Middle East, Taliban | featured news

Afghan private security forces with ties to the Taliban have been hired to guard U.S. military bases in Afghanistan, exposing U.S. soldiers to attack, a Senate investigation found.

An audit says subcontractors on a development project in Afghanistan may have paid more than $5 million to militants for security purposes. Employee fraud is also alleged.Millions of dollars in American taxpayer funds may have been paid to Taliban fighters in southern Afghanistan to provide security for a U.S.

A string of attacks hit Afghanistan's parliamentary election on Saturday, after the Taliban vowed to disrupt a poll that is a crucial test for the credibility of the government and security forces.

Voters in Afghanistan are due to cast their ballots in key parliamentary elections, despite fears of violence and threats from Taliban militants.

From 3- and 4-year-olds used as human shields or to gather spent cartridges, to teen-agers offered motorcycles for planting roadside bombs, children ...

A widow, accused of being pregnant, was executed by the Taliban in western Afghanistan, a provincial governor's spokesman said Monday.

General has met sharp resistance from the Afghan president to an American plan to assist villagers in fighting the Taliban on their own.

Leon Panetta cites governance problems, drug trafficking and the Taliban insurgency. Progress is "slower than I think anyone anticipated," he says.

KANDAHAR (Reuters) - The signature weapon of the Iraq war has established itself as the Taliban's weapon of choice in Afghanistan as well, where roadside bombs have proven to be rudimentary and cheap -- but deadly as ever.

Iran is helping train Taliban fighters within its borders, according to U.S. military and intelligence officials.