Taliban Force US to Find New Route to Afghanistan

Since the invasion of Afghanistan in 2001, the American military has received about 75% of its supplies via a NATO corridor from Pakistan. But as the Taliban continue to grow in strength and the border region becomes ever more unstable, the US is now seeking new routes—including a punishing overland journey via Europe. Attacks on drivers have become a daily occurrence, writes the Washington Post, and many on the route see no end in sight.

"The Taliban, they tell us, 'These goods belong to the Americans. Don't bring them to the Americans. If you do, we'll kill you,'" says one driver along the corridor. NATO troops have tried to escort the convoys, and a new Pentagon contract will require vehicles to use satellite tracking devices. But a new corridor may be the only hope, as the drivers acknowledge: "From Karachi to Kabul there is trouble. The whole route is insecure." (More Pakistan stories.)