Adm. Mullen declares Wednesday, the enemy in Afghanistan is losing. Biden was in Iraq early Thursday for talks about the future of American troops in the country as they prepare to leave at year’s end

U.S. keeps funneling money to troubled Afghan projects
KABUL, Afghanistan — For years, U.S. officials held up Kabul’s largest power plant project as a shining example of how American taxpayers’ dollars would pull Afghanistan out of grinding poverty and decades of demoralizing conflict.

US military chief: Enemy in Afghanistan is losing

WASHINGTON (AP) — The enemy in Afghanistan is losing, the U.S. military’s top officer declared Wednesday in an unusually upbeat assessment on the war. The remark from Adm. Mike Mullen comes as the U.S. faces a critical six-month period in Afghanistan. President Barack Obama last year ordered a buildup of troops with the promise that they would start leaving the country in July. Many of Obama’s Democratic supporters in Congress say they want to see significant progress by then.

IEDs kill 21,000 Iraqi civilians 2005-2010

Insurgents in Iraq killed more than 21,000 civilians and wounded another 68,000 people with homemade bombs over the past five years, according to newly released data from the Pentagon.

Biden in Iraq for Talks on US Troops’ Exit

BAGHDAD — Vice President Joe Biden was in Iraq early Thursday for talks about the future of American troops in the country as they prepare to leave at year’s end, but three explosions in the capital killing two people demonstrated the lingering security challenges facing the country.

Marine’s Conviction Could Be Reinstated

CAMP PENDLETON, Calif. — The U.S. military’s highest court is questioning last year’s ruling by an appeals court that threw out the murder conviction against a Marine in the killing of an unarmed Iraqi man.