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, November 10, 2014

War News for Monday, November 10, 2014


Bagram Jail Handed Over To Afghan Forces



Reported security incidents
#1: Monday, a suicide bomber killed at least seven local police, including a senior commander, outside the main police station in Logar province, an hour's drive south of Kabul, according to an Afghan Interior Ministry statement.

#2: The second blast targeted a police vehicle carrying police instructors in eastern Jalalabad city, near the border with Pakistan. Three policemen were killed in the attack, caused by explosives hidden under a rickshaw and detonated remotely, officials said. No civilians died, they said.

#3: On Monday, a third explosion caused by a magnet bomb wounded several civilians near a university in a residential part of Kabul. The apparent target of the attack was security forces driving in vehicles, police said.

#4: At least six people were killed during an exchange of fire in Pakistan's North Waziristan region, the military said Monday. The clash took place during a clearance operation late Sunday, Dawn online reported. According to officials, the victims were four militants and two soldiers.

#5: According to national defense ministry press office to BNA, the ANA forces conducted a military operation aiming to clear the regions from existence of insurgents in the outskirts of Shahwalikot district, Kandahar province, in which eight Taliban militants were killed and four others wounded.

#6: The Ministry of Defense (MoD) said the three soldiers were martyred during their security duties. No further details were given regarding the exact location of the incident.

#7: At least 4 Taliban militants were killed following their own car explosion (full of explosive device) in Helmand province late on Sunday.

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