Overview

"The ""first"" Afghan War, a CIA war in response to 9/11, was directed by the CIA Station Chief in Islamabad. It put Hamid Karzai in power in 88 days. ""If you want an insider's account of the first American-Afghan War, you can't do better than this...Important reading to understand where we are today"" (Library Journal). From his preparation of the original, post-9/11 war plan, approved by President Bush, through to ""final"" fleeting victory, Robert Grenier relates the tale of the ""southern campaign,"" which drove al-Qa'ida and the Taliban from Kandahar, its capital, in an astonishing eighty-eight days. ""With his ringside seat as the senior agency official stationed closest to Afghanistan, Grenier is able to describe meeting by meeting, sometimes phone call after phone call, how events unfolded"" (The New York Times). In his gripping account, we meet: General Tommy Franks, who bridles at CIA control of ""his"" war; General ""Jafar Amin,"" a gruff Pakistani intelligence officer who saves Grenier from committing career suicide; Maleeha Lodhi, Pakistan's brilliant ambassador to the US, who tries to warn her government of the al-Qa'ida threat; and Hamid Karzai, the puzzling anti-Taliban insurgent, a man with elements of greatness, petulance, and moods. With suspense and insight, Grenier details his very personal struggles and triumphs. 88 Days to Kandahar is ""an action-packed tale, rich in implication, of the post-9/11 race to unseat the Taliban and rout al-Qaida in Afghanistan"" (Kirkus Reviews)."

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9781476712086

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Reviews

After more than a decade, the war in Afghanistan is fizzling to an ignominious end, leaving tens of thousands of dead and wounded, a trillion wasted dollars, and a resurgent Taliban poised to return to power. Now Robert Grenier, the CIA s man in Pakistan and Afghanistan at 9/11, gives a dramatic spy s-eye view of how it all began. In captivating detail, Grenier describes his plans for the original limited invasion, his secret negotiations with warlords, how the war might have been prevented, and how colossal overreach and the decision that failure was not an option led to tragic defeat in America s longest war. --James Bamford, author of The Shadow Factory: The Ultra-Secret NSA from 9/11 to the Eavesdropping on America and other best-selling books on intelligence

Most often history comes to us through a distant and detached analyst who tries to make sense of an event they did not experience. Here Bob Grenier, the ultimate insider, opens a window of insight into a pivotal time in our own historical consciousness. It is a gripping narrative. --John J. Hamre, President and CEO, Center for Strategic and International Studies, former Deputy Secretary of Defense

Author Information

"Robert L. Grenier had a much decorated, twenty-seven-year career in the CIA's clandestine service. A renowned Middle East expert, he has been deputy national intelligence officer for the Near East and South Asia. He organized the CIA's Counter-Proliferation Division and headed the CIA's basic training facility, ""The Farm."" From 1999 to 2002, he was CIA station chief in Islamabad. Subsequently, he was director of the CIA's CounTerterrorism Center, responsible for all CIA counterterrorism operations around the globe. Currently, Grenier is chairman of ERG Partners, a consulting firm to businesses in the intelligence and security sector. Visit Robert-Grenier.com."

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