killed two Taliban commanders named Mullah Azatullah and Mullah Safatullah," Abdulzai told Xinhua.

#5: Units of Afghan police during series of operations have killed four Taliban militants and arrested two others over the past 24 hours, Interior Ministry said in a statement released here on Tuesday. The operations, according to the statement were conducted in Uruzgan, Maidan Wardak, Ghazni and Helmand provinces during which a number of arms and ammunitions including 50 kg explosive devices have been seized. It did not say if there were any casualties on police. Taliban militants have yet to make comment.

Posted by whisker at 4:45 AM

2 comments:

Dancewater said...

another insider attack. I wonder what the total number is?

January 8, 2013 at 7:18 AM
Dancewater said...

I think delaying the take off of a plane (that is being shot at)is probably not a good idea.

January 8, 2013 at 7:19 AM

Post a Comment

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)