“Hamid Karzai” on The Daily Caller

KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — Afghan President Hamid Karzai said the United States must reduce the visibility and intensity of its military operations, especially night raids that fuel anti-American sentiment and could embolden Taliban insurgents. (more)

WASHINGTON — The Obama administration has decided to begin publicly walking away from what it once touted as key deadlines in the war in Afghanistan in an effort to de-emphasize President Barack Obama’s pledge that he’d begin withdrawing U.S. forces in July 2011, administration and military officials have told McClatchy. (more)

U.S. Military leaders are prepared to back Afghan President Hamid Karzai’s timeline for U.S. troop withdrawal, saying in roundtable meeting with reporters Monday that Afghan security forces should be able to handle the country’s security on their own by 2014. (more)

KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — Afghan President Hamid Karzai acknowledged on Monday that he receives millions of dollars in cash from Iran, adding that Washington gives him “bags of money” too because his office lacks funds. (more)

KABUL, Afghanistan — Talks to end the war in Afghanistan involve extensive, face-to-face discussions with Taliban commanders from the highest levels of the group’s leadership, who are secretly leaving their sanctuaries in Pakistan with the help of NATO troops, officials here say. (more)

This whole reinvention thing hasn’t started well for CNN. (more)

KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — It’s make-or-break time in Afghanistan. (more)

KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — The main Afghan election observer group said it had serious concerns about the legitimacy of this weekend’s parliamentary vote because of reported fraud, even as President Hamid Karzai commended the balloting as a solid success. (more)

KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — Despite Taliban rocket strikes and bombings, Afghans voted for a new parliament, the first election since a fraud-marred presidential ballot last year cast doubt on the legitimacy of the embattled government. (more)

KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — Police set up extra checkpoints across Afghanistan on Friday to scan for suicide bombers and insurgents a day ahead of parliamentary polling that will test the government’s ability to hold a legitimate election after last year’s disastrous presidential vote. (more)

GAINESVILLE, Fla. (AP) — An acquaintance of the pastor who once planned to burn copies of the Quran to mark the 9/11 anniversary says the Rev. Terry Jones headed to New York aboard a Friday night flight. (more)

At least five Iranian companies in Afghanistan’s capital are using their offices covertly to finance Taliban militants in provinces near Kabul, according to a Sunday Times investigation. (more)

KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — Nervous Afghans pulled more deposits out of the nation’s largest bank despite assurances from government leaders that their money was safe. (more)

Key players in the U.S. strategy for the war in Afghanistan took to the airwaves over the weekend to discuss the future of U.S. withdrawal. For some, that includes political negotiations with the Taliban. (more)

KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — A shopkeeper in Kandahar city says what others are thinking: Casting a ballot in next month’s Afghan parliamentary election isn’t worth the risk. (more)

KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — NATO says roadside bombs have killed two members of the international security force in Afghanistan, including one American. (more)

WASHINGTON — When President Obama announced a new strategy for Afghanistan in December, he argued that by setting a deadline of next summer to begin drawing down troops he would create a sense of urgency for the Afghan government to take the lead in the fight, while acknowledging the limits of America’s patience with the longest war in its history. (more)

It feels like 1975. (more)

KANDAHAR, Afghanistan (AP) — Eight American troops died in attacks in southern Afghanistan, including a car bombing and gunfight outside a police compound in Kandahar, officials said Wednesday as the Taliban push back against a coalition effort to secure the volatile region. (more)

A US House of Representatives panel has voted to cut almost $4bn (£2.68bn) in aid to the Afghanistan government after allegations of corruption. (more)