David Petraeus

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Gates, Petraeus Joke About Bombing Libya

Ha ha

(Newser) - Apparently when military leaders get together they joke about ... bombing countries. That's what Defense Secretary Robert Gates and Afghanistan coalition forces commander David Petraeus did when they met in Kabul yesterday. "Welcome back, Sir," Petraeus said to Gates on the tarmac after the boss landed. "You returning...

Petraeus Apologizes for Deaths of Afghan Boys

Nine were killed by NATO helicopter while gathering firewood

(Newser) - Gen. Petraeus has quickly apologized for one of the worst cases of a mistaken NATO strike: A coalition helicopter fired on a group of boys collecting firewood, killing nine. "We are deeply sorry for this tragedy and apologize to the members of the Afghan government, the people of Afghanistan...

Petraeus Suggests Afghans Burned Own Children

Participants at a recent meeting say comments offended Karzai

(Newser) - US officials were already skeptical of claims that a military operation last week killed 65 Afghan civilians , but now Gen. David Petraeus has apparently taken things a step further: During a Sunday meeting with Afghan President Hamid Karzai, Petraeus reportedly suggested Afghans burned their own children in an effort to...

Taliban's Middle Managers 'Tired of Fighting'

New US raid strategy may be taking its toll

(Newser) - Many mid-level Taliban commanders are increasingly unhappy at the prospect of returning to battlefield in Afghanistan, putting them at odds with the top-level commanders in Pakistan, one commander tells the New York Times. “I have talked to some commanders, and they are reluctant to fight,” he says. “...

Pentagon: Petraeus Isn't Going Anywhere

Papers said he'd leave by the end of the year

(Newser) - The Pentagon moved quickly today to quash reports that it’s looking to replace David Petraeus by the end of the year. “Despite some sensational speculation by one of the London papers, I can assure you General Petraeus is not quitting,” a Pentagon spokesman said in a statement....

GOP Senators Take Secret Afghanistan Trip

Mitch McConnell and crew return with praise for Obama's strategy

(Newser) - Mitch McConnell and a handful of other Senate Republicans took a secret trip to Afghanistan and Pakistan this weekend, announcing the trip only today—just before their return flight. The group, which included Lindsey Graham, Richard Burr, and freshmen Marco Rubio, Ron Johnson, Pat Toomey, and Kelly Ayotte, met with...

Biden Makes Surprise Afghanistan Visit

VP to review progress in security handover

(Newser) - The vice president has made a surprise visit to Afghanistan. Joe Biden is in the country to review progress as allied forces turn security over to Afghan hands, the AP reports. He’s set to meet with President Karzai and US commander David Petraeus, the White House says; he’ll...

Petraeus: 300 Taliban Leaders Hit in 3 Months

Special forces operations increase threefold

(Newser) - Special Forces teams have killed or captured more than 300 Taliban and al-Qaeda leaders in the last three months, says David Petraeus. The top general revealed the figure in a wide-ranging and upbeat discussion of the Afghan war, noting that the results had come from a three-to-four-fold increase in the...

White House Torn Apart By Afghan War

Bob Woodward book reveals deep fault lines over war policy

(Newser) - The Obama White House is a simmering pot of anger and disagreement, with too many bickering chefs handling of the war in Afghanistan, according to a new book by Bob Woodward that exposes deep rifts in the administration. Here, via the New York Times , are some of the juicy bits...

Afghan Progress Like 'Watching Paint Dry': Petraeus

But general says those gains are worth it

(Newser) - A full counterinsurgency victory in Afghanistan could take a full decade, General Petraeus tells ABC News in a wide-ranging interview. Despite that, he fully expects to follow the president's plan to begin drawing down forces in July 2011. The pace at which that withdrawal proceeds, however, will be "determined...

Petraeus Blasts Church's Plan to Burn Korans on 9/11

Says doing so will put our troops in danger

(Newser) - A Florida church that plans to burn Korans on Sept. 11 has turned a deaf ear to the city of Gainesville's condemnation of its plans —but will it listen to General Petraeus? The top US commander in Afghanistan blasted Dove World Outreach Center in an interview with the Wall ...

Roadside Bomb Brings US Afghan Toll to 21 in 5 Days

Petraeus: US withdrawal will be 'thinning out,' not abrupt departure

(Newser) - Four US troops were killed by a roadside bomb in eastern Afghanistan today, bringing the American death toll to 21 since Friday. The US death toll for August now stands at 53, almost all of whom were killed in southern and eastern Afghanistan, where the Taliban insurgency is strongest, the...

Anti-Mosque 'Patriots' Undermine Petraeus
Anti-Mosque 'Patriots' Undermine Petraeus
Frank Rich
Aug 22, 2010 10:09 AM CDT

Anti-Mosque 'Patriots' Undermine Petraeus

Fox News' Islamaphobia is going to backfire on US

(Newser) - The anti-mosque hysteria whipped up by the right—and especially by that "Islamaphobia command center" otherwise known as Rupert Murdoch's News Corp—is slimy, hypocritical politics at its worst, writes Frank Rich. In marshaling his evidence on that front, he points out a forgotten victim: Gen. David Petraeus. "...

Petraeus: 2011 Afghan Exit Date May Not Work

US-led coalition can still succeed, he says

(Newser) - In his first public remarks since taking over the command of US and NATO forces in Afghanistan last month, Gen. David Petraeus told the New York Times that he will not be bound by Barack Obama's 2011 drawdown date. "The president didn’t send me over here to seek...

GOP Slaps Obama on Mosque
 GOP Slaps Obama on Mosque 
TALK SHOW ROUNDUP
Aug 15, 2010 11:15 AM CDT

GOP Slaps Obama on Mosque

Issue will haunt in November, says Cornyn

(Newser) - David Petraeus stopped by to say he's not overwhelmed by his 2011 deadline in Afghanistan, but President Obama's stance on the Ground Zero mosque was pretty much the only game on the Sunday shows today. The GOP should keep its paws off the Constitution, DNC chair Tim Kaine said, while...

Karzai Concedes, Backs US Plan for Local Forces

Villagers will be trained to fight the Taliban

(Newser) - With US deaths rising by the day, Hamid Karzai gave up his long-held objections today to a central part of Gen. David Petraeus' strategy. The Afghan president agreed to allow the training of local defense forces—"community watch on steroids," says one US official—so villagers can defend...

Petraeus, Karzai Clash on Strategy
Petraeus,
Karzai Clash
on Strategy
Jul 10, 2010 11:53 AM CDT

Petraeus, Karzai Clash on Strategy

Elsewhere, six American troops are killed

(Newser) - Bleak news all around today from Afghanistan: Gen. David Petraeus has barely settled in, but he's already running into resistance from President Hamid Karzai on strategy, reports the Washington Post . Meanwhile, six American service members were killed, bringing the total to 23 this month, reports AP . That follows last month's...

Petraeus: 'We Are in This to Win'
 Petraeus: 
 'We Are in 
 This to Win' 
FIRST DAY ON THE JOB
Jul 4, 2010 6:30 AM CDT

Petraeus: 'We Are in This to Win'

General officially takes the reins in Afghanistan

(Newser) - Gen. David Petraeus formally assumed command of the 130,000-strong international force in Afghanistan today, declaring "we are in this to win" despite rising casualties and growing skepticism about the nearly 9-year-old war. "We have arrived at a critical moment," he told a crowd of hundreds, also...

Biden Makes Surprise Stop in Iraq
Biden Makes Surprise Stop
in Iraq
Jul 3, 2010 10:10 AM CDT

Biden Makes Surprise Stop in Iraq

In Afghanistan, meanwhile, Petraeus calls for unity

(Newser) - Joe Biden and his wife will be spending the Fourth of July weekend with the troops in Iraq. The vice president landed in Baghdad today for the surprise visit, where he will also meet with Iraqi leaders. It's likely an attempt to reassure Iraqis that the US is still engaged,...

Joe Biden Becomes Backstage Powerhouse

The 'skunk at the family picnic' has Obama's ear

(Newser) - It may have looked as though Joe Biden lost last fall’s argument over strategy in Afghanistan, but he actually emerged with a powerful, well-defined role in the administration. His position, in his own words: “the skunk at the family picnic.” Biden has been the in-house skeptic on...

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