Casualties | Timelines | 2008 Election Coverage | Obama's Plan | News Center Known as Operation Enduring Freedom, the War in Afghanistan began October 7, 2001 as a joint United States-United Kingdom reaction to the 9/11 attacks. The invasion began as a way to find Osama bin Laden and other terrorists of the Taliban regime who resided in Afghanistan. In 2006, the Taliban started to rebound, making international news with a wave of suicide attacks, riots and violence in Afghanistan that affected many civilians. Such acts of insurgent violence still occur, and it's argued that issues like this add to the country's instability. In 2004, Hamid Karzai was elected the country's president for five years under the new constitution, and in August 2009 another presidential election took place, with Karzai ultimately emerging the victor over Abdullah Abdullah. A record 62,000 U.S. troops are now in Afghanistan. More than 730 U.S. service members have died in the war since the original invasion, and close to 60% of these deaths happened since 2007. In March 2009, President Barack Obama declared a new strategy in which more troops would be deployed to Afghanistan in addition to the 17,000 more combat troops he had previously ordered.  Casualties iCasualties Updated daily, this site is incredibly comprehensive and organized. First divided into the categories "deaths," "missing or captured" and "wounded," it then goes into separate months, countries, military forces and more. The site also features a newswire. And that's just the homepage. Go to the tabs at the top to look at more specialized statistics, ranging from ethnicity to gender to journalist deaths. Washington Post The Washington Post's "Faces of the Fallen" acts as a tribute to the service members who have died in the invasion and war thus far. Click on a face to view the person's hometown, age, unit, details about the incident and related links. You can view by age, year of death, home state and military branch. The site also includes audio tributes from the Washington Metro area. CNN View by date or name to read the details of every casualty of Operation Enduring Freedom (count updated daily). Wall Street Journal Choose a year to see a monthly tally of the military toll since 2001.  Timelines CNN: Year-by-year highlights Brief summaries of significant occurrences between the U.S. and Afghanistan from 2001-2008. BBC News: Timeline of Afghanistan Chronological timeline of the country, starting in 1919 when Afghanistan gains independence after third war against Britain and ending with the August 20, 2009 elections. PBS: Historical and political timeline Begins with a brief history of Afghanistan and then broken up into periods from 1921 up until Obama’s March 2009 plan. Telegraph: British involvement timeline A basic timeline of Britain's participation, beginning in October 2001. Council on Foreign Relations: U.S. involvement timeline An extensive, up-to-date and interactive timeline of the U.S. War in Afghanistan with corresponding photos.  2008 Election Coverage CNN Election Coverage Issue CNN's election coverage features what the presidential and vice presidential candidates think about the war in Afghanistan and how they would plan to handle it. NY Times Election Coverage Issue In the New York Times' feature on the issue, read excerpts from speeches and debates that give insight on how the presidential candidates see the Afghanistan War. Obama's remarks on Iraq and Afghanistan Written for the NY Times in July 2008. The German Marshall Fund of the United States "What Europe Needs to Know" offers background information and candidates' views on the debate between Afghanistan and NATO.  Obama's Plan White House Issues: Defense Read about the Obama Administration's official thoughts and goals for the issue of defense in America and with specific interest in the conflicts in Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan. White House video: "A New Strategy for Afghanistan and Pakistan" Watch (and read along with from the transcript underneath) a speech made by Obama on March 27, 2009 regarding America's situation with the two countries. CNN: Analysis on the U.S.-led war in Afghanistan In-depth look at why the U.S. and its allies are still in Afghanistan. CBS News: Overview, video and analysis of Obama's speech at Veterans of Foreign Affairs conference In August 2009, Obama declares the Afghanistan War is "fundamental to the defense of our people."  News Centers New York Times Washington Post Chicago Tribune The Guardian Wall Street Journal Los Angeles Times CNN NPR BBC To read more news about Afghanistan and learn about the country, visit this resource on HeadlineSpot.

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