Afghanistan
371 Articles
End of (which) war?
A “formal” end to “America’s longest war”? That’s how many media outlets are describing the transition of NATO’s role in Afghanistan…
Int’l Criminal Court’s Examination of U.S. Treatment of Detainees Takes Shape
On Tuesday, the Chief Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court announced, in the most explicit and detailed terms to date, that the U.S. treatment of detainees captured in…
A Big Week in Afghanistan War Oversight
It has been a busy week for John Sopko, the US-appointed Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR). He and his team just published a number of reports indicating…
The War in Afghanistan is Far from Over
Tuesday was an ominous one for news about Afghanistan. While much of the media’s attention has recently been focused on Syria, Iraq, and Ebola, NATO is still facing challenges…
Here’s the New U.S.-Afghanistan Bilateral Security Agreement
After much confusion over which was the final security agreement (news organizations citing it had linked to a November 2013 “predecisional” version) I’ve just…
Security Agreement With Afghanistan Raises Key Questions About How and When War Ends
Today, the United States and Afghanistan signed a long-awaited bilateral security agreement. The U.S. government promised to withdraw combat troops by December, and to leave nearly…
UK High Court Hears Case of Pakistani Held for a Decade Without Charges by UK and US
On Sept. 23, the United Kingdom High Court began its three-day hearing of a case involving the alleged kidnapping, torture, detention, and subsequent rendition of Pakistani citizen…
ISIS/ISIL remains associated with Al-Qaida because the UN Security Council says so?
There is considerable disagreement whether President Obama has acted unconstitutionally or unlawfully when proceeding to military action against ISIL/ISIS without new Congressional…
John Walker Lindh’s Legacy: To Join The Fight Is Criminal
The “British accent” of the individual(s) who participated in the tragic beheadings of journalists Jim Foley and Steven Sotloff has focused attention on the phenomenon of citizens…
Joint Chiefs of Staff: Bergdahl exchange vital to keeping faith with American service members
All seven members of the Joint Chiefs of Staff have written a separate letter to the Chair of the Senate Armed Services Committee stating their support for the exchange of the…
The D.C. Circuit, Article II, and the Constitutionality of the Guantánamo Transfer Restrictions
When President Obama transferred five Taliban detainees from Guantánamo in exchange for American POW Bowe Bergdahl, forests were felled over whether the Obama Administration…
Transparency and Lethal Operations: A Checklist of What’s Public and What’s Still Secret [Updated]
Transparency is the touchstone for many debates about US lethal operations against Al Qaeda and associated forces. This post contains a checklist of sorts—cataloguing what information…