Days after N Korea claims they have mastered a key technology used in manufacturing hydrogen bombs, abnormally high radiation levels were detected near border. And in Kabul 4 troops were killed Monday during early morning operation.

White House: Afghan pullout will start in 2011

WASHINGTON — The Obama administration reaffirmed Sunday that it will begin pulling U.S. troops out of Afghanistan next summer, despite reservations among top generals that absolute deadlines are a mistake.

9-month deployments, 3 years of dwell favored

The Army wants to reduce combat zone deployments to nine months and increase dwell time to three years, Gen. George Casey, Army chief of staff, told Army Times.

New Commission Frees Taliban Suspects

KABUL — Afghanistan’s controversial new commission formed to release suspected Taliban prisoners has set free 14 detainees already, primarily from U.S. custody, and more than two dozen more releases are imminent, Afghan officials told McClatchy on Sunday.

4 Troops Killed in Afghan Helo Crash

KABUL, Afghanistan — A military helicopter crashed during an early morning operation in southern Afghanistan on Monday, killing three Australian commandoes and an American service member, officials said.

Abnormal Radiation Detected Near Korea Border

SEOUL, South Korea –- Abnormally high radiation levels were detected near the border between the two Koreas days after North Korea claimed to have mastered a complex technology key to manufacturing a hydrogen bomb, Seoul said Monday.

Kyrgyzstan investigating whether troops involved in ethnic violence

Osh, Kyrgyzstan (CNN) — Kyrgyzstan will investigate allegations that government troops were involved in ethnic violence, an official said Sunday.

American-born al Qaeda spokesman appears in new video

(CNN) — American-born al Qaeda spokesman Adam Gadahn appears in a new video purportedly from the organization, calling President Obama “snakelike” and saying he is “running the affairs of a declining and besieged empire.”

Karzai, McChrystal in Kandahar to sell military operation

Kabul, Afghanistan (CNN) — Afghan President Hamid Karzai and Gen. Stanley McChrystal, the top U.S. military commander in Afghanistan, say they’ve secured backing from local leaders for an upcoming military operation in the province.

Suspect in custody after fatal Gillem shooting

FOREST PARK, Ga. — An Army reservist was shot to death and another was in custody Thursday at a post south of Atlanta that is a gathering place for area reserve units.

Is the U.S. strategy working?

In the midst of one of the deadliest months to date in Afghanistan, lawmakers wonder whether the strategy is working.

U.S. Hopes To Win Afghan Trust, Village By Village

Northwest of Kandahar city, a patrol of American and Afghan commandos slowly moves out of their mud-walled compound and toward Ezabad, a village just a football-field away and right in the middle of Taliban country.