Monday, February 13, 2012

Afghanistan

Eleven Taliban, Six Police Killed In Afghanistan

(RFE/RL)

July 12, 2007 -- Air strikes were called in after a joint U.S.-Afghan patrol was ambushed in the southern province of Oruzgan today.

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July 12, 2007

The coalition says the clash left about 11 Taliban fighters dead.

In the eastern province of Khost, Afghan security officials say that a remote-controlled
bomb went off near an Afghan police vehicle on joint patrol with NATO
troops today, killing six police officers.

Khost Province police spokesman Wazir Badshah said five of the police officers were killed at the site, while the sixth died later at a NATO hospital.

The southeastern Khost Province is a frequent stage of attacks linked to the Taliban insurgency.

Meanwhile, NATO says one of its soldiers was killed and two others
wounded during an operation in the south. No further details were
available.

(AP, AFP, Reuters, dpa)

Afghanistan's Opium Problem

An antidrug billboard in Kabul shows a skeleton hanging from an opium bulb (AFP)

OPIUM FARMING ON THE RISE Despite a nationwide program by the Afghan government to eradicate opium-poppy fields and offer farmers alternative crops, international experts say that the 2006 opium crop was as much as 50 percent larger than the previous year's record crop. Afghanistan also accounted for practically all of the world's illegal opium production.(more)

NATO Struggles With Security, Rebuilding In Southern Province

UN Antidrug Chief Wants NATO To Destroy Opium

Saffron Could Help Wean Farmers Off Opium Poppies

Poppy-Eradication Drive Launched In Western Province

Insurgency Gains Ground As Poppy-Eradication Efforts Struggle

For weekly news and analysis on Afghanistan by e-mail, subscribe to "RFE/RL Afghanistan Report."

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