Marla Ruzicka’s Heroism

Arifa had lost nearly everything when Marla Ruzicka walked through the door and into her life. The American intervention in Afghanistan had started just weeks before. A US bomb missed its target by three miles and landed instead on Arifa’s home, leaving her a widow at the age of 30. She buried her husband, eldest…

Soldiers from the Afghan National Army prepare to go on a patrol in Marjah, Helmand province, Afghanistan, the morning of Feb. 16, 2010. The ANA soldiers and Marines from 3rd Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment, have been conducting Operation Moshtarak to rid Marjah of Taliban presence and intimidation. (USMC photo by Lance Cpl. Tommy Bellegarde)

Afghan forces handle civilian casualties poorly, report claims

KABUL — A report released Monday accuses Afghanistan’s army and police of failing to address civilian casualties as the country’s newly built forces assume responsibility for security during NATO’s military withdrawal. The Center for Civilians in Conflict, a Washington-based research organization, said in its report that “the capacity of the Afghan government and security forces…

Do Less Harm

The Afghanistan and Iraq wars taught the United States painful lessons about the need to limit harm to civilians and compensate victims for their suffering. Now Washington must turn that ad hoc progress into a permanent policy, followed not only by its military but also by those of its partners as well. Read the article in…