Insurgents Set Aside Rivalries on Afghan Border.

[elleng]

New intelligence assessments from the region assert that insurgent factions now are setting aside their historic rivalries to behave like “a syndicate,” joining forces in ways not seen before. After one recent attack on a remote base in eastern Afghanistan, a check of the dead insurgents found evidence that the fighters were from three different factions, military officials said.

In the past, these insurgent groups have been seen as sharing ideology and inspiration, but less often plans for specific missions.

Now the intelligence assessments offer evidence of a worrisome new trend in which extremist commanders and their insurgent organizations are coordinating attacks and even combining their foot soldiers into patchwork patrols sent to carry out specific raids.

The change reveals the resilience and flexibility of the militant groups.

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/29/world/asia/29military.html?_r=1&hp

[DCKit]

1. I don't know what to make of this.

It's the NYT, so I doubt the credibility and I don't know if they're simply ramping up the Terra, or providing actual information that's not favorable to our continued presence there.