Afghan+War

Afghanistan War Factsheet (Sept 2008) [|October 7], [|2001] –present Objectives Complete: Fall of the Taliban government Destruction of al-Qaeda camps Objectives Ongoing: [|Taliban insurgency] [|War in North-West Pakistan] US Allies: (about 150 thousand) Northern Alliance = the [|Afghan army] : 76,000 troops, 86,000 expected by mid-2009 [|International Security Assistance Force] : A NATO led Security Force  53,700 troops [|Operation Enduring Freedom Allies] : US led Invasion and attack force 18000 troops US Enemies: (about 65 thousand) [|Taliban] : 10,000-30,000 troops [|al-Qaeda] : 1,200-2,500 [|Mehsud militia] (Tribes on border of Afghanistan/Pakistan): 30,000 troops Casualties: Afghan Security Forces: 3,800 killed Northern Alliance:200 killed [|Coalition] : 941 killed (U.S.: 581, UK: 118, Canada: 97, Germany: 28….) Civilians Killed by US bombings 2002: 3,700 to 5,000 civilians were killed Detainees: 28,000+ The initial attack removed the Taliban from power, but Taliban forces have since regained some strength.[|[16]] The war has been less successful in achieving the goal of restricting al-Qaeda's movement.[|[17]] Since 2006, [|Afghanistan] has seen threats to its stability from increased Taliban-led [|insurgent] activity, growing [|illegal drug production], and a fragile government with limited control outside of [|Kabul] .[|[18]] Drug Trade: Taliban had issued a ban on [|opium] production, which led to reductions in [|Pashtun Mafia] opium production by as much as 90%.[ Soon after the 2001 U.S. led invasion of Afghanistan opium production increased. By 2005, Afghanistan had regained its position as the world’s #1 opium producer and was producing 90% of the world’s opium, most of which is processed into [|heroin] and sold in Europe and Russia. While U.S. and allied efforts to combat the drug trade have been stepped up, the effort is hampered by the fact that many suspected drug traffickers are now top officials in the Karzai government. United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime ( [|UNODC] ) estimate that 52% of the nation's GDP, amounting to $2.7 billion annually, is generated by the drug trade. The rise in production has been linked to the deteriorating security situation, as production is markedly lower in areas with stable security.