Afghanistan

World News

Afghan Government Says Mullah Omar 'Died In April 2013'

1:48pm July 29, 2015

by Eyder Peralta

Reports of the death of the Taliban's spiritual leader have swirled in the past and have been unreliable. The Afghan government said according to "credible information," Omar died in Pakistan.

National Geographic photographer Steve McCurry, shown in Kuwait in 1991, says his big break came at a refugee camp near Peshawar, Pakistan, after he heard the sound of children laughing.

Arts

How One Photographer Captured A Piercing Gaze That Shook The World

2:16pm July 27, 2015

by Daniel Hajek

In 1984, Steve McCurry was in Pakistan covering a refugee crisis for National Geographic. Captivated by a young girl's eyes, he clicked the shutter — and took one of the magazine's most iconic photos.

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Vietnam War Study Raises Concerns About Veterans' Mental Health

8:22pm July 24, 2015

by Daniel Zwerdling

A federally mandated study shows that almost 300,000 Vietnam veterans still struggle with daily health problems linked to the traumas they experienced more than 40 years ago during the war.

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World News

The Seldom-Seen Faces Of The 'Humans Of Kabul'

4:51pm July 20, 2015

by Linda Poon

When Boston photographer David Fox moved to Afghanistan, he began to share pictures and stories about the day-to-day life that rarely gets covered by the press.

The interior of one of several large warehouses at Kandahar Airfield. Because the U.S. military can't use them, they'll likely pass to the Afghan government.

National

Military Finds U.S. Paid $14.7 Million For Overdue Warehouses In Afghanistan

2:51pm July 20, 2015

by Bill Chappell

In early 2014, the Pentagon's Defense Logistics Agency accepted a newly built warehouse facility. There was one snag: The agency was poised to leave the country.

Lt. Gen. Abdul Raziq is the police chief widely credited with bringing much greater security to the southern Afghan city of Kandahar. But critics accuse him of human rights abuses including torture and extrajudicial killings.

World News

He Calmed Kandahar. But At What Cost?

1:34am July 11, 2015

by Tom Bowman

Lt. Gen. Abdul Raziq has imposed control on the city where the Taliban were born. He's been praised by the U.S. and the Afghan leadership, but his forces have also been accused of human rights abuses.

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World News

Afghan Court Commutes Death Sentences In Mob Killing Of Woman

5:19pm July 02, 2015

by Krishnadev Calamur

Four men were sentenced to death in May for their roles in the attack that killed a 28-year-old woman who was falsely accused of burning the Quran.

World News

Memoir Tells Of Daring Medevac Rescue In Afghanistan's Valley Of Death

3:45pm July 02, 2015

Renee Montagne talks to helicopter pilot Erik Sabiston and medic Julia Bringloe, former medevac crewmembers, about a nerve-racking rescue mission they did in Afghanistan's Valley of Death in 2011.

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David Rohde Details Taliban Kidnapping In 'A Rope And A Prayer'

3:14pm June 29, 2015

The White House is changing its policy about negotiating with terrorist groups which hold Americans hostage. Renee Montagne talks to David Rohde, a journalist who was held by the Taliban for months.

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Afghan girls attend a makeshift school in the eastern city of Jalalabad in March. A sharp increase in students, particularly girls, is often cited as a success story in rebuilding the country. However, the U.S. special inspector for Afghanistan has questi

World News

Afghan Schools: Is The Success Story Exaggerated?

1:35pm June 18, 2015

by Greg Myre

Afghan officials reportedly inflated the number of students to make the education system appear more successful than it has been, according to the U.S. inspector for Afghanistan's reconstruction.