Afghanistan Weekly Digest: David Cameron. Fighting Shifts. Soldiers. 7JUL11

UPDATES on the war in Afghanistan and the struggle to end this war and bring our troops home, from Sojourners....

[Editors' note: As part of Sojourners' campaign to end the war in Afghanistan, we will run a weekly Afghanistan news digest to educate our readers about the latest news and developments related to the war, the U.S. military's strategy, and the people impacted by our decisions. Read more about our campaign at www.sojo.net/afghanistan.]
http://blog.sojo.net/2011/07/07/afghanistan-weekly-digest-david-cameron-fighting-shifts-soldiers/ 

• Army program works to make soldiers fit in body and mind: “The Army, burdened by almost a decade of war and beset by increases in suicides, substance abuse and combat stress, embarked on the controversial $125 million project to instill psychological strength in soldiers the same way it teaches physical fitness.”

• David Cameron appeals to Taliban to cease fighting in Afghanistan: “Prime minister expresses sadness about latest British casualty in Afghanistan, saying it shows the ‘high price’ being paid to stabilise the country.”

• Elaborate ruse behind vast Kabul Bank fraud: “The top two officials of Kabul Bank used fake names, forged documents, fictitious companies and secret records as part of an elaborate ruse to funnel hundreds of millions of dollars to shareholders and top Afghan officials, according to newly obtained documents and interviews.”

• Let’s not linger in Afghanistan: “We commend the president for sticking to the July date he had outlined for beginning the withdrawal. However, his plan would not remove all regular combat troops until 2014. We believe the United States is capable of achieving this goal by the end of 2012.”

• Fighting shifts to Afghanistan’s mountainous east: Listen to this story on NPR. “The American-led fight in Afghanistan is changing. The toughest fighting is shifting from the south — Helmand and Kandahar provinces — to the east. There, high, craggy mountains offer shelter to Taliban fighters.”

Hannah Lythe is policy and outreach associate at Sojourners.