US President Barack Obama says he may make a decision on a revised Afghan strategy before that country's run-off presidential election on November 7. But Mr. Obama also says an announcement may wait until after the votes are in.

--Voice of America

AFGHANISTAN / PAKISTAN

Attention Intensifies on Afghan War Strategy - Meredith Buel, Voice of America. Now that Afghan election officials have agreed to a presidential runoff vote on November 7, attention will intensify on US President Barack Obama's difficult decision about whether to send more American troops to Afghanistan. Mr. Obama has been waiting for the election dispute to be resolved before announcing his new war strategy. As the fighting continues to rage, US officials stated repeatedly the election process had to be settled before President Barack Obama could make a reasoned decision about sending additional troops and resources to Afghanistan. Administration officials say the United States needs to make sure it has a credible partner in the Afghan government before any change in strategy. Analysts say the runoff election will add credibility to the new government and Mr. Obama applauded the move. "President Karzai, as well as the other candidates, I think, have shown that they have the interests of the Afghan people at heart, that this is a reflection of a commitment to rule of law and an insistence that the Afghan people's will should be done," said the president. Election officials are scrambling to organize the new ballot as the fierce Afghan winter approaches and the country faces a growing threat from the Taliban.

Obama: Troop Decision Possible Before Afghan Run-off - Paula Wolfson, Voice of America. US President Barack Obama says he may make a decision on a revised Afghan strategy before that country's run-off presidential election on November 7. But Mr. Obama also says an announcement may wait until after the votes are in. The president makes clear he believes the situation in Afghanistan is still fluid. In an interview with NBC television he hinted there might be twists and turns ahead. Mr. Obama was asked if the run-off could delay the release of his revised strategy for Afghanistan. "I think it is entirely possible that we have a strategy formulated before a run-off is determined. We may not announce it," he said. The president has held a series of lengthy closed door meetings with his national security team on Afghanistan and Pakistan. Critics have alleged he is dragging out the decision-making process and needlessly putting American troops in danger. President Obama made clear he would not be rushed, telling NBC he is taking the time to get the decision right. "We also want to make sure we don't put resources ahead of strategy," he said. But he went on to say he understands the need to act in a timely fashion, saying the sooner a sound approach is in place, the better.

Collaboration Drives Afghan Strategy Review, Gates Says - Donna Miles, American Forces Press Service. Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates today praised a close collaboration between the military and the White House in examining the US strategy in Afghanistan, dismissing news reports of a rift. “These stories may make good reading, but they are not a reflection of reality,” Gates said here in response to a question during a joint news conference with Japanese Defense Minister Toshimi Kitazawa. Gates cited a “very close, collaborative effort” between military officers, including commanders in the field, and civilian government leaders who meet on an almost daily basis as part of President Barack Obama’s strategic review. The national security team is working closely together to work through what Gates called “this very complicated situation in Afghanistan.” He cited “complicated issues” associated with the Afghan presidential elections, but also the challenges Army Gen. Stanley A. McChrystal, the top US commander there, identified in his assessment. Gates called the runoff election slated for Nov. 7 an important step toward moving forward in Afghanistan. “Getting that behind us and moving forward is very important,” he said. But while the run-off election will resolve outstanding issues regarding the presidency, Gates emphasized, the larger issue of establishing legitimacy of the Afghan government is a longer-term proposition. “This is going to be a work in progress, an evolutionary effort, and we need to be realistic about that,” he said.

Afghan Election Officials Consider Options to Address Fraud Before Runoff - Sean Maroney, Voice of America. Officials in Afghanistan are working to organize the second round of nationwide presidential voting, scheduled in about two weeks. UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon told the media the United Nations wants to replace more than half of the 380 district election heads in Afghanistan, in order to make the runoff on November 7th more credible. But UN spokesman Aleem Siddique tells VOA from Kabul that staffing is just one of the many things Afghan election officials have to consider in the coming weeks. "They will be looking at whether or not staff needs to be replaced, whether or not security measures need to be increased or what other measures can be taken in terms of encouraging legitimate voter turnout," said Siddique. Earlier this week, the UN-backed Electoral Complaints Commission reported widespread fraud in the first round invalidated a portion of the votes, including a third of incumbent President Hamid Karzai's ballots. This reversed Mr. Karzai's outright victory and forced a runoff with his top challenger, former foreign minister Abdullah Abdullah.

Changes Needed to Avoid Repeat of Afghan Vote Fraud, Says Abdullah - Jerome Starkey and Tom Coghlan, The Times. The man who stands between Hamid Karzai and a second term in office as President said yesterday he was ready for the run-off vote but demanded major changes to avoid the “widespread, massive fraud” that bedevilled the first round of voting. Addressing the media in the garden of his Kabul home, Abdullah Abdullah - former eye surgeon, Mujahidin commander and Afghan Foreign Minister - cut a relaxed figure, in contrast to the strained appearance of Mr Karzai less than 24 hours earlier as he conceded that he had not won the outright majority needed to claim a first-round win. Mr Karzai was flanked by the US Senator John Kerry, the head of the UN mission and three foreign ambassadors who had cajoled him to accept the rulings of the election fraud watchdog; Dr Abdullah, for his part, had two influential Afghan elders at his side. The Afghan President appeared in traditional robes as he admitted that more than a million ballots had been thrown out, including almost one third of his votes; Dr Abdullah wore a plain navy suit - a sober, statesmanlike departure from the silk cravats, safari suits and leather jackets he sported on the campaign trail. “We have certain suggestions, recommendations and conditions in order to avoid widespread, massive fraud in the upcoming elections,” Dr Abdullah said.

Afghan President's Leading Rival Agrees to Runoff - Pamela Constable and Joshua Partlow, Washington Post. One day after Afghan President Hamid Karzai reluctantly agreed to a runoff election, his top rival followed suit Wednesday, paving the way for a rematch between the embattled incumbent and his polished former foreign minister. But even as this country appeared to avert a constitutional crisis, political aides and electoral experts acknowledged that daunting obstacles remain in preparing for the Nov. 7 vote - including the possibility of Taliban intimidation or violence and the challenge of finding sufficient numbers of poll monitors untainted by the fraud allegations in the original vote. "Voters are taking a risk in some parts of the country, and they should be confident that risk is worthwhile," Karzai's challenger, Abdullah Abdullah, said at a news conference Wednesday, adding that he was preparing a list of "recommendations and conditions" for election organizers. "My whole desire is that the second round will take place on time, under good circumstances," he said. US officials share those sentiments, and they stressed the importance of having a strong partner in Afghanistan. Resolution of the electoral crisis, they said, will also make it easier for the Obama administration to make a decision on increasing US troop levels.

Karzai Rival Prepares for Afghan Runoff Vote - Dexter Filkens, New York Times. Abdullah Abdullah, the chief rival to President Hamid Karzai, said Wednesday that he was preparing for a runoff to decide the disputed election here. But he left open the possibility that he might join a coalition with Mr. Karzai that would make a new round of voting unnecessary. The prospect of a coalition government seemed remote here on Wednesday. After an initial burst of interest, Mr. Karzai and Mr. Abdullah were unable to reach any kind of agreement, Afghan and Western officials said. In addition, Western officials said they were not pushing the two men to make a deal - even if by doing so, they could end the political deadlock that has gripped Afghanistan since nationwide elections were held Aug. 20. That means that a runoff election will almost certainly proceed here on Nov. 7. “We have started preparing for a second round,” Mr. Abdullah said, speaking at a news conference in his backyard in Kabul. “The results show the need for a second round. We will let the Afghan people decide - I am committed to that.”

Security Fears Revive Ahead - Yaroslav Trofimov and Anand Gopal, Wall Street Journal. The Afghan government, international forces - and the Taliban - began preparations for the Nov. 7 presidential runoff, even as Western officials also continued advocating a power-sharing compromise to avoid the problems of a second round of voting. President Hamid Karzai's rival, former Foreign Minister Abdullah Abdullah, said Wednesday he has held conversations with President Barack Obama and Mr. Karzai, but he said no power-sharing deal with the incumbent was discussed. "Right now we're focusing on the elections," Dr. Abdullah said. US and European officials fear that the massive fraud that marred the election's first round could happen again - and that the Taliban, who tried to disrupt the Aug. 20 election with a series of deadly attacks, will unleash even greater bloodshed. But Mr. Karzai appears determined to press ahead with an election that would give him a clear-cut mandate to govern. "Both men are talking about the possibility of getting together - but President Karzai first wants to be declared a winner," said Zalmay Khalilzad, the Afghan-born former US ambassador to Kabul who spent the past several days meeting with the two rivals.

In Helmand, a Model for Success? - Rajiv Chandrasekaran, Washington Post. Before a battalion of US Marines swooped into this dusty farming community along the Helmand River in early July, almost every stall in the bazaar had been padlocked, as had the school and the health clinic. Thousands of residents had fled. Government officials and municipal services were nonexistent. Taliban fighters swaggered about with impunity, setting up checkpoints and seeding the roads with bombs. In the three months since the Marines arrived, the school has reopened, the district governor is on the job and the market is bustling. The insurgents have demonstrated far less resistance than U.S. commanders expected. Many of the residents who left are returning home, their possessions piled onto rickety trailers, and the Marines deem the central part of the town so secure that they routinely walk around without body armor and helmets. "Nawa has returned from the dead," said the district administrator, Mohammed Khan. Nawa provides one ground-level perspective into the debate over US force levels in Afghanistan among members of President Obama's national security team. In this district, the war is being waged in the manner sought by Gen. Stanley A. McChrystal, the top US and NATO commander in Afghanistan: The number of troops went from about 100 to 1,100, and they have been countering the insurgency by focusing on improving security for local people instead of hunting down the Taliban.

Efforts Aim to Get Taliban Off Battlefield in Afghanistan - Jim Michaels, USA Today. New efforts aimed at persuading low-level Taliban fighters to lay down their arms have become the centerpiece of US and Afghan government strategy as the White House debates whether to boost troop levels there. Officials are looking at programs that will provide jobs and training so insurgents have a reason to leave the battlefield. "From the president on down there is a belief that this is an essential part of succeeding in Afghanistan," said Sen. Carl Levin, chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee. The Michigan Democrat has played an influential role in the ongoing strategy debate. In his assessment of Afghanistan strategy, Gen. Stanley McChrystal, the top US commander there, wrote that NATO "must identify opportunities to reintegrate former mid- to low-level insurgent fighters into normal society by offering them a way out." Efforts to reconcile or reintegrate fighters is not new, but officials say there hasn't been a sustained effort to provide jobs and other opportunities in villages and towns. Only a trickle of insurgents has left the battlefield over past years.

Australia Eyes Early Afghanistan Withdrawal - Phil Mercer, Voice of America. The Australian government has asked military commanders to find ways to complete their missions in Afghanistan as soon as possible. The announcement is being seen as a clear hint that Canberra may pull its 1,500 troops out of Afghanistan earlier than expected. Australian Defense Minister John Faulkner has asked military chiefs to recommend how their forces can complete their tasks swiftly, and prepare for an eventual withdrawal from Afghanistan. Australia has the largest non-NATO troop presence in the troubled country. This review of its operations there comes after the senior allied commander in Afghanistan, General Stanley McChrystal, called for a large increase of troops. Canberra says that the soldiers it sent to provide security during elections in August will stay for the presidential run-off, next month. Faulkner says he wants to have a clear idea as to how soon Australian forces might be able to pack up and come home.

Pakistan Continues Waziristan Offensive, Closes Schools - Voice of America. Pakistani helicopter gunships attacked Taliban strongholds near the Afghan border Wednesday on the fifth day of an offensive in the tribal region of South Waziristan. Officials say troops are facing fierce resistance as they fight to gain control of Kotkai, the hometown of the leader of the Pakistani Taliban, Hakimullah Mehsud. Pakistan's army says about 115 militants and 16 soldiers have been killed since the offensive began. There is no independent confirmation of the tolls, as the region is closed to outsiders and no journalists are traveling with Pakistani troops. In the rest of the country, authorities closed many schools a day after two suicide bombers attacked the International Islamic University in Islamabad, killing four people at a faculty building and a women's cafeteria. The Taliban has carried out a wave of assaults in recent weeks, viewed as retaliation for the army's Waziristan offensive. The attacks have killed more than 175 people.

Pakistani Brigadier Assassinated in the Capital - Jane Perlez and Salman Masood, New York Times. Two assailants on a motorbike fired on a Pakistani Army jeep amid heavy rush-hour traffic Thursday morning, killing a brigadier and his driver, a security official said. The assassination of the brigadier, Moinudin Ahmed, was believed to be the first targeted attack on a senior military officer in Islamabad, the Pakistani capital, and also suggested a new tactic in the ongoing war between the government and Islamist militants. Until now, the military has been able to mostly move freely through the capital. The assailants fired with automatic weapons at the jeep, which was not bulletproof, and then disappeared into heavy traffic, according to witnesses. The attack took place around 9:30 a.m. in the G-11 neighborhood of the capital. The attack appeared to be a direct reprisal against the army’s current offensive against militants in the rugged tribal region of South Waziristan.

A Rope and a Prayer - David Rohde, New York Times. I stood in the bathroom of the Taliban compound and waited for my colleague to appear in the courtyard so we could make our escape. My heart pounded. A three-foot-tall swamp cooler - an antiquated version of an air-conditioner - roared in the yard a few feet in front of me. I feared that the guards who were holding us hostage might wake up and stop us. I feared even more that our captivity would drag on for years. It was 1 a.m. on Saturday, June 20, in Miram Shah, the capital of the North Waziristan tribal agency in Pakistan. After seven months and 10 days in Taliban captivity, I had come to a decision with Tahir Luddin, the Afghan journalist I had been kidnapped with, to try to make a run for it. By then, we had concluded that our captors - a Taliban faction led by the Haqqani family - were not seriously negotiating for our release. In the latest of countless lies, they announced that the United States would free all the Afghan prisoners at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, in exchange for us. We found the statement ludicrous and insulting. As they had a dozen times in the past, our captors claimed that a deal was near. Then nothing happened.

There’s No Substitute for Troops on the Ground - Max Boot, New York Times opinion. “I hope people who say this war is unwinnable see stories like this. This is what winning in a counterinsurgency looks like.” Lt. Col. William F. McCollough, commander of the First Battalion, Fifth Marine Regiment, is walking me around the center of Nawa, a poor, rural district in southern Afghanistan’s strategically vital Helmand River Valley. His Marines, who now number more than 1,000, arrived in June to clear out the Taliban stronghold. Two weeks of hard fighting killed two Marines and wounded 70 more but drove out the insurgents. Since then the colonel’s men, working with 400 Afghan soldiers and 100 policemen, have established a “security bubble” around Nawa. Colonel McCollough recalls that when they first arrived the bazaar was mostly shuttered and the streets empty. “This town was strangled by the Taliban,” he says. “Anyone who was still here was beaten, taxed or intimidated.” Today, Nawa is flourishing. Seventy stores are open, according to the colonel, and the streets are full of trucks and pedestrians. Security is so good we were able to walk around without body armor - unthinkable in most of Helmand, the country’s most dangerous province. The Marines are spending much of their time not in firefights but in clearing canals and building bridges and schools. On those rare occasions when the Taliban try to sneak back in to plant roadside bombs, the locals notify the Marines.

Pakistan Fights Back - David Ignatius, Washington Post opinion. Until a few months ago, Pakistani officials often used the term "miscreants" when they described the Taliban fighters operating from the western tribal areas. This moniker conveyed the sense that the Taliban was a nuisance - a ragtag band of fanatics and gangsters who could be placated with peace deals - rather than a mortal threat to the nation. That state of denial appears to be over. This week's offensive against Taliban sanctuaries in South Waziristan is the latest sign that Pakistan has awakened to the seriousness of its domestic terrorism problem. Here's how one of Pakistan's top military commanders put it to me, expressing sentiments that are widely shared among his colleagues: "We must win, if we want our children to be living a life of their choice and belief, and not of these beasts. I wish I could tell you how much I hate them. We want to get our beautiful and peaceful country back from their vicious clutches. We cannot allow them to destroy our future." Popular anger against the Taliban has been building this year. Back in April, the country seemed dazed and politically paralyzed. But as the Islamic extremists broke out of the Swat Valley that month and moved closer to the capital, something changed. The army launched an aggressive campaign in Swat, the Taliban fighters were pushed back and the public cheered.

IRAQ

Iraqi Lawmakers Fail to Agree on New Election Law - Voice of America. Iraq's parliament again has failed to agree on a new electoral law for the January parliamentary election, raising fears that the vote may have to be delayed. The United Nations special envoy to Iraq, Ad Melkert, warned on Wednesday that further delays could undermine both the date and the credibility of the election. Lawmakers again failed to vote on the agreement Wednesday. The delay stems from a dispute about how to hold the poll in oil-rich Kirkuk, an ethnically-mixed province in northern Iraq with Kurdish, Arab and Turkmen populations. The deadlock prompted parliament to hand over the issue to a senior political council for mediation. Iraq's president and prime minister, among others, sit on that council, the Political Council for National Security. Lawmakers said they will meet next week, Monday, to hold the often-postponed vote, if a draft is ready by Sunday. Elections are set for January 16. Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki met with US President Barack Obama in Washington Tuesday, and both leaders emphasized the importance of holding Iraqi elections on time. Iraq last held parliamentary elections in 2005.

Stalemate in Parliament Could Delay Iraq Elections - Rod Nordland, New York Times. The Iraqi Parliament announced Wednesday that it had reached a stalemate over drafting an election law. That could well delay the election, scheduled for Jan. 16, and might even slow down the withdrawal of American troops from Iraq. While the United States is looking for credible elections in Afghanistan, possibly to justify sending more troops there, in Iraq it is looking for credible elections to justify removing more troops. And any slowdown in the withdrawal here could affect how many American troops are available to go to Afghanistan, should President Obama decide to further increase the troop commitment there. The American commander in Iraq, Gen. Ray Odierno, has said he will review how quickly to reduce troop levels 30 to 60 days after Iraq’s national elections. There are 120,000 troops here, which is not expected to change much until after the elections. Mr. Obama has pledged to reduce that number to 50,000 by the end of next August.

Election Delay May Slow US Troop Drawdown - Ann Scott Tyson, Washington Post. US commanders may have to slow the pace of the US troop withdrawal from Iraq if Baghdad delays national elections scheduled for Jan. 16 or if other political instability develops, senior Pentagon officials said Wednesday. A more protracted drawdown of the 120,000 troops now in Iraq would not prevent President Obama from boosting the number of US troops in Afghanistan, but it could increase stress on American ground forces, Vice Adm. James A. Winnefeld Jr., director for strategic plans and policy for the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said during testimony before the House Armed Services Committee. Michèle A. Flournoy, undersecretary of defense for policy, told the committee that if Iraq's parliament does not pass an election law within two weeks, the polling date would slip to later in January. In that event, she said, the US-led command in Iraq "would need to engage with the government of Iraq to do some contingency planning on how to secure the elections at a later date, and that might well have implications."

In Iraq, Battling an Internal Bane - Nada Bakri, Washington Post. After helping to stanch a stubborn insurgency and harrowing sectarian fighting, security forces in Baghdad now worry they could face a challenge no less difficult: their own men. A recent spate of high-profile crimes, including a brazen and violent robbery of Baghdad jewelry shops thought to have involved police collusion, has forced Interior Ministry officials to confront head-on the corruption within the ranks of the 663,000-strong security forces. The problems, the officials say, include cases in which troops and officers are working at the behest of political leaders, as well as instances in which security forces are engaged in a range of crimes, from petty robberies at checkpoints to kidnappings and killings. Corruption within the security forces is not new, but it has become more glaring amid the decline in the sectarian fighting that once ravaged Baghdad and other parts of the country. Brig. Gen. Hussein Kamal, the Interior Ministry official in charge of intelligence, was blunt in acknowledging the problem. "There's a need to reorganize and cleanse the security forces and armed forces from extremists and criminals," he said in an interview. "We need 10 years to reach the level of professionalism that we aspire for."

Iraq Drawdown on Track, Policy Chief Says - Michael J. Carden, American Forces Press Service. Although much work remains to draw down the US troop presence in Iraq, Pentagon officials told Congress here today the Defense Department is well on schedule to meet President Barack Obama’s withdrawal timeline. Obama announced in February plans for a responsible drawdown of forces in Iraq. His plan, in accordance with the US-Iraq security agreement signed in 2008, called for U.S. forces there to cede operations within city limits by June 30 and ultimately transition into an assistance and advisory force for the Iraqis. By Aug. 31, 2010, only 50,000 troops are expected to remain in country, and by Dec. 31, 2011, all US forces should be withdrawn. “We’ve continued along the timeline laid out by the president,” Michelle Flournoy, undersecretary of defense for policy, said before the House Armed Services Committee. “We continue to plan for and implement a responsible US drawdown, one that advances our goal of a stable, sovereign and self-reliant Iraq. We are continuing our efforts to train and equip [Iraqi security forces] so they can effectively defend the Iraqi people and protect Iraqi institutions by the end of 2011.” Since January, the US military footprint in Iraq has decreased from more than 143,000 troops to about 120,000. And this week, an Army brigade combat team was off-ramped from its scheduled January deployment there. “[Iraqi security forces] have performed quite well since June 30, 2009, and the security situation in Iraq continues to improve despite a few high-profile attacks,” Flournoy said, noting improvement in Iraq’s security forces. Transitioning full security responsibility within the cities to the Iraqis was an important first step in demonstrating the US commitment to the timeline, Flournoy said, and was much more. The Iraqis gained more confidence in their abilities, and the population is becoming more accustomed to seeing their own countrymen patrolling the streets and protecting their rights, she said.

IRAN

IAEA Drafts Nuclear Deal for Iran - Lisa Bryant, Voice of America. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has drafted an agreement to supply enriched uranium to Iran following three days of negotiations at its headquarters in Vienna. If all parties agree to it, the deal could mark a breakthrough after a years-long international standoff over Iran's nuclear program. The draft agreement was announced to reporters by the International Atomic Energy Agency's chief Mohamed ElBaradei, who has given all parties involved until Friday to approve it. "I have circulated a draft agreement that reflects, in my judgment, a balanced approach on how to move forward," he said. "The deadline for the parties to give, I hope, affirmative action is Friday, two days from now. And if we do get affirmative action, then I hope that we will have an agreement that we can send to the (IAEA) board of governors." ElBaradei said France was included in the draft agreement. Talks this week gathering Russia, the United States, France, Iran and the IAEA, stalled on Tuesday over Iran's reluctance to have France participate in any deal on enriching its uranium. ElBaradei however described the discussions as constructive and forward-looking.

Iranian Officials Accept Draft Deal on Uranium Transfer - Glenn Kessler, Washington Post. Iranian negotiators on Wednesday accepted a draft agreement that would transfer the bulk of Iran's enriched uranium stockpile out of the country, providing a major boost for the Obama administration as it seeks to engage the Islamic republic. The deal, which must be affirmed by the government in Tehran, would require Iran to rid itself of nearly 80 percent of its reported stash, effectively delaying any attempt by its scientists to develop a nuclear weapon. It would also allow the Obama administration more time to pursue talks with Iran. US officials and other diplomats stressed that the deal would be only the first step in a difficult process to persuade Iran to suspend its uranium-enrichment activities and that suspension remains the primary goal. Nonetheless, they said Iran's willingness to accept the draft agreement would be viewed as an early test of its intentions. For Iran, the deal would mean much-needed fuel for a research reactor that is used for medical purposes. Russia would convert Iran's enriched uranium into reactor fuel, while France would take that material and fashion it into the metal plates used for the reactor. US officials conceived of the plan as a humanitarian gesture that Iran would have difficulty turning down; they also purposely included Russia, which has close ties to Tehran.

Iran Deal Would Slow Making of Nuclear Bombs - David E. Sanger, New York Times. Iranian negotiators have agreed to a draft deal that would delay the country’s ability to build a nuclear weapon for about a year, buying more time for President Obama to search for a diplomatic solution to the Iranian nuclear standoff. Under the tentative accord hammered out in international talks here, Iran agreed to ship about three-quarters of its known stockpile of nuclear fuel to Russia for conversion into a form it could use only in a peaceful nuclear reactor, participants in the negotiations said Wednesday. But the arrangement would still have to be approved by Friday in Tehran and Washington. If Tehran’s divided leadership agrees to the accord, which Iran’s negotiators indicated was not assured, it will remove enough nuclear fuel from Iran to delay any work on a nuclear weapon until the country can replenish its stockpile of fuel, estimated to require about one year. As such, it would buy more time for Mr. Obama to try to negotiate a more comprehensive and more difficult agreement to end Iran’s production of new nuclear material.

Iran’s Politics Open a Generational Chasm - Nazila Fathi, New York Times. It had been years since Narges Kalhor could talk about politics with her father, Mehdi, a senior adviser and spokesman for President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad of Iran. He advocated greater restraints on social and political expression, while she favored more freedom. Still, they had always managed to get along. But after Iran’s disputed presidential election in June and the protests that followed, the disagreement exploded into a breach. Last week - as her father accused her of being manipulated by the opponents of the government - Ms. Kalhor, now 25, applied for refugee status in Germany. “The difference between my generation and my parents’ generation, who are very ideological, is just increasing day by day,” she said in a telephone interview from Germany. “Their goals have not materialized, and it is our turn to lead the way.” While Ms. Kalhor’s case has been widely publicized, she is hardly alone. Numerous children of prominent Iranians have become estranged from their powerful parents since the election, which the opposition says was rigged. Thousands more middle-class families have been divided by the generational chasm that opened over the summer.

THE LONG WAR

Massachusetts Man Allegedly Conspired to Attack US Mall, Kill Troops in Iraq - Jim Malone, Voice of America. Federal law enforcement officials have charged a Massachusetts man with conspiracy to provide material support to terrorists. Prosecutors allege the arrested man sought terror training overseas and discussed a plot to launch a shooting attack on a US shopping mall. Tarek Mehanna, 27, was arrested at his home in a suburb of Boston. Acting U.S. Attorney Michael Loucks told a Boston news conference that between 2001 and 2008 Mehanna and his co-conspirators had allegedly discussed their desire to take part in Islamist Holy War and die on the battlefield. "He and his co-conspirators discussed what to do and took steps in furtherance of and support for terrorism including trips overseas in an effort to join training camps and to fight and kill American soldiers," said Louck. The travel included a stop in Yemen where Mehanna hoped to get terrorist training but was turned down. Prosecutor Loucks also says Mehanna and his associates talked about the logistics of targeting innocent civilians at a shopping mall in 2003.

Massachusetts Man Arrested on Terror Charges - Spencer S. Hsu, Washington Post. A Massachusetts man has been arrested on a charge of conspiring to support terrorists by seeking training from Islamic extremist fighters overseas, federal authorities said Wednesday. Tarek Mehanna, 27, of Sudbury, a small town west of Boston, allegedly conspired from 2001 to May 2008 with Ahmad Abousamra and others to carry out attacks abroad, including on US soldiers in Iraq, the Justice Department said. US Magistrate Judge Leo Sorokin ordered Mehanna held pending an Oct. 30 hearing. Outside the courtroom, Ahmed Mehanna, the defendant's father, told reporters he did not believe the accusations. "This really, really is a show," said the elder Mehanna, a professor at the Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences, from which his son graduated last year. An FBI agent alleged in a complaint affidavit that Tarek Mehanna, Abousamra and an associate traveled to the Middle East in February 2004 seeking training at a terrorist camp in Yemen, and that Abousamra made two similar trips to Pakistan in 2002.

Torture Songs Spur a Protest Most Vocal - Joe Heim, Washington Post. Was the theme to "Sesame Street" really played to torture prisoners held at Guantanamo and other detention camps? What about Don McLean's "American Pie"? Or the Meow Mix jingle? Bruce Springsteen's "Born in the U.S.A."? A high-profile coalition of artists - including the members of Pearl Jam, R.E.M. and the Roots - demanded Thursday that the government release the names of all the songs that were blasted since 2002 at prisoners for hours, even days, on end, to try to coerce cooperation or as a method of punishment. Dozens of musicians endorsed a Freedom of Information Act request filed by the National Security Archive, a Washington-based independent research institute, seeking the declassification of all records related to the use of music in interrogation practices. The artists also launched a formal protest of the use of music in conjunction with torture. The musicians' announcement was coordinated with the recent call by veterans and retired Army generals to shut Guantanamo. It is part of a renewed effort to pressure President Obama to keep his promise to close the prison in Cuba in his first year in office.

WORLD

Experts Worry as Population and Hunger Grow - Neil MacFarquhar, New York Times. Scientists and development experts across the globe are racing to increase food production by 50 percent over the next two decades to feed the world’s growing population, yet many doubt their chances despite a broad consensus that enough land, water and expertise exist. The number of hungry people in the world rose to 1.02 billion this year, or nearly one in seven people, according to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, despite a 12-year concentrated effort to cut the number. The global financial recession added at least 100 million people by depriving them of the means to buy enough food, but the numbers were inching up even before the crisis, the United Nations noted in a report last week.

AFRICA

Four-year Drought Pushes 23 Million Africans to Brink of Starvation - Tristan McConnell, The Times. A four-year drought has pushed as many as 23 million people to the brink of starvation across East Africa, making it the worst in a decade or more. Close to four million of those at risk are in Kenya, where one person in ten survives on emergency rations. Last week clouds gathered over much of the country, but the rains have come too late to bring much relief. Aid agencies have warned that with them will come flooding, cholera, malaria and hypothermia. In the arid north, pastoralists have watched as their cattle collapsed from exhaustion and thirst, and those that survive now face floods. The people are scarcely holding on and the number of armed skirmishes over water and livestock is rising. Even in usually greener regions the drought has taken its toll. Four consecutive harvests have failed in the southeast while the Rift Valley, Kenya’s breadbasket, is a wasteland of withered crops. There are fears that heavy rains will wash away the topsoil, taking with it precious maize seeds.

Zimbabwe PM Tsvangirai Briefs South African President Zuma on Crisis - Peta Thornycroft, Voice of America. Zimbabwe Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai has met South African President Jacob Zuma, the outgoing chairman of the Southern Africa Development Community, as part of his diplomatic shuttle through the region to brief leaders about why he has suspended contact with President Robert Mugabe. South African President Jacob Zuma issued a statement, after his meeting with Zimbabwe Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai in Cape Town, saying he was concerned about the threat of political instability in Zimbabwe. Mr. Tsvangirai broke off contact with President Robert Mugabe and ZANU-PF last week because he said there was no progress in resolving outstanding issues of the year-old political agreement that led to formation of an inclusive government in February. It was under Mr. Zuma's leadership of the Southern Africa Development Community the unity government was formed. The Southern Africa Development Community and the African Union guaranteed the political agreement that Mr. Tsvangirai says is being breached by ZANU-PF on a daily basis.

Robert Mugabe vs. Zimbabwe - New York Times editorial. Zimbabwe’s president, Robert Mugabe, and his party have been trying to blow up the power-sharing arrangement ever since neighboring states put it together last year. They are now perilously close to succeeding. Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai announced last week that he and his party, the Movement for Democratic Change, would boycott cabinet meetings to protest the arrest and detention of an important party leader, one of a long series of arrests ordered by Mr. Mugabe to make power-sharing unworkable. The departure of Mr. Tsvangirai and his allies from government would be a disaster for Zimbabwe’s long-suffering people. The Southern African Development Community, the 15-member regional organization that brokered the deal, must demand that Mr. Mugabe finally abide by its terms and spirit. If he refuses, the community should withdraw recognition from his government and insist on new, internationally supervised elections.

UN Security Council Members Support Independent Inquiry on Guinea - Margaret Besheer, Voice of America. The UN Security Council expressed broad support Wednesday for establishing an independent commission of inquiry to investigate alleged human rights violations in Guinea last month during an anti-government protest that turned deadly. Human rights groups and witnesses say that that during the September 28 rally in a stadium in the capital, Conakry, protesters were shot, stabbed, raped and beaten. They say at least 157 people were killed, a figure the government says is inflated. Last week, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon announced he would establish an international commision of inquiry to investigate the incidents and to hold the perpetrators accountable. He dispatched one of his senior officials, Assistant Secretary-General for Political Affairs, Haile Menkarios, to Conakry to pursue setting up the commission. On Wednesday, Menkarios reported his findings to the Security Council in a closed-door session. Afterwards, he told reporters that Guinea's military ruler, Captain Moussa "Dadis" Camara has agreed to cooperate with the commission once it is created.

ASIA PACIFIC

Gates, Willard Seek More Engagement With China - Donna Miles, American Forces Press Service. It’s in the United States’ long-term interest to engage more closely with China, Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates said today, and his new top officer in the Pacific said he’s looking forward to the role he hopes to play in the dialogue. Dialog between the two countries, particularly about China’s military modernization efforts, will go a long way toward promoting transparency and “preventing miscalculations,” Gates told a gathering of US and South Korean troops here today. It also can promote the kind of relationship required for the United States and China to work together to confront mutual security concerns, he said. Gates cited China’s important role in the six-party talks aimed at getting North Korea to abandon its nuclear weapons program. “The Chinese have a similar interest in preventing destabilizing activities in the region as much as any of us,” he said. “Our goal moving forward is to try to encourage China to grow its participation in internationally stabilizing activities.” Navy Adm. Robert F. Willard, who took the helm at US Pacific Command just two days ago, said welcomes the role he’ll play in promoting more dialogue and engagement with China. China brought an abrupt halt to that interchange after the United States announced arms sales to Taiwan in October 2008, but slowly is showing interest in reengaging.

China Expands Cyberspying in US, Report Says - Siobhan Gorman, Wall Street Journal. The Chinese government is ratcheting up its cyberspying operations against the US, a congressional advisory panel found, citing an example of a carefully orchestrated campaign against one US company that appears to have been sponsored by Beijing. The unnamed company was just one of several successfully penetrated by a campaign of cyberespionage, according to the US-China Economic and Security Review Commission report to be released Thursday. Chinese espionage operations are "straining the US capacity to respond," the report concludes. The bipartisan commission, formed by Congress in 2000 to investigate the security implications of growing trade with China, is made up largely of former US government officials in the national security field. The commission contracted analysts at defense giant Northrop Grumman Corp. to write the report. The analysts wouldn't name the company described in the case study, describing it only as "a firm involved in high-technology development." The report didn't provide a damage assessment and didn't say specifically who was behind the attack against the US company. But it said the company's internal analysis indicated the attack originated in or came through China.

US Defense Secretary Urges South Korea to Spend More on Security - Kurt Achin, Voice of America. US Defense Secretary Robert Gates says North Korea remains a real threat to security on the Korean peninsula and in the world. He is in South Korea, where he is urging Seoul to beef up its military to reflect its status as an emerging world power. US Defense Secretary Robert Gates praised South Korean defense reforms Wednesday, saying the country's military is becoming more mobile and better able to contribute to international peacekeeping and security operations. He says South Korea's rising status deserves a bigger budget. "We encourage the Republic of Korea's political leaders to make an investment to Korea's emerging role as a contributor to global security, and commensurate with the threat you face on the peninsula," Gates said. The United States deploys about 28,000 military personnel in South Korea, to help deter any attempted repeat of the North's 1950 invasion. Gates is expected to meet Thursday with his South Korean counterpart, Kim Tae-young, to discuss issues affecting the alliance, as well as possible South Korean contributions to stabilizing Afghanistan.

Gates Calls on South Korea to Expand Security Role - Donna Miles, American Forces Press Service. Lauding progress toward transferring wartime operational control of South Korean troops to their own country in 2012, Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates today called on the longtime US ally to assume a larger security role on the Korean peninsula and beyond. Gates told a gathering of about 150 US and South Korean troops at Yongsan Garrison here that he’s impressed in strides the South Korean armed forces have made toward assuming the lead defense role in their national territory. These efforts, along with a bold modernization effort, have built a force he called “poised to lead the defense of your homeland and protect your nation’s security interests around the world.” Gates called on South Korea’s political leaders to invest more in their country’s defense, at a level “appropriate to Korea’s emerging role as a contributor to global security, and commensurate with the threat you face on the peninsula.” North Korea - the impetus for the long-term US security commitment here - has become increasingly lethal and destabilizing, he said. Though North Korea still has the capacity, although degraded, to strike south of the demilitarized zone, he noted, that threat pales in comparison to current developments that “threaten not just the peninsula, but the Pacific Rim and international stability as well.” “Today, it is North Korea’s pursuit of nuclear weapons and proliferation of nuclear know-how and ballistic missile weapons and parts that have focused our attention,” Gates told the audience. “We do not today, nor will we ever, accept a North Korea with nuclear weapons. We will work, as an alliance and with other allies and partners, for the complete and verifiable denuclearization of North Korea.” Gates reiterated the US commitment to using the “full range of American military might” to provide extended deterrence. This includes everything from the nuclear umbrella to conventional-strike and missile-defense capabilities, as well as the continued US military presence in South Korea.

Gates, Japanese Leaders Vow Continued Cooperation - Donna Miles, American Forces Press Service. Citing “great opportunities” to further strengthen the US-Japanese security relationship in cooperation with the new Japanese government, Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates re-emphasized today the need to move forward with the previously agreed-to realignment plan. Gates met with Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama and Japanese Defense Minister Toshimi Kitazawa, calling the US-Japan partnership “the cornerstone of our security policy in Asia.” Hatoyama told Gates his administration “cherishes our alliance” with the United States and plans to put a “fresh impetus” on furthering it. It’s as important today as when it was formed, he added, particularly in light of “uncertainty” in the region. Speaking during a joint news conference with Kitazawa, Gates expressed hope in advancing the relationship that has provided a defense umbrella for Japan for nearly 50 years and helped to provide security to the region. “The true legacy of the last 50 years is the enormous potential we have to strengthen our ties to tackle security challenges as an alliance of equals in the 21st century,” he said. Gates and Kitazawa discussed issues ranging from the two countries’ missile defense cooperation – critical, Gates noted, in light of North Korean activities – to Japan’s role in disaster response and counterpiracy operations to its support for the mission in Afghanistan.

US Pressures Japan on Military Package - John Pomfret and Blaine Harden, Washington Post. Worried about a new direction in Japan's foreign policy, the Obama administration warned the Tokyo government Wednesday of serious consequences if it reneges on a military realignment plan formulated to deal with a rising China. The comments from Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates underscored increasing concern among US officials as Japan moves to redefine its alliance with the United States and its place in Asia. In August, the opposition Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) won an overwhelming victory in elections, ending more than 50 years of one-party rule. For a US administration burdened with challenges in Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iraq, Iran, North Korea and China, troubles with its closest ally in Asia constitute a new complication. A senior State Department official said the United States had "grown comfortable" thinking about Japan as a constant in US relations in Asia. It no longer is, he said, adding that "the hardest thing right now is not China, it's Japan."

EUROPE

Poland Pledges Cooperation With New Missile Defense Plan - Hilary Heuler, Voice of America. Vice President Joe Biden visited Poland and received assurances from Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk that Poland will take part in a new missile defense plan. Polish officials said they would host elements of the new plan that was announced last month in Washington. Vice President Joe Biden is the first high-level US official to visit Poland since President Barack Obama canceled the planned Central European missile shield proposed by former President George W. Bush. Biden said the new missile plan would be enough to defend Poland and he said US support for Poland remains solid. As part of the plan, Poland has agreed to host the US Navy's Standard Missile-3 anti-ballistic-missile system. US Defense officials say the new plan would include interceptor missiles deployed on US Navy ships in the North Sea and Mediterranean, in addition to ground-based weapons. The interceptor missiles are aimed at countering missiles fired by Iran. Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk described the plans as "very interesting" for Poland.

Mending Fences, Biden Assures Poland That US Is Watching Over It - Peter Baker, New York Times. Standing next to Poland’s prime minister, Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. wanted to make sure no one missed his point. The United States guarantees Poland’s security, he said. “This strategic assurance is absolute, absolute, Mr. Prime Minister,” Mr. Biden declared. It is “a solemn obligation,” he went on. Then he added, “Make no mistake about it: Our commitment to Poland is unwavering.” Or “inviolable” as he later put it. The absolute, solemn, unwavering, inviolable commitment not just to Poland, but to the entire region, was the central message of the vice president’s damage-control tour of Eastern Europe that got under way on Wednesday. Sent to repair the rift in relations after President Obama canceled his predecessor’s antimissile shield in Eastern Europe, Mr. Biden spared little effort to reinforce America’s friendship with the region. He appeared to make progress in healing the divide; Polish leaders affirmed a decision to station some of the smaller, mobile interceptors at the heart of Mr. Obama’s reformulated missile defense plan on their soil.

MIDDLE EAST

Egypt's Opposition Muslim Brotherhood Denies Reports of Dissension - Edward Yeranian, Voice of America. Reports of dissension in Egypt's opposition Muslim Brotherhood as well as the resignation of its leader were swiftly denied by the group's top leader. Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood quickly rejected reports that its leader resigned after a row with conservatives. But analysts say the controversy exposes a profound rift among the Islamists. The Muslim Brotherhood was reacting to news reports in the Egyptian press earlier this week that Supreme Guide Mohammed Mahdi Akef stormed out of a meeting over the weekend, saying he quit. The 81-year-old Akef has since told the press that he continues to lead the group. But public debate continues, bringing to light reported clashes between moderate and conservative leaders over the appointment of senior member Essam al-Erian to the group's politburo. The dispute has been brewing since the death in June of Mohammed Hilal, which opened the seat. The conservatives reportedly blocked al-Erian when he was nominated. Hisham Kassem, editor of the popular Egyptian daily newspaper Al-Masry Al-Youm, says that the internal debate over al-Erian's appointment means the pendulum of power has swung in favor of the conservatives.

EVENTS

The US Military Academy’s Department of History is pleased to invite you to a West Point Symposium on the History of Irregular Warfare, 18-20 November 2009. The symposium will feature the scholarship of five cadet panel presenters with commentary by distinguished guest scholars, including: Dr. Stephen Biddle as our keynote speaker, Dr. Jeremy Black, Col. Robert Cassidy, Dr. Conrad Crane, Dr. George Herring, Dr. Brian Linn, and Dr. Peter Mansoor. Additionally, Dr. James Le Sueur (Uncivil War: Intellectuals and Identity Politics, 2005) will present a special lecture on Algerian society since 1963. Col. Gian Gentile, a History faculty member, will participate as part of the “Visiting Scholars Panel” with Dr. Crane, Dr. Mansoor, and Col. Cassidy. (Invitation and POC Information) (History of IW Symposium Agenda)

BOOKS

Horse Soldiers: The Extraordinary Story of a Band of Soldiers Who Rode to Victory in Afghanistan - Doug Stanton.

Horse Soldiers tells the important story of the Special Forces soldiers who first put American boots on the ground in Afghanistan in 2001. Fighting alongside the Northern Alliance, the troops, often riding on horseback, achieved several important victories against the Taliban.

War 2.0: Irregular Warfare in the Information Age - Thomas Rid and Marc Hecker.

War 2.0: Irregular Warfare in the Information Age argues that two intimately connected trends are putting modern armies under huge pressure to adapt: the rise of insurgencies and the rise of the Web. Both in cyberspace and in warfare, the grassroots public has assumed increasing importance in recent years. After the dot-com bubble burst in 2000, Web 2.0 rose from the ashes. This newly interactive and participatory form of the Web promotes and enables offline action. Similarly, after Rumsfeld's attempt to transform the US military into a lean, lethal, computerized force crashed in Iraq in 2003, counterinsurgency rose from the ashes. Counterinsurgency is a social form of war - indeed, the US Army calls it armed social work - in which the local matrix population becomes the center of strategic gravity and public opinion at home the critical vulnerability.

The New Counterinsurgency Era: Transforming the US Military for Modern Wars - David H. Ucko.

Confronting insurgent violence in Iraq and Afghanistan, the US military has recognized the need to "re-learn" counterinsurgency. But how has the Department of Defense with its mixed efforts responded to this new strategic environment? Has it learned anything from past failures? In The New Counterinsurgency Era, David Ucko examines DoD's institutional obstacles and initially slow response to a changing strategic reality.

Journey into Darkness: Genocide in Rwanda - Thomas P. Odom.

In July 1994, Thomas P. Odom was part of the US Embassy team that responded to the Goma refugee crisis. He witnessed the deaths of 70,000 refugees in a single week. In the previous three months of escalating violence, the Rwandan genocide had claimed 800,000 dead. Now, in this vivid and unsettling new book, Odom offers the first insider look at these devastating events before, during, and after the genocide.

Joker One: A Marine Platoon’s Story of Courage - Donovan Campbell.

Donovan Campbell, first as a Marine and then as a writer, shows us that the dominant emotion in war isn’t hatred or anger or fear. It’s love. His story stands as a poignant tribute to his men–their courage, their dedication, their skill, and their love for one another, even unto death.

The Battle for Peace: A Frontline Vision of America's Power and Purpose - Anthony Zinni and Tony Koltz

The intellectual complement to Zinni and Clancy's bestselling Battle Ready (2004), a narrative memoir salted with specific policy recommendations, this volume provides the former US Central Command chief's analysis of America's current global position. Zinni begins by asserting that America's status as "the most powerful nation in the history of the planet" has created a de facto empire. The US has no choice: if it fails to take the lead, nothing significant happens. At the same time, Americans must recognize that, in a global age, there can be no zero-sum games.

The Unforgiving Minute: A Soldier's Education - Craig Mullaney

The Unforgiving Minute is the ultimate's soldier's book - universal in its raw emotion and its understanding of the larger issues of life and death. Mullaney, a master storyteller, plunges the depths of self-doubt, endurance, and courage. The result: a riveting, suspenseful human story, beautifully told. This is a book written under fire - a lyrical, spellbinding tale of war, love, and courage. The Unforgiving Minute is the Three Cups of Tea of soldiering.

Great Powers: America and the World after Bush - Thomas P.M. Barnett

In civilian and military circles alike, The Pentagon’s New Map became one of the most talked about books of 2004. “A combination of Tom Friedman on globalization and Carl von Clausewitz on war, [it is] the red-hot book among the nation’s admirals and generals,” wrote David Ignatius in The Washington Post. Barnett’s second book, Blueprint for Action, demonstrated how to put the first book’s principles to work. Now, in Great Powers, Barnett delivers his most sweeping - and important - book of all.

The Accidental Guerrilla: Fighting Small Wars in the Midst of a Big One - David Kilcullen

A remarkably fresh perspective on the War on Terror. Kilcullen takes us "on the ground" to uncover the face of modern warfare, illuminating both the big global war (the "War on Terrorism") and its relation to the associated "small wars" across the globe: Iraq, Afghanistan, the Philippines, Indonesia, Thailand, Chechnya, Pakistan and North Africa.

The Gamble: General David Petraeus and the American Military Adventure in Iraq, 2006-2008 - Thomas Ricks

Thomas E. Ricks uses hundreds of hours of exclusive interviews with top officers in Iraq and extraordinary on-the-ground reportage to document the inside story of the Iraq War since late 2005 as only he can, examining the events that took place as the military was forced to reckon with itself, the surge was launched, and a very different war began.

Why Vietnam Matters: An Eyewitness Account of Lessons Not Learned - Rufus Phillips

Phillips details how the legendary Edward G. Lansdale helped the South Vietnamese gain and consolidate their independence between 1954 and 1956, and how this later changed to a reliance on American conventional warfare with its highly destructive firepower. He reasons that our failure to understand the Communists, our South Vietnamese allies, or even ourselves took us down the wrong road. In summing up US errors in Vietnam, Phillips draws parallels with the American experience in Iraq and Afghanistan and suggests changes in the US approach. Known for his intellectual integrity and firsthand, long-term knowledge of what went on in Vietnam, the author offers lessons for today in this trenchant account.

Baghdad at Sunrise: A Brigade Commander's War in Iraq - Peter Mansoor

This is a unique contribution to the burgeoning literature on the Iraq war, analyzing the day-to-day performance of a US brigade in Baghdad during 2004-2005. Mansoor uses a broad spectrum of sources to address the military, political and cultural aspects of an operation undertaken with almost no relevant preparation, which tested officers and men to their limits and generated mistakes and misjudgments on a daily basis. The critique is balanced, perceptive and merciless - and Mansoor was the brigade commander. Military history is replete with command memoirs. Most are more or less self-exculpatory. Even the honest ones rarely achieve this level of analysis. The effect is like watching a surgeon perform an operation on himself. Mansoor has been simultaneously a soldier and a scholar, able to synergize directly his military and academic experiences.

The Strongest Tribe: War, Politics, and the Endgame in Iraq - Bing West

From a universally respected combat journalist, a gripping history based on five years of front-line reporting about how the war was turned around - and the choice now facing America. We interpret reality through the clouded prism of our own experience, so it is unsurprising that Bing West sees Iraq through the lens of Vietnam. He served as a Marine officer there, and he thinks politicians and the media caused the American public to turn against a war that could have been won. Now a correspondent for the Atlantic, West has made 15 reporting trips to Iraq over the last six years and is almost as personally invested in the current conflict as he was in Vietnam; this book, his third on Iraq, is his attempt to ensure that the "endgame" in Iraq turns out better than in his last war.

Tell Me How This Ends: General David Petraeus and the Search for a Way Out of Iraq - Linda Robinson

After a series of disastrous missteps in its conduct of the war, the White House in 2006 appointed General David Petraeus as the Commanding General of the coalition forces. Tell Me How This Ends is an inside account of his attempt to turn around a failing war. Linda Robinson conducted extensive interviews with Petraeus and his subordinate commanders and spent weeks with key US and Iraqi divisions. The result is the only book that ties together military operations in Iraq and the internecine political drama that is at the heart of the civil war. Replete with dramatic battles, behind-doors confrontations, and astute analysis, the book tells the full story of the Iraq War’s endgame, and lays out the options that will be facing the next president.

The War Within: A Secret White House History 2006-2008 - Bob Woodward

Woodward interviewed key players, obtained dozens of never-before-published documents, and had nearly three hours of exclusive interviews with President Bush. The result is a stunning, firsthand history of the years from mid-2006, when the White House realizes the Iraq strategy is not working, through the decision to surge another 30,000 US troops in 2007, and into mid-2008, when the war becomes a fault line in the presidential election. As violence in Iraq reaches unnerving levels in 2006, a second front in the war rages at the highest levels of the Bush administration. In his fourth book on President George W. Bush, Bob Woodward takes readers deep inside the tensions, secret debates, unofficial backchannels, distrust and determination within the White House, the Pentagon, the State Department, the intelligence agencies and the US military headquarters in Iraq. With unparalleled intimacy and detail, this gripping account of a president at war describes a period of distress and uncertainty within the US government from 2006 through mid-2008. The White House launches a secret strategy review that excludes the military. General George Casey, the commander in Iraq, believes that President Bush does not understand the war and eventually concludes he has lost the president's confidence. The Joint Chiefs of Staff also conduct a secret strategy review that goes nowhere. On the verge of revolt, they worry that the military will be blamed for a failure in Iraq.

We Are Soldiers Still: A Journey Back to the Battlefields of Vietnam - Harold Moore and Joe Galloway

In their stunning follow-up to the classic bestseller We Were Soldiers Once... and Young, Lt. Gen. Hal Moore and Joe Galloway return to Vietnam and reflect on how the war changed them, their men, their enemies, and both countries - often with surprising results. It would be a monumental task for Moore and Galloway to top their classic 1992 memoir. But they come close in this sterling sequel, which tells the backstory of two of the Vietnam War's bloodiest battles (in which Moore participated as a lieutenant colonel), their first book and a 1993 ABC-TV documentary that brought them back to the battlefield. Moore's strong first-person voice reviews the basics of the November 1965 battles, part of the 34-day Battle of the Ia Drang Valley. Among other things, Moore and Galloway (who covered the battle for UPI) offer portraits of two former enemy commanders, generals Nguyen Huu An and Chu Huy Man, whom the authors met - and bonded with - nearly three decades after the battle. This book proves again that Moore is an exceptionally thoughtful, compassionate and courageous leader (he was one of a handful of army officers who studied the history of the Vietnam wars before he arrived) and a strong voice for reconciliation and for honoring the men with whom he served.

In a Time of War: The Proud and Perilous Journey of West Point' Class of 2002 - Bill Murphy

The West Point cadets Murphy follows through their baptism by fire are an admirable sample of young American men and women: intelligent, ambitious and intensely patriotic. Most come from career military families and hold conservative opinions. Murphy describes their four years at West Point with respect even when discussing their love lives and marriages. All yearn for battle, and most get their wish. The book's best passages describe the confusion of moving to Iraq or Afghanistan and fighting insurgents, for which they lack both training and equipment. All feel something is not right but concentrate on the job at hand; some inevitably die or are grievously wounded.

Iraq and the Evolution of American Strategy - Steven Metz

Today the US military is more nimble, mobile, and focused on rapid responses against smaller powers than ever before. One could argue that the Gulf War and the postwar standoff with Saddam Hussein hastened needed military transformation and strategic reassessments in the post–Cold War era. But the preoccupation with Iraq also mired the United States in the Middle East and led to a bloody occupation. What will American strategy look like after US troops leave Iraq? Metz concludes that the United States has a long-standing, continuing problem “developing sound assumptions when the opponent operates within a different psychological and cultural framework.” He sees a pattern of misjudgments about Saddam and Iraq based on Western cultural and historical bias and a pervasive faith in the superiority of America’s worldview and institutions. This myopia contributed to America being caught off guard by Saddam’s invasion of Kuwait in 1990, then underestimating his longevity, and finally miscalculating the likelihood of a stable and democratic Iraq after he was toppled. With lessons for all readers concerned about America’s role in the world, Dr. Metz’s important new work will especially appeal to scholars and students of strategy and international security studies, as well as to military professionals and DOD civilians. With a foreword by Colin S. Gray.