Project

Afghanistan: Civilians Under Siege

In 2008, there were over 2,100 civilians casualties across Afghanistan. US airstrikes accounted for 552 deaths, up more than 70% compared to the year before. Militants were responsible for more than half the overall total. The bitter truth is that most of these incidents could be avoided. And yet they continue as public support for the Afghan government and its international supporters sinks to new lows.

Although some attention has accompanied the mounting casualties, media coverage has seldom explored the long-term effects of these traumas on Afghan communities: How have insurgents tried to exploit local grievances? Have more young men joined their ranks, looking for revenge? Have affected communities turned against the government, irrevocably? Or, when insurgents are responsible, shifted toward the government? A survey of major incidents that have taken place in the past year will lay the groundwork for a case study of a locality where innocent civilians have recently been killed. By returning to the scene in the following weeks to measure the fallout, this project aims to illustrate the cost when bystanders become war victims.

May 22, 2009 | Pulitzer Center

Afghanistan: An Everyday Victim

Jason Motlagh

Jason Motlagh, for the Pulitzer Center

There are large-scale civilian deaths that make headlines; and then there are small but regular incidents in Afghanistan that may or may not get a mention. This was the fate of 12-year-old Benafsha Shaheem.

May 22, 2009 | TIME

Iran's Spending Spree in Afghanistan

Jason Motlagh

Some locals jokingly call Herat the "Dubai of Afghanistan." The nickname is a stretch, but the mini-boom taking place in this commercial capital is borne out by 24-hour electricity and pothole-free streets where people wander without fear of the random violence that afflicts other urban centers in the country. Who gets the credit? Much of it goes to Iran, which lies less than a hundred miles to the west and is moving closer.

May 21, 2009 | Pulitzer Center

Afghanistan: Echoes of Azizabad

Jason Motlagh

The US military said yesterday that only 20-35 civilians were killed in airstrikes in western Afghanistan earlier this month, disputing the claims of the Afghan government.

May 18, 2009 | The Washington Times

Afghan rights group finds lower civilian toll

Jason Motlagh

KABUL, Afghanistan -- The civilian death toll from the U.S. bombardment in western Afghanistan is about a third less than the Afghan government claims, the country's leading human rights organization said Sunday, adding that no evidence of white phosphorus was found.

A weeklong investigation by a team from the Afghan Independent Human Rights Commission (AIHRC) has concluded that between 90 and 100 people died as a result of the May 4-5 military operation in Farah province, director Ahmad Nader Nadery told The Washington Times.