Twisting Afghanistan's Netwar - By James Gundun

The Taliban has accomplished a strategic goal; many Afghans and international observers believe that U.S. forces are permanently stalemated. The group was responsible for thousands of Afghan deaths and has killed 382 U.S. soldiers in 2011, compared to 499 in 2010. Their annual total won’t be significantly lower than the previous year, and eclipses 2009’s total of 317 casualties. Assassinations have also eliminated key political leaders such as Hamid Karzai and Burhanuddin Rabbani. Afghanistan's political and economic rehabilitation remains behind U.S. schedule, a problem actively concealed by heightened military operations.The combined effect of these developments will distort the West’s 2014 time-line.Read More.