Twelve years of American involvement in Afghanistan. So many lives lost. So much money wasted. And the Taliban is more assertive and aggressive than ever. A war without a point, or a focus, or a goal, or a terminus, or an enemy. A drain on our economy and morale, and all for absolutely nothing. A blot on recent American history.
“Taliban Militants Bomb Restaurant in Kabul,” by Jessica Donati and Habib Khan Totakhil, Wall Street Journal, January 1, 2016:
KABUL—Taliban militants bombed a French restaurant popular with foreigners in the Afghan capital on Friday evening, killing a child and wounding at least 15 other people.
The explosion was caused by a car bomb detonated outside the restaurant by a suicide bomber inside the vehicle, Afghanistan’s Interior Ministry said. A second suspect was arrested during a clearance operation conducted after the blast.
An official at a Kabul hospital run by the Italian nongovernment organization Emergency said a 10-year-old child died on the way to the facility and at least 15 other people were wounded and brought in for medical care.
Most patients were wounded by shrapnel, the hospitalofficial said, and had been near but not inside the restaurant at the time of the explosion.
The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack, saying it had targeted the restaurant to mark the new year.
“Good omen for upcoming year as 2016 foundation stone set with spectacular fireworks #Hello2016#GoodTimesAhead,” a spokesman tweeted.
His comments raised concerns among Kabul’s expat community that foreigners would remain a focus of Taliban attacks….
No kidding, really?