Thursday, April 30, 2015

The Corruption In Afghanistan Continues

Gary Owen, VICE: Phantom Troops, Taliban Fighting, and Wasted Money — It's Springtime in Afghanistan

It's springtime, which means blossoming flowers, Opening Day baseball, and the start of the Taliban's annual campaign to violently drive foreigners out of Afghanistan. But instead of calling it spring, NATO calls it "fighting season," which for the allied coalition is one of only two seasons in the country. (The other is "poppy season," when the Taliban and the poppy harvest make it clear that America's plans to counter narcotics in the country are going every bit as poorly as America's plans to counter the insurgency.)

Spring is also when the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR) releases one of his quarterly reports [pdf below]. That happened Wednesday, and it's only slightly less discouraging than the annual resumption of official Taliban hostilities.

More News On Corruption In Afghanistan

U.S. wasting billions of taxpayer money on Afghanistan security forces: IG -- Washington Times
Billions Meant For Afghan Security Forces Subject To Corruption -- Vocativ
U.S. Doesn't Know How Many Afghans Are Fighting the Taliban -- Newsweek
IG: US can't verify how money for Afghan troop salaries is being spent -- Stars and Stripes
Watchdog: Almost $500 Million at Risk in Afghanistan -- Fiscal Times
$488 million U.S. investment in Afghan reconstruction is at risk -- Watchdog.org
If You Find $1.3 Billion in Missing Aid to Afghanistan, Please Contact the Pentagon at Your Earliest Convenience. -- Reason

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