Washington Post News

As part of its attempt to boost Afghanistan's economic and political development, the United States is paying thousands of Afghan contractors and subcontractors to perform much of the work that supports U.S. efforts there. But the "Afghan First" program could be achieving just the opposite of its...


History - Wars and Conflicts - Afghanistan - Nineteenth Century - Anglo-Afghan War

BAGHDAD -- Gunmen launched a rare, coordinated attack on Iraqi soldiers Thursday in a predominantly Sunni neighborhood of the capital and briefly erected the flag of the insurgent group al-Qaeda in Iraq near a smoldering army checkpoint.


al-Qaeda - Iraq - Baghdad - Middle East - Warfare and Conflict

The Obama administration has adopted a tougher tone with China in recent weeks as part of a diplomatic balancing act in which the United States welcomes China's rise in some areas but also confronts Beijing when it butts up against American interests.


China - Business - Asia - Home and Garden - Kitchen and Dining

Hundreds of portraits of generals and admirals hang like wallpaper along the Pentagon's endless corridors.



Pentagon - United States - Military - Government - Installations

Hundreds of thousands of gallons of oil that leaked into a Michigan river from a ruptured pipeline are heading downstream toward Lake Michigan, and the state's governor is warning of a "tragedy of historic proportions" should the oil get there.


Lake Michigan - United States - Michigan - Outdoors - Fishing

QASR AL-YAHUD, WEST BANK -- Environmentalists claim that the hallowed spot along the Jordan River where Christians believe John the Baptist baptized Jesus Christ has become too filthy for human use.


Jordan River - Jordan - Middle East - Israel - Baptism

MIDDLE EAST Arab nations on Thursday backed the Palestinian president's refusal to immediately restart direct talks with Israel despite heavy U.S. pressure.


Middle East - Palestinian Territory - Mahmoud Abbas - Government - Arab League

KABUL -- A second U.S. sailor who disappeared in eastern Afghanistan last week has been found dead.



Afghanistan - Asia - NATO - Logar Province - Taliban

KABUL -- President Hamid Karzai said on Thursday that the disclosure of the names of Afghan informants in the trove of classified U.S. military documents posted online by the WikiLeaks Web site was "extremely irresponsible and shocking."


Afghanistan - Hamid Karzai - Wikileaks - War in Afghanistan - Warfare and Conflict