Free Republic

WASHINGTON, Aug. 22, 2007 – The U.S. provincial reconstruction team in one of Afghanistan’s easternmost provinces is making great strides in working with provincial and district leaders to build local infrastructure and capability, the team’s commander said today. (Video) The PRT in Nangahar province, which shares a long border with Pakistan, has been on the ground for four months and already has completed 11 reconstruction projects worth about $800,000 and established key relationships with local leaders, Air Force Lt. Col. Gordon Phillips, the PRT commander, told Pentagon reporters via satellite from Afghanistan. Phillips said the PRT has seen “significant...

Violence Decreases in Iraq, Reconciliation ProgressesAmerican Forces Press Service WASHINGTON, Aug. 25, 2006 – Violence in Baghdad has decreased over the past five weeks, and the Iraqi government is committed to reconciliation, Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld and Iraq's Deputy President Adil al-Mahdi said here today. Following a meeting at the Pentagon, Rumsfeld and al-Mahdi spoke about progress in Iraq with reporters. The secretary praised the work of Iraqi security forces, which he said now number more than 267,000. He said there has been a reduction in the levels of violence and in the numbers of attacks, particularly in areas...