Afghanistan Follow

The British media heralded the capture of Musa Qala, a town in Helmand province which has been under Taliban control for ten months, as a decisive turning point in the war in Afghanistan.

The Taliban are on the verge of overrunning Kabul, they control over half of Afghanistan and are fast becoming the only legitimate power in the country. These are the conclusions of a study released last week by The Senlis Council – a right wing think tank.

The occupations of Afghanistan and Iraq are producing unease in the army.

The global anti-war movement has achieved unprecedented, astonishing successes. Launched in many cases before a single bomb fell on Afghanistan, it rapidly crystallised into an expression of the grave doubts about US strategy in the wake of the 11 September 2001 attacks, before becoming the organised expression of outright hostility to George Bush’s policies.

Against the backdrop of failure in Iraq, Afghanistan is often promoted as the enduringly justifiable, and winnable, war. Jonathan Neale explains why this is not the case, while former US infantryman Johnny Rico speaks out about his experiences on the Afghan frontline

The bombs in Karachi that ripped through the cavalcade returning former prime

The German parliament voted to keep German troops in Afghanistan last Friday.

More evidence of Iraq occupation’s failure

This year has seen the often apolitical art scene in Britain burst into life with critiques of the war in Iraq and Afghanistan – most notably Mark Wallinger's Turner prize nominated State Britain installation.

Some 10,000 people marched in Berlin last Saturday against Germany’s role in the Afghanistan war.

Elaheh Rostami-Povey, Zed Books, £15.99

The game is pretty well up for the British presence in Iraq. Opinions as diverse as Menzies Campbell, the leader of the Liberal Democrats, and rebel leader Moqtada al-Sadr, whose base is among Shia in Baghdad’s Sadr City and in the south of the country centred on Basra, agree.