Afghan ‘Community Defense Initiative’ Reigned In?

After last month’s marathon Afghanistan-Pakistan Congressional hearings with Gen. Stanley McChrystal and Ambassador Karl Eikenberry, I noted an unanswered question:

What will stop the Community Defense Initiative from yielding militias and warlords? McChrystal professed, a lot, to awareness of the hazards of partnering with

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Afghan Human Rights Official Criticizes McChrystal ‘Tribes’ Initiative

An official with the Afghan government’s human rights commission is blasting an important new U.S. military initiative in Afghanistan as a potential road to warlordism.

The new program, known as the Community Defense Initiative, seeks to aid Afghan local or tribal leaders who control paramilitary forces outside of the U.S.-sponsored More…