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An international donors conference to promise aid to Afghanistan wrapped up in London yesterday. Several countries and the Asian Development bank pledged 10.5 billion dollars for rebuilding Afghanistan over the next five years. This included fighting poverty, improving security and cracking down on the drug trade. While the conflict in Iraq occupies most attention, there have been major changes in Afghanistan in recent months. Despite the fact that Afghanistan held parliamentary elections in September, 2005 was the bloodiest year in Afghanistan since the fall of the Taliban, with 91 US soldiers and 1600 Afghans killed. Suicide bombings have become more common. While US troops have seen a decrease, NATO countries, especially Britain and Canada, have been increasing their military presence on the ground.

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