“TALIBAN CHIEF’S DEATH A BIG U.S. VICTORY:” That’s pretty strong stuff coming from AP, not noted for its positive war coverage, so I guess it’s big news. For lasting success, though, it’ll take a lot of these — and probably some improvement with Pakistan, which is looking pretty dicey at the moment.

StrategyPage has more on Afghanistan, including this observation: “Overall, the level of Taliban violence is less than last year. The Taliban boasted of a larger ‘offensive’ this year, but so far have not been able to deliver. . . . The Taliban have had more success using publicists, than guys with guns.”