AFGHANISTAN

President Barack Obama began the steady retreat from Afghanistan Wednesday, saying in a televised speech the United States has largely achieved its goals and the withdrawal of troops will now begin.

President Barack Obama will announce the withdrawal of 10,000 American troops from Afghanistan this year, and another 20,000 troops, the remainder of the 2009 surge, by the end of next summer, administration officials say.

President Obama will announce Wednesday night his plan to withdraw 10,000 troops from Afghanistan this year and 20,000 by the end of the summer 2012 -- reducing U.S. troops stationed there to pre-surge levels.

Freshly-declared presidential candidate Jon Huntsman said Wednesday that President Barack Obama has been too timid in withdrawing troops from Afghanistan, distancing himself from his former employer.

In a speech he'll deliver to the nation Wednesday night, President Barack Obama is expected to announce the initial drawdown. However, regardless of the pace or scale of the withdrawal, the United States will maintain a substantial presence in the country, reflecting a decision on Obama's part to make the Afghanistan effort the lynchpin of his foreign policy.

Only days after Ron Paul famously said his candidacy is a response to endless, undeclared, unwinnable wars dumped on the young people, White House sources frantically confirmed that President Obama will shortly announce his plans to withdraw 10,000 troops from Afghanistan in a phased manner by the end of 2011.

Today it is expected that President Barack Obama will order 10,000 US Troops back home from Afghanistan.

India’s version of the Academy Awards is about roll out its green carpet in Toronto. The stage is set for the the North American debut of the annual International Indian Film Academy (IIFA) at the Rogers Centre on Saturday.

Leon Panetta was unanimously confirmed by the Senate Tuesday to be the next Pentagon chief, the Los Angeles Times reported.

Hezbollah, which is supported by Iran, has gained a majority of seats in Lebanon’s new cabinet. The move has led to much concern both in the West and Israel about what this development could mean.

British Prime Minister David Cameron is livid over critical comments made by some top military officers regarding the NATO campaign in Libya.

President Obama is still mulling his options as he prepares to announce a schedule for withdrawing the 33,000 additional troops he committed to Afghanistan upon assuming office.

On the coming Wednesday, President Obama will announce the details of his plan to reduce the number of U.S. troops in Afghanistan next month, according to administration officials.

President Obama plans to speak on the future of the U.S. mission in Afghanistan on Wednesday, senior administration officials said Monday.

Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) and Sen. Lindsey Graham sharply questioned a broadening push, including by Republican presidential hopefuls, to more rapidly withdraw U.S. forces from Afghanistan.

Even as police are investigating if a 22-year-old military man arrested near the Pentagon in suspicious circumstances belonged to any jihadi network or was acting alone, the focus has turned to the old debate of Muslim personnel’s role in the US military.

He’s spent the week debating the legality of the United States participation in Libya, and meeting with top officials to alter the United States’ role in Afghanistan, but in his latest speech, President Barack Obama focused on what he called his most important role: fatherhood.

The U.N Security Council has split the U.N. sanctions list for Taliban and al-Qaeda to induce Taliban to join the peace talks in Afghanistan.

A Lance Corporal Marine Corps reservist was taken into custody on Friday after it was established that he was the person dubiously spotted near the Pentagon and had parked his car in the bushes nearby.

White House Communications Director Dan Pfeiffer defended the Obama administration's record today to a gathering of progressive bloggers that charged the president has reneged on his campaign promises.

UN envoy Angelina Jolie traveled to Turkey's border with Syria today, where she will meet some of the more than 9,600 refugees who have fled a bloody crackdown on Syrian anti-government protesters.