A UH-60 Blackhawk helicopter belonging to US-led coalition troops was shot down by small-arms fire south of Afghanistan's capital Kabul July 2. The crew apparently survived, but Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, told reporters in Washington: "I am, and have been for some time now, deeply troubled by the increasing violence there. The Taliban and their supporters have, without question, grown more effective and more aggressive in recent weeks, and as the casualty figures clearly demonstrate."

Islamabad has angrily denied findings by Afghanistan's intelligence agency that Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) was the "real schemer and organizer" behind the failed April 27 assassination attempt on President Karzai at a military parade. (Gulf Daily News, June 26) That was the fourth attempt on Karzai's life by our count.

NATO forces in Afghanistan shelled insurgent targets in Pakistan in two incidents June 22, following rocket and artillery attacks launched into Khost and Paktika provinces from sanctuaries across the border. Four Afghan civilians were reportedly killed in the insurgents attacks, at least two of them children. Casualty figures for Pakistan were not available. Last week, Afghan President Hamid Karzai threatened to send troops across the border if Pakistan's government does not prevent militants from crossing the border. (NYT, June 23)

Pakistan protested a June 11 US military strike that killed at least 11 soldiers as a "gross violation" of its sovereignty. The Foreign Ministry in Islamabad summoned US Ambassador Anne Patterson to denounce a "senseless use of air power against a Pakistani border post," Foreign Secretary Salman Bashir said. Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani called the attack a "blatant and willful negation" of the sacrifices Pakistan has made in combating terrorism. Pakistan's military said in a statement that attack was "unprovoked and cowardly," adding, "The incident has hit at the very basis of cooperation and sacrifice with which Pakistani soldiers are supporting the coalition in the war against terror."

The US Marine Corps announced it will not bring criminal charges against two officers in command of a unit involved in the shooting deaths of up to 19 civilians near Jalalabad, Afghanistan, last year after a car bomb struck the marines’ convoy. (NYT, May 24) The announcement comes as protests are breaking out in Afghanistan following reports that a US sniper used a Koran for target practice. Hundreds demonstrated May 26 in Balkh and Logar provinces, tearing apart an effigy of President Bush and chanting anti-US slogans. A Lithuanian soldier and two Afghan civilians were killed in protests against the incident last. (AP, May 26)

Truce talks between Pakistan's government and tribal militants may be causing a rise in terror attacks in Afghanistan, NATO spokesman James Appathurai told reporters in Brussels. "The concern is that deals being struck between the Pakistani government and extremist groups in the tribal areas may be allowing them, the extremists, to have safe havens, rest, reconstitute and then move across the border," he said.

Brendan J. Cassar, chief of UNESCO's cultural program in Afghanistan, has—for the moment—backed denials by the New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF) denial that their soldiers damaged remains of the Bamiyan Buddha statues (destroyed by the Taliban seven years ago) by setting off charges in the area. Najibullah Harar, chief of information and culture for Bamiyan, said the blast conducted near the smaller of the two statues on May 1 had caused cracks in what is left of the 114 foot-high ancient structure and its side walls. (New Zealand Herald, May 5; AP, May 4)

In the face of growing violence, NATO is considering ending its rotating command for the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Afghanistan. NATO commander Gen. Bantz Craddock of the US said "it would be better if we had one country take lead as opposed to rotate." ISAF includes 47,000 soldiers from 40 countries who work alongside a separate US-led coalition numbering about 20,000 and the Afghan security forces. The US has 34,000 troops in Afghanistan, 16,000 of whom are under ISAF. (AFP, May 8)