The Second Decade of War in Afghanistan

The US and its international allies have entered into the second decade of war in Afghanistan.

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The war that started after 11th September 2011 to fight terrorism globally was not expected to continue this long costing a huge amount of money. It seems that the war will continue much longer.

Who has really spent too much money?

Over Half a Trillion Dollar Cost of War

The Afghan war is considered to be the longest war for the United State of America. According to a US research centre's website, the war in Afghanistan costs thousands of dollars in seconds and up to 9th November 2011 more than four hundred seventy three million dollars have been spent in the Afghan War.

The Real Victims of War

Besides huge amount of money, the war cost the lives of too many people. In many cases it seems that the sides have committed serious war crimes against humanity. According to statistic the Afghan war has cost lives of 30 to 46 thousand people.

Despite a difference in statistics of death toll in Afghanistan, most of the sources show that 8,800 Afghan Security Forces and more than 3,000 foreign troops have lost their lives in Afghan war. Also some statistics show that 10 to 20 thousand Taliban insurgents have died so far. Some sources have also reported that 10 to 11 thousand civilians, 172 aid workers and 18 journalists have died in the Afghan conflicts.

Some 2,600 Afghan military forces have been wounded and 150 thousand foreign soldiers have been wounded in both Afghanistan and Iraq.

Immigration of More than 3 Million People The three decades of war in Afghanistan have forced a considerable amount of Afghans to leave the country. Currently Afghanistan tops list of the countries which have too much immigrants. The recent conflicts indicate that most of the people in insecure areas have been displaced.

More than 400 thousand people have been displaced and 3 million have migrated to the neighbouring countries.

Different Visions

After a decade of war, there is no clear vision of the Afghan war.
Despite being the closest allies, the US and UK have different visions towards the Afghan war.

End of Mission, Continuation of War

In the beginning days of the second decade of war in Afghanistan, some foreign troops are preparing to return home. The process of foreign troops withdrawal started by handing over security responsibilities to the Afghan security forces in July this year. As the foreign troops mission ends in Afghanistan, intense fighting is going on in most parts of the country and it seems far from end. The peace process has seemingly failed. It's still unclear what the war will cost Afghan people.