Escalada na Guerra do Afeganistão

Tonight President Obama announced an increase of 30,000 troops to be deployed to Afghanistan, as well as a plan to begin withdrawal of troops in eighteen months. . While Obama’s announcement of a date for withdrawal stands in stark contrast to the approach of the Bush Administration and the GOP’s call for endless war, this escalation of troops means more war, conflict, death and injury for the people of Afghanistan as well as the American men and women in uniform and the families they leave at home. Today, the majority of U.S. people now oppose the war in Afghanistan. . The decision also runs counter to the President’s own emphasis on diplomacy and negotiation as the basis for U.S. foreign policy. As the president remarked about U.S. occupation of Iraq: “there is no military solution” to the problems in Afghanistan. . The costs of the war and occupation of Afghanistan are great at home and abroad. At a time that the U.S. faces the worst economic crisis in eighty years and is attempting to reform healthcare for the benefit of the vast majority of the people, the massive cost of the ongoing wars in Iraq and Afghanistan is a barrier to solving our many domestic problems. Nearly 1000 U.S. soldiers have died in Afghanistan, and this year is the bloodiest since the NATO invasion eight years ago. Countless Afghan civilians have suffered, caught in the crossfire between U.S. troops, the Taliban and corrupt militias. . The Communist Party stands with those opposing the escalation and calling for the withdrawal of U.S. troops. Tomorrow, Wednesday, Dec. 2, we join with people around the country who will gather in town squares, parks and churches to protest the President’s decision and call for diplomatic and peaceful solutions to the problems in the region. Afghanistan is very different from Iraq, but they have at least one fact in common: there is no military solution. For a list of local "day-after" events in your area, visit United for Peace and Justice For the latest coverage on Afghanistan and the U.S peace movement, check out these recent articles in the People’s World: More troops to Afghanistan, but the public is wary Escalating the war in Afghanistan is not the answer Rep. Barbara Lee: Exit Afghanistan, boost security at home   For more information about Afghanistan and the Congressional measures to end the U.S. occupation there, visit Rethink Afghanistan or United Against Afghanistan Escalation . 2009.12.02 . ,