NATO commander warns Afghanistan at tipping point

NATO chief Gen. David Richards said Afghans were at a tipping point and would begin siding with the resurgent Taliban if living conditions in the country are not improved.

Richards said this winter along might be enough to convince many Afghans to switch sides.

"We have created an opportunity," following military operations in the southern parts of the country, he said. "If we do not take advantage of this, then you can pour an additional 10,000 troops next year and we would not succeed because we would have lost by then the consent of the people."


Pakistani police transport Taliban militants in Quetta, Pakistan, Sunday, Oct. 8, 2006. Police acting on a tip raided several militant sanctuaries in southwestPakistan arresting 48 suspected Taliban militants who had arrived from Afghanistan , police said. AP Photo/Arshad Butt via Yahoo News.