Taliban Summer Attacks Down Compared To Last Year

General David Petraeus

The top U.S. commander in Afghanistan, General David Petraeus, says that insurgent attacks against foreign and Afghan forces in Afghanistan are down this summer compared to the same time last year.

Petraeus, speaking on a visit to Kabul, said attacks were down by "a few percent" for May and June, the beginning of the traditional annual fighting season.

But he said that the number of homemade bomb explosions had risen.

Petraeus is due to step down as the top commander in Afghanistan in mid-July and take over as CIA director in September.

compiled from agency reports