Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF)- Hot Documents

• Remarks by the President on the Way Forward in Afghanistan The White House 22 Jun 2011
• DoD News: DOD Announces Units for Upcoming Afghanistan Deployment DoD 17 Jun 2011 -- The Department of Defense announced today three units to deploy as part of upcoming rotations of forces operating in Afghanistan.
• S. Prt. 112-21: Evaluating U.S. Foreign Assistance To Afghanistan U.S. Senate Committee on Foreign Relations 8 Jun 2011 -- "This report takes a close look at how the United States is spending civilian aid dollars in Afghanistan to make sure we are pursuing the most effective strategy in support of our national security objectives. We spend more on aid to Afghanistan than any other country and the environment in which the State Department and U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) operate is difficult and dangerous. With the upcoming transition to an Afghan security lead in 2014 and the increased responsibilities our civilians will absorb from the military, we have a critical planning window right now to make any necessary changes to support a successful transition."
• Key Points - SFRC Report: Evaluating U.S. Foreign Assistance to Afghanistan U.S. Senate Committee on Foreign Relations 8 Jun 2011
• Report on Progress Toward Security and Stability in Afghanistan and United States Plan for Sustaining the Afghan National Security Forces -- "Since the last Report on Progress Toward Security and Stability in Afghanistan, International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) and its Afghan partners have made tangible progress, arresting the insurgents' momentum in much of the country and reversing it in a number of important areas. The coalition's efforts have wrested major safe havens from the insurgents’ control, disrupted their leadership networks, and removed many of the weapons caches and tactical supplies they left behind at the end of the previous fighting season."
• DOD Identifies Units for Upcoming Afghanistan Rotation DoD 07 Jan 2011
• Report on Progress Toward Security and Stability in Afghanistan November 2010
• SIGAR Audit-10-11 Security/ANSF Capabilty Ratings: Actions Needed to Improve the Reliability of Afghan Security Force Assessments, Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction, 29 June 2010 [PDF]
• WARLORD, INC.: Extortion and Corruption Along the U.S. Supply Chain in Afghanistan Committee On Oversight and Government Reform, Subcommittee on National Security and Foreign Affairs - U.S. House of Representatives 22 Jun 2010 -- The Majority staff of the Subcommittee on National Security and Foreign Affairs released a report entitled, Warlord, Inc. Extortion and Corruption Along the U.S. Supply Chain in Afghanistan on June 22, 2010. The report culminates a six-month investigation at the direction of Chairman John Tierney into the Department of Defense's Host Nation Trucking (HNT) contract.
• Statement by the President in the Rose Garden on General McChrystal The White House 23 Jun 2010
• DoD News: Defense Secretary Gates Statement on McChrystal Profile DoD 22 Jun 2010
• Statement by NATO Spokesman on Rolling Stone article NATO 22 Jun 2010
• Transcript: Special Defense Department Briefing from the Pentagon Arlington, Virginia DoD 14 Jun 2010 -- Presenter: Paul Brinkley, Director, DoD Task Force for Business and Stability Operations in Afghanistan; Jack Medlin, Regional Specialist, U.S. Geological Survey International Programs; Kathleen Johnson, Mineral Program Coordinator, USGS
• Report on Progress Toward Security and Stability in Afghanistan & United States Plan for Sustaining the Afghanistan National Security Forces April 2010 -- Part One (Progress Toward Security and Stability in Afghanistan) is a historical document that covers progress toward security and stability in Afghanistan from October 1, 2009 to March 31, 2010. Part Two (United States Plan for Sustaining the Afghanistan National Security Forces) is a historical document that covers the United States Plan for Sustaining the Afghanistan National Security Forces from April 28, 2009 to March 31, 2010.
• DoD News: DOD Releases Defense Reviews, 2011 Budget Proposal, and 2010 War Funding Supplemental Request - Update DoD 01 Feb 2010 -- President Barack Obama today sent to Congress a proposed defense budget of $708 billion for fiscal 2011. The budget request for the Department of Defense (DoD) includes $549 billion in discretionary budget authority to fund base defense programs and $159 billion to support overseas contingency operations (OCO), primarily in Afghanistan and Iraq.
• Transcript: Remarks by the President in Address to the Nation on the Way Forward in Afghanistan and Pakistan The White House 01 Dec 2009
• Tora Bora Revisited: How We Failed To Get Bin Laden And Why It Matters Today Committee On Foreign Relations - United States Senate 30 Nov 2009 -- "This report by the Committee majority staff is part of our continuing examination of the conflict in Afghanistan. When we went to war less than a month after the attacks of September 11, the objective was to destroy Al Qaeda and kill or capture its leader, Osama bin Laden, and other senior figures in the terrorist group and the Taliban, which had hosted them. Today, more than eight years later, we find ourselves fighting an increasingly lethal insurgency in Afghanistan and neighboring Pakistan that is led by many of those same extremists. Our inability to finish the job in late 2001 has contributed to a conflict today that endangers not just our troops and those of our allies, but the stability of a volatile and vital region. This report relies on new and existing information to explore the consequences of the failure to eliminate bin Laden and other extremist leaders in the hope that we can learn from the mistakes of the past"
• One Tribe at a Time: A Strategy for Success in Afghanistan by Major Jim Grant. Los Angeles, CA: Nine Sisters Imports, Inc., 2009 [PDF]
• Report on Progress toward Security and Stability in Afghanistan October 2009 -- This report to Congress is submitted consistent with Section 1230 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2008 (Public Law 110-181). It includes a description of the comprehensive strategy of the United States for security and stability in Afghanistan. This report is the fourth in a series of reports required every 180 days through fiscal year 2010 and has been prepared in coordination with the Secretary of State, the Director of National Intelligence, the Attorney General, the Administrator of the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development, and the Secretary of Agriculture. This assessment complements other reports and information about Afghanistan provided to the Congress; however, it is not intended as a single source of all information about the combined efforts or the future strategy of the United States, its Coalition Partners, or Afghanistan. The information contained in this report is current as of September 30, 2009.
• Afghan opium production in significant decline UNODC 02 Sep 2009 -- Opium poppy cultivation in Afghanistan is down 22 per cent, opium production is down 10 per cent, while prices are at a 10 year low.
• Initial United States Forces - Afghanistan (USFOR-A) Assessment. Headquarters, International Security Assistance Force, Kabul, Afghanistan, 30 August 2009
• Progress toward Security and Stability in Afghanistan June 2009 -- In 2009, the United States continues to face severe challenges in Afghanistan. However, the U.S. continues to work with the Government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan (GIRoA), the Government of Pakistan, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF), and the international community to disrupt, dismantle, and eventually defeat al-Qaida and its extremist allies, their support structures, and their safe havens in Pakistan, and to prevent their return to Pakistan or Afghanistan. This report describes the U.S. strategy in Afghanistan, efforts towards achieving U.S. objectives in the country, and measures of progress along the security, governance, and reconstruction and development lines of operation.
• Transcript: Press Conference with Secretary Gates and Adm. Mullen on Leadership Changes in Afghanistan From the Pentagon DoD 11 May 2009 -- Presenter: Secretary of Defense Robert Gates and Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff Adm. Michael Mullen
• United States Plan for Sustaining the Afghan National Security Forces April 2009 -- This report to Congress includes a description of the long-term plan for sustaining the Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF), with the objective of ensuring that the ANSF will be able to conduct operations independently and effectively and maintain long-term security and stability in Afghanistan. The report includes a comprehensive strategy, with defined objectives; mechanisms for tracking funding, equipment, training, and services provided to the ANSF; and any actions necessary to assist the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan to achieve a number of specified goals and the results of such actions.
• White Paper of the Interagency Policy Group's Report on U.S. Policy toward Afghanistan and Pakistan. The White House, 27 March 2009
• Remarks by the President on a New Strategy for Afghanistan and Pakistan The White House 27 Mar 2009.
• Progress toward Security and Stability in Afghanistan January 2009 -- This report to Congress is submitted consistent with Section 1230 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2008 (Public Law 110-181). It includes a description of the comprehensive strategy of the United States for security and stability in Afghanistan. This report is the second in a series of reports required every 180 days through fiscal year 2010 and has been prepared in coordination with the Secretary of State, the Director of National Intelligence, the Attorney General, the Administrator of the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development, and the Secretary of Agriculture. This assessment complements other reports and information about Afghanistan provided to the Congress; however, it is not intended as a single source of all information about the combined efforts or the future strategy of the United States, its Coalition Partners, or Afghanistan. The information contained in this report is current as of August 29, 2008.
• Report on Progress toward Security and Stability in Afghanistan US Department of Defense June 2008 -- "This report to Congress is submitted consistent with Section 1230 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2008 (Public Law 110-181). It includes a description of the comprehensive strategy of the United States for security and stability in Afghanistan. This report is the first in a series of reports required every 180 days through fiscal year 2010 and has been prepared in coordination with the Secretary of State, the Director of National Intelligence, the Attorney General, the Administrator of the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development, and the Secretary of Agriculture"
• United States Plan for Sustaining the Afghanistan National Security Forces US Department of Defense June 2008 -- "This report (...) It includes the United States plan for sustaining the Afghanistan National Security Forces (ANSF). In accordance with subsection (a), it includes a description of the long-term plan for sustaining the ANSF, with the objective of ensuring that the ANSF will be able to conduct operations independently and effectively and maintain long-term security and stability in Afghanistan. The report includes a comprehensive strategy and budget, with defined objectives; mechanisms for tracking funding, equipment, training, and services provided to the ANSF; and any actions necessary to assist the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan to achieve a number of specified goals and the results of such actions"
• Bounding the Global War on Terrorism by Jeffrey Record US Army War College, Strategic Studies Institute December 2003 - Dr. Jeffrey Record examines three features of the war on terrorism as currently defi ned and conducted: (1) the administration's postulation of the terrorist threat, (2) the scope and feasibility of U.S. war aims, and (3) the war's political, fi scal, and military sustainability. He fi nds that the war on terrorism-as opposed to the campaign against al-Qaeda-lacks strategic clarity, embraces unrealistic objectives, and may not be sustainable over the long haul. He calls for down-sizing the scope of the war on terrorism to reflect concrete U.S. security interests and the limits of American military power [PDF 372 Kb]

• CALL Newsletter: Operation OUTREACH Center for Army Lessons Learned OCT 03, No. 03-27 -- "This newsletter represents the efforts of two teams from the Joint Readiness Training Center (JRTC) that deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan as part of Operation OUTREACH. (...) The team found many items to cover, but mainly focused on intelligence- and fire support-related issues: Intelligence (General), Human Intelligence (HUMINT) Operations, Targeting (aspects from both intelligence and fire support), Fire Support, and Random Observations. Following is a compilation of their observations." [PDF 592 Kb]

• FM 34-52: Intelligence Interrogation 8 May, 1987
  Given the ongoing interest in the detention and interrogation of prisoners of war and detainees being held at facilities in Afghanistan, the CENTCOM theater of operations and at Camp X-ray, Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, we thought an examination of primary source documents might shed light on this misunderstood operation. FM-34-52 is an authoritative document which gives guidence on the proper handling of enemy prisoners of war, and detainees under the Geneva Convention, and describes in great detail the tactics, techniques, and proceedures for screening POWs and detainees, exploiting captured documents, and methods and approaches for interrogation. Although the 1992 version of this manual is more current, this version published in 1987 is the only version publically available. Only minor differences exist between the two documents as doctrine rarely changes over time.

• TARNAK FARM BOARD OF INQUIRY FINAL REPORT Tarnak Farm Board of Inquiry (BOI), Department of National Defence of Canada, September 13, 2002 -- The final report from the Tarnak Farm Board of Inquiry (BOI) that investigated the April 17 incident that resulted in the death of four and injuries to eight Canadian soldiers serving with the 3rd Battalion, Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry (3 PPCLI) Battle Group in Afghanistan. The final report contains details surrounding the incident and provides supporting information that enabled the Board to reach its conclusions. [MS Word Version 2.87 Mb]

• Operation Enduring Freedom: Why a Higher Rate of Civilian Bombing Casualties
  Project on Defense Alternatives, Briefing Report #11 Carl Conetta 18 January 2002
  Despite the adulation of Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) as a "finely-tuned" or "bulls-eye" war,1 the campaign failed to set a new standard for accuracy in one important respect: the rate of civilians killed per bomb dropped. In fact, this rate was far higher in the Afghanistan conflict -- perhaps four times higher -- than in the 1999 Balkans war.

• HTD Tech Dev Portal Defeat Lt Col Tom Ward - August 1, 2001
  [FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY]
  A "combustion-like" vice detonation process resulting in a long-duration, high temperature and pressure environment. Recommendation to DUSD (AS&C) Breakfast Club: Approve the Thermobaric ACTD for an FY02 Start

• Transcript of the Bin Laden Video [PDF]
  The U. S. government released a copy of a videotape of Osama bin Laden obtained by U.S. forces in Jalalabad, Afghanistan in late November. The tape was released with an English translation and English subtitling, prepared independently by George Michael, translator, Diplomatic Language Services; and Dr. Kassem M. Wahba, Arabic language program coordinator, School of Advanced International Studies, Johns Hopkins University.

• Indictment: United States of America -v- Zacarias Moussaoui, a/k/a "Shaqil", a/k/a "Abu Khalid al Sahrawi"
  Grand Jury indictement against Zacarias Moussaoui, a native of France of Moroccan ancestry, on the charges of conspiring with Usama bin Laden and al Qaeda to murder thousands of people in New York, Virginia and Pennsylvania on September the 11th

• Al Qaeda Training Manual [PDF]
  Selected parts of an Al-Qaeda training manual released by the US Department of Justice and originally located by the Manchester (England) Metropolitan Police during a search of an Al Qaeda member's home. The manual was found in a computer file described as "the military series" related to the "Declaration of Jihad." The manual was translated into English and was introduced earlier this year at the embassy bombing trial in New York. [Warning] File Size: 8.5 Mb

• The Joint Targeting Process and Procedures for Targeting Time-Critical Targets (TCTs)
  Effective coordination, deconfliction, and synchronization maximize force against the enemy while reducing the potential for fratricide.

• Joint Publication 3-09.1: Joint Laser Designation Procedures (JLASER) [PDF]
  This publication provides joint procedures for employing laser designators with target acquisition systems and laser-guided weapons to enhance the combat effectiveness of joint US forces.

• Joint Publication 3-09.3: Joint Tactics, Techniques, and Procedures for Close Air Support (CAS) [PDF]
  This publication provides tactics, techniques, and procedures for use by supported and supporting commanders, terminal controllers, air control agencies, and aircrews in fixed- and rotary-wing aircraft to attack targets in close proximity to friendly forces. It presents options the joint force commander can employ in the planning and execution of close air support in joint operations.

• Interagency and International Research and Development Requirements for Combating Terrorism
  Technical Support Working Group - DoD News Briefing, Thursday, 29 Nov 2001 - 2:00 pm

• Interagency and International Research and Development Requirements for Combating Terrorism Briefing Slides
  Technical Support Working Group - DoD News Briefing, Thursday, 29 Nov 2001 - 2:00 pm

• Responsibility for the Terrorist Atrocities in the United States, 11 September 2001 - An Updated Account
  Updated version of the document released by Tony Blair providing the evidence that bin Laden is behind the Sept. 11 attacks

• Military Order: Detention, Treatment, and Trial of Certain Non-Citizens in the War Against Terrorism
  Executive Order by George W. Bush allowing terrorists to be tried by military tribunals. "To protect the United States and its citizens, and for the effective conduct of military operations and prevention of terrorist attacks, it is necessary for individuals subject to this order (...) to be detained, and, when tried, to be tried for violations of the laws of war and other applicable laws by military tribunals"

• "The Campaign for the Caves: The Battles for Zhawar in the Soviet-Afghan War" by Lester W. Grau and Ali Ahmad Jalali
  The Journal of Slavic Military Studies, Volume 14, September 2001 - As the base expanded, Mujahideen used bulldozers and explosives to dig at least 11 major tunnels into the south-east facing ridge of Sodyaki Ghar Mountain. Some of these huge tunnels reached 500 meters and contained a hotel, a mosque, arms depots and repair shops, a garage, a medical point, a radio center and a kitchen.

• "Underground Combat Stereophonic Blasting, Tunnel Rats and the Soviet-Afghan War" by Lester W. Grau & Ali Ahmad Jalali
  The United States Army fought subterranean battles in the tunnels of Vietnam. Following a few tear gas grenades or a charge of C4 plastic explosive, "tunnel rats" would go underground to find Viet Cong or North Vietnamese combatants or materiel. Small, slender soldiers, armed with a flashlight and a .45 caliber pistol, would crawl into the Vietnamese tunnels for reconnaissance and possibly close combat. Almost all of the Vietnam-era tunnel rats have left active duty by now, but the need to train for this type of underground combat remains.

• Pentagon Seeks Ideas on Combating Terrorism [PDF]
  The Department of Defense announced today that the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology and Logistics and the Combating Terrorism Technology Support Office Technical Support Working Group are jointly sponsoring a Broad Agency Announcement (BAA) asking for help in fighting terrorism. The BAA, issued Oct. 23 (No. 02-Q-4655), and with initial responses due by Dec. 23, 2001, specifically seeks help in combating terrorism, defeating difficult targets, conducting protracted operations in remote areas, and developing countermeasures to weapons of mass destruction. Its objective is to find concepts that can be developed and fielded within 12 to 18 months.

• Counterterrorism Analysis Course
  Introduction to Terrorist Intelligence Analysis, by the Defense Intelligence College

• FM 1-108: Doctrine for Army Special Operations Aviation Forces
  US Army Doctrine for Army Special Operations Aviation Forces Field Manual

• FM 7-85: Ranger Unit Operations
  US Army Ranger Unit Operations Field Manual

• Her Majesty's Government's Campaign Objectives
  The British Goverment released this document, titled "Defeating International Terrorism: Campaign Objectives", on October 16, 2001. "The overall objective is to eliminate terrorism as a force in international affairs. There are immediate objectives relating to UBL, his organisation and Afghanistan and wider objectives relating principally to the campaign against international terrorism more generally."

• FBI Warns of New Acts of Terrorism
  The FBI issued a press release on Oct. 11 warning of a significant risk of additional terrorism in "several days"

• Can Congress be trusted with Intelligence Secrets?
  "Few Members of Congress have expertise in national security matters at the time they are elected ... Members of Congress (...) rarely have the time to keep abreast of day-to-day developments ... Members and staff say they are too busy to read the voluminous number of intelligence reports that come in each day ... Intelligence agencies, interestingly enough, actually give Congress high marks for protecting intelligence information".

• Responsibility for the terrorist atrocities
  04 Oct. 2001-- The document released by Tony Blair providing the evidence that bin Laden is behind the Sept. 11 attacks

• 11 September 2001: The Response [PDF]
  03 Oct. 2001-- House of Commons Reserach Paper 01/72 which examines the reaction within the United States, the United Kingdom and the wider international community to the terrorist attacks of 11 September 2001. It contains background information on the main suspect, Osama bin Laden, and the al-Qaeda network, and looks in detail at the situation in Afghanistan, Pakistan and the wider region. It also details the military options available and the relevant issues of international law.