Free Republic

Kabul, 29 July (AKI) - The Taliban is reported to have launched a fundraising campaign in Afghanistan. The private news agency Pajhwak Afghan News says literature has appeared in the east of the country in which the hardline religious movement asks for donations from groups or individuals. Mawlawi Abdul Rahman Deobandi, who Pajhwak describes as a senior figure in the Taliban, acknowledged that they had started fundraising, saying: "Despite the Taliban's unflinching belief in Allah's help, they are also reliant on people's support for resolving their cash problems." Meanwhile, another news agency claims that lack of cashflow isn't the only...

WASHINGTON, July 26, 2005 – Taliban members who face off against coalition forces or the Afghan National Army are facing heavy losses, so they've resorted to recruiting young teens to join the fight, the Joint Staff's operations director told Pentagon reporters today. Marine Lt. Gen. James Conway spoke following a July 25 incident that involved heavy fighting in a small village west of Deh Rawod in Afghanistan's Oruzgan province. The incident, which left one U.S. soldier and an Afghan National Army soldier dead, took a considerable toll on the enemy, the general said. Some press reports claim as many as...