Community-based defense project

The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff is reviewing a new community-based defense program recently started in an increasingly violent province on the doorstep of Kabul.

Admiral Mike Mullen visited Wardak province yesterday, where US troops deployed for the first time this year. The program he's assessing draws volunteers from Afghan communities to defend their villages against militants.

"The early reviews are positive," Mullen said. "We are in the beginning stages, and this is a pilot, and we chose Wardak because it is such a critical province, and that's why I came today to see how things are going on the ground."