United Nations’ early assessment of the 2013 crop found farmers were planning to plant more poppy than last year, marking the third annual rise in the drug’s cultivation. UN officials predict the increase will push this year’s crop close to 2007’s record level and again see Afghanistan responsible for more than 90 per cent of…
With the US set to withdraw its troops from Afghanistan in 2014, what does the future hold for the country’s capital?
WOMEN JUST A BARGAINING CHIP Girls are playing volleyball in a dusty courtyard. Gazing toward the foothills of the Hindu Kush offers some pretty spectacular scenery. But right now that’s the last thing on the girls’ minds. The landscape, after all, is nothing new for them. Playing sports is what’s changed for these girls,…
Second phase of Afghan security handover to be announced next month Oct 26, 2011 Kabul – Afghanistan is set to take security responsibility from NATO-led forces for 17 provinces in the second phase of transition, officials announced Wednesday. All or parts of 17 of the 34 provinces likely to be handed over, said…
The Lost Souls of Kabul: Photographs by James Nachtwey A man injects himself under a bridge near an open sewer in Kabul. While overall production has dropped thanks to aggressive eradication efforts, and a blight that destroyed almost half of last year’s harvest, more Afghans than ever are getting addicted to opiates. We’re used to…
Reflecting on my coverage of the latest UN report released on Tuesday showing a 31 per cent increase in overall Afghan civilians casualties, a couple of questions raised in my mind about the overall chances for success by the US-led coalition. Number-crunchers from the UN’s Assistance Mission Afghanistan (UNAMA) now say the Taliban and other…
Robert Grenier was the CIA’s chief of station in Islamabad, Pakistan, between 1999–2002. He was also the director of CIA’s counterterrorism centre.