U.S. Gen. David Petraeus, the recently appointed commander of U.S. and NATO forces in Afghanistan, has reportedly added further restrictions to the “rules of engagement” that govern the use of force by most international forces in Afghanistan (Jason Motlagh, “Petraeus Toughens Afghan Rules of Engagement,” Time, 6 August 2010). Most details of the new directive […]
Tag Archives: General Stanley McChrystal
Report suggests changes to rules of engagement could cause increased insurgent attacks
A recent study by the National Bureau of Economic Research finds “strong evidence” that “local exposure to ISAF generated civilian casualties drives increased insurgent violence over the long-run.” (Luke N. Condra, Joseph H. Felter, Radha K. Iyengar & Jacob N. Shapiro, The Effect of Civilian Casualties in Afghanistan and Iraq, NBER Working Paper No. 16152, […]
The Year of the Drone
A recent report by Peter Bergen and Katherine Tiedemann of the New America Foundation provides a detailed examination of the “secret” U.S. drone war in Pakistan. The report, Year of the Drone: Analysis of US Drone Strikes in Pakistan, 2004-2010, looks in particular at the civilian cost of the drone strikes. Estimates of the number […]
An upswing in violence in Afghanistan… What does this mean for Canada?
By any measure the last few months have been marked by an upswing in violence in Afghanistan–a “dreary and bloody stalemate” according to the CBC’s Brian Stewart. NATO–and the US in particular–have come to recognize this as there has been much ado about how to re-cast the mission. First of all this has meant the implementation of a new command structure […]