Afghanistan War News Updates -- July 22, 2011

U.S. Army soldiers walk toward mine-resistant, ambush-protected vehicles during a mission in Khost province, Afghanistan, July 17, 2011. The soldiers are assigned to the 1st Infantry Division's 1st Battalion, 6th Field Artillery Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team. U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Joseph Watson

Afghanistan's Anti-Corruption Efforts Thwarted At Every Turn -- The Guardian

Afghans now pay double the bribes of two years ago and Hamid Karzai has gone out of his way to curb anti-corruption initiatives

Corruption has permeated every layer of Afghan society in the past 10 years, affecting everyday lives and sullying the highest levels of government.

In an Asia Foundation report last year, 55% of Afghan respondents said corruption was a major problem in their daily lives, up from 42% in 2006.

Despite funding to tackle corruption, efforts by Afghan and international officials are thwarted at every turn. Ordinary Afghans now pay on average $158 (£98) per bribe, double the level of two years ago, according to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime. Transparency International named Afghanistan as the world's second most corrupt country, along with Burma and after Somalia.

Read more ....

More News On Afghanistan

Afghan-led Force Kills Insurgents, Detains Suspect -- US Department of Defense
Security force conducts clearance operation on insurgent encampment -- Dvids
2 Hawaii-based soldiers killed in Afghanistan -- Mercury News/AP
NATO says 50 insurgents killed in east Afghanistan -- Yahoo News/AP
50 Insurgents Killed in Eastern Afghanistan -- Voice of America
Doubts cloud NATO handover in Afghanistan -- AFP

Pentagon mulls options in case Pakistan closes military supply routes -- The Hill
U.S. considers new ways to supply troops in Afghanistan -- Xinhuanet
Supply to Afghanistan through Pakistan reduced to 35 per cent -- The Hindu
Senators Price Out a Detour Around Pakistan -- Wall Street Journal
New ways to supply Afghanistan studied -- UPI
U.S. Looks at New Ways to Supply Troops in Afghanistan -- Defpro

Alleged Army Ringleader in Afghan Murders Faces Accuser -- New York Times
US pushes aid groups in Pakistan’s dangerous tribal region to advertise American funding -- Washington Post
Two U.K. nationals arrested in Afghanistan -- UPI
Local journalist battles plight of Afghan women -- CNN
Afghanistan's anti-corruption efforts thwarted at every turn -- The Guardian

Reckoning with Taliban irreconcilables -- Derek Henry Flood, Asia Times
Afghan reconciliation process -- Daily Times editorial
Abrupt US withdrawal adds to regional instability -- Ashraf Javed, The Nation
The real AfPak deal -- Asia Times (Book review)
War on Drugs in Afghanistan Complicates War on Terror -- Jessica Rettig, Yahoo News/US News and World Report
The Good, the Bad and the Ugly in Afghanistan -- Michael O'Hanlon, National Interest
Fighting a 50 percent solution in Afghanistan -- Gayle Tzemach Lemmon, Foreign Policy