In Pashtun, "Yousafzai" has the same meaning as "Yousefzadeh," so I am entirely willing to pretend that Malala Yousafzai is my cousin. In that vein, my family is immensely proud that she has won the Nobel Peace Prize, and in a much more serious vein, the prize is entirely deserved. Malala's work in fighting to ensure that …
How the Bowe Bergdahl Story Became Politicized
It wasn't Republicans who did it: President Obama complained yesterday that Sergeant Bergdahl is “not a political football.” That should be true, but unfortunately President Obama is responsible for kicking off the football game by announcing the Taliban-Bergdahl swap in a Rose Garden appearance, rather than leaving the announcement to Secretary Hagel and Chairman Dempsey. The White …
Continue reading "How the Bowe Bergdahl Story Became Politicized"
Last I Checked, Leon Panetta Is Not a Republican
There are those who believe that it is wrong to have concerns about the deal that freed Bowe Bergdahl, and that it is wrong to be concerned that Bergdahl may have been a deserter. Most of these people think that Republicans are cynically ginning up outrage about the Bergdahl story, and overplaying their hand in …
Continue reading "Last I Checked, Leon Panetta Is Not a Republican"
More on the Bowe Bergdahl Story
I am beginning to sense a certain theme: A soldier claims that he was told by his chain of command to not say anything about Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl walking off an Afghan base in 2009. Retired Army Spc. Josh Fuller told Fox News Wednesday that he was told to keep quiet about Bergdahl leaving his post …
The Strange Case of Bowe Bergdahl
By now you have doubtless heard of Bowe Bergdahl, the American soldier who was recovered after five years of captivity in the hands of the Taliban--and who had to be recovered via a prisoner swap with the Taliban. I am glad for Bergdahl and his family--he longed to be back in the United States, I …
Afghanistan Is Worth the Trouble. But Hamid Karzai May Not Be.
I continue to believe that securing Afghanistan against the Taliban and against terrorist groups is vital to the national security interests of the United States. Ditching Afghanistan in the aftermath of the Soviet withdrawal from the country led to disastrous developments, including--but not limited to--9/11. And if the Taliban are able to govern substantial swaths …
Continue reading "Afghanistan Is Worth the Trouble. But Hamid Karzai May Not Be."
Is Our Journalists Learning?
No, Iran was not "an American ally" prior to President Bush's "axis of evil" speech, and to claim otherwise is to either misunderstand history, or to deliberately misrepresent it. To be sure, Iran and the United States had a commonality of interests when it came to Afghanistan; for reasons unrelated to 9/11, the Islamic regime in …
Pejman Yousefzadeh 