How the US can win friends and influence people in PakistanHow the US can win friends and influence people in Pakistan

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Army Seeks Social Media Gurus to Save Afghan War

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US projects in war zones are unsustainable:
http://ping.fm/vwZP2

Karzai Gives 'Last Warning' to NATO on Airstrikes

http://ping.fm/50GIL

New book- 'Armed Humanitarians'

The theme is by far not new, but at least the title is provocative:

'It’s arguably the central story of the military during the past decade of war. Soldiers and Marines, trained to kill an enemy, found that to succeed in wars fought among the people, they had to teach themselves to be diplomats and development workers. They needed to address foreigners’ grievances and help them rebuild shattered communities — in some cases, communities the United States itself shattered.'

Security Council extends mandate of UN force in Lebanon

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UN deliberating possible ‘light presence’ in Somali capital

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'UN peacekeeping in consolidation phase'

' United Nations peacekeeping operations have entered a consolidation phase, allowing the world body to focus on areas such as enhancing efficiency, planning and oversight, a senior official told the Security Council today.'

http://ping.fm/Pgnly

More hearts-and-minds policies- Taliban Code of Conduct

'Taliban Code of Conduct Seeks to Win Hearts, Minds':

http://ping.fm/pcjqd

Can aid win hearts and minds?

One article leads to some of the latest ponderings on the age-old question of whether aid can win hearts-and-minds:

http://ping.fm/WDH5o

Can Hearts and Minds Be Bought? The Economics of Counterinsurgency in Iraq
http://ping.fm/y4yze

Do they think we're stupid? Local perceptions of US 'hearts and minds' activities in Kenya
http://ping.fm/C6Cmi

Afghanistan war: How USAID loses hearts and minds
http://ping.fm/qR77p

natochannel.tv

Some 'good news' clips on NATO's work in Afghanistan:
http://ping.fm/2Z4MI

US Marine 'female engagement teams'

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Afghanistan to investigate aid groups for 'spreading Christianity'

Follow-on to an earlier post on the Afghan government asking over 150 NGOs to shut down:

http://ping.fm/9uk03

U.N. Official to Ask U.S. to End C.I.A. Drone Strike

An expected outcome: increasingly bad press for civilian controlled drones operating in active combat roles-

http://ping.fm/2Dmvi

ISAF collaborating with Super Mario?

ISAF seems to be taking the winning of hearts and minds to new levels- http://ping.fm/9wG6V

Security Council votes to end UN mission in Chad and Central African Republic

The trend of reducing peacekeeping missions continues:
http://ping.fm/FoaEA

CIMICweb.net- resource

Not sure who is behind this, but an interesting looking resource nonetheless:
http://ping.fm/zXDE6

Eight U.S. Troops Will Remain in Haiti, Down From 20,000+

Looks like a textbook draw-down of the US support to Haiti- captured well in this quote:

'As Nancy Youssef notes in an excellent piece today for McClatchy, the U.S. military, faced with tightening budgets and a lingering economic crisis, seems to be quietly stepping away from large-scale commitments that require lots of money and manpower. Smarter and smaller seem to be the new watchwords.'

http://ping.fm/2JPjs

Darfur blue helmets to take ‘robust’ defensive action if attacked, says UN-AU envoy

Interesting statement- that attacking peacekeepers 'is a war crime':
http://ping.fm/poSxh

Licences of 172 NGOs in Afghanistan revoked- lack of accountability

http://ping.fm/xH9Bb