Afghanistan War News Updates -- March 21, 2011

A U.S. Army Special Forces soldier guides other soldiers assigned to Special Operations Task Force South and Afghan commandos down a roadway in the Zharay district, Kandahar province, Afghanistan, March 6, 2011. U.S. Army photo by Spc. Daniel P. Shook

Photos Show GIs Posing And Smiling With Dead Afghan Civilians -- MSNBC

Officials involved in a related court-martial had sought to severely limit access to pictures

Graphic photos showing U.S. troops posing with dead Afghans were published by a German news organization Monday, with one showing a soldier smiling as he held a bloodied and partially clothed corpse.

The photos published by Der Spiegel were among several seized by Army investigators looking into the deaths of three unarmed Afghans last year. Five soldiers based at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, south of Seattle, have been charged with murder and conspiracy in the case.

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More News On Afghanistan

German newspaper publishes suppressed photos of U.S. soldiers posing with partially naked Afghan corpse -- The Daily Mail
Photos showing soldiers, victim published -- UPI
Der Spiegel publishes photos of U.S. soldiers and Afghan corpses -- Stars And Stripes
Army apologizes after Der Spiegel publishes shocking photos of soldiers posing with corpses -- New York Daily News
Der Spiegel publishes photos of U.S. soldiers posing with dead Afghan civilian -- Washington Post
Army Apologizes After Published Photos Show U.S. Soldiers Posing With Afghan Corpse -- FOX News
US soldiers posed with dead Afghan -- Al Jazeera
U.S. army apologizes over "repugnant" Afghan photos -- Yahoo News/Reuters
US Army apology for photos of soldiers with Afghan body -- BBC
Photos of soldiers posing with corpse prompts Army apology -- Military Times
US Army 'kill team' in Afghanistan posed for photos of murdered civilians -- The Guardian
Trophy Photos of Army’s ‘Kill Team’ With Afghan Civilians Could Be Worse Than Abu Ghraib -- New York Magazine

Taliban Condemn Attacks on Libya -- New York Times
Afghan Taliban condemns missile strikes in Libya, says West is meddling in nation's affairs -- Canadian Press
Afghan Taliban Decries Foreign Intervention in Libya -- SITE
Taliban Employs Modern Weapons In 'War of Words' -- Eurasianet

Taliban's push halted: Petraeus -- The Australian
Commander, troops involved in killing of Afghan kids suspended -- Press TV (Iran)
Judge: Soldier can show he reported Afghan plot -- Stars And Stripes/AP

New phase in Afghanistan as NATO readies handover -- Deutsche Welle
Q+A: Are Afghan forces ready to take over security? -- Reuters
Analysis: Afghan security handover more signal than real change -- Reuters
Lashkar Gah to be handed over to Afghan forces -- The Telegraph

Security tight as Afghans welcome in new year -- Khaleej Times/(AFP)
Afghans celebrate New Year amid hope for lasting peace -- Xinhuanet

Afghan VP calls on militants to lay down arms -- Forbes/AP
Afghan VP calls on militants to lay down their arms, join the peace process to end the war -- Newser

Better training sought in light of Kandahar 'friendly fire' -- CTV
NATO calls for better training after Canadian convoy shooting -- Toronto Star

Factbox: Gen. David Petraeus -- Yahoo News
United States begins a new war, what happens to Afghanistan? -- Reuters
Petraeus’s progress in Afghanistan — and Washington -- Fred Hiatt, Washington Post