Word: kabul
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Dates: during 2000-2009
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...from the conservative western province of Herat, and while she charmed audiences nationwide with her joyful renditions of classic Afghan songs, she was persecuted by conservatives for daring to break cultural taboos against women singing in public. These days, however, her face, emblazoned on election posters and billboards across Kabul, symbolizes the shattering of new barriers: popularly elected women in politics. Last week it was announced that Tarana had been elected to the 29-seat Kabul Provincial Council (akin to a U.S. state legislature), winning with the second highest number of votes - 8,404 - out of a field...
Still, it's a slim hope. Provincial councils have little real power in Afghanistan, as they serve more as advisory boards than legislative or budgeting organs. Tarana admits that she will be able to achieve little lasting change on the Kabul council but points out that by simply serving in the public realm, she will be making a difference. "I first started thinking about politics when I was having so many problems on Afghan Star. No one in government supported me, and those in power condemned me. Now I can be supportive of youth who are willing to rise...
...sound policy. If U.S. forces were not in Afghanistan, the Taliban, with its al-Qaeda allies in tow, would seize control of the country's south and east and might even take it over entirely. A senior Afghan politician told me that the Taliban would be in Kabul within 24 hours without the presence of international forces. This is not because the Taliban is so strong; generous estimates suggest it numbers no more than 20,000 fighters. It is because the Afghan government and the 90,000-man Afghan army are still so weak...
...There are four main prescriptions for a more realistic strategy in Afghanistan. First, stop trying to do the impossible, i.e., build an effective government in Kabul and enlarge Afghan security forces. Corruption, inefficiency and addiction are endemic to Afghan society. We should instead focus on forging a smaller army, say 75,000 or 100,000, that can and will actually fight, and concentrate on arming and training local warlords and tribal leaders who can defend themselves. This, backed by good U.S. logistics and intelligence, could block a Taliban reconquest of Afghanistan...
...area. Earlier this year, a 21-year-old Afghan fighter who had trained in Quetta, the capital of Pakistan's Baluchistan province, tried to kill four American aid workers in a car bombing in Kandahar, Afghanistan. After his arrest, Shafiq Shah gave an interview to TIME in a Kabul prison in which he described the indoctrination that young fighters receive concerning the role of foreign aid workers. "[Muslim aid recipients] shouldn't eat infidel food," Shah said. "God gave us everything we need. We have bodies and hands and eyes and community - why can't those people work...