Afghan Taliban Resurgence Alarms Pentagon

Taliban militants in Afghanistan have regrouped “into a resilient insurgency” that has US  allies "losing ground and slipping backwards," a new Pentagon report concludes. Bombing attacks set a record in 2007, and are on track to top that in 2008. Security conditions in the war-torn country have declined sharply, and the Afghan government can’t control the narcotics trade or extend its reach nationwide, the Wall Street Journal reports.

The resurgence poses a critical dilemma to the Bush administration, the Journal notes, as  commanders say they need more troops in Afghanistan, but they can only be provided by withdrawing troops from Iraq. With the former now more dangerous for US troops than the latter, Pentagon officials have ordered a top-to-bottom review of strategy. (More Afghanistan stories.)