U.S. looking at Afghan tribal militias, officials say

WASHINGTON (CNN) - As the United States looks for ways to slow the violence and regain control of Afghanistan from the Taliban and al Qaeda elements, a new plan taking shape among U.S. military leaders could support more power for tribal militias and allow scaling back combat operations, according to Pentagon officials.
The plan, being developed under the direction of the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Adm. Mike Mullen, is focused on the idea that both Afghanistan and Pakistan are linked by a common insurgency that stretches along their border, according to a Pentagon official with knowledge of issue.
The official would not go on the record because he did not want to speak about the plan before Mullen introduces it.
With a lack of U.S. forces available to beef up existing troops in Afghanistan, Mullen believes one answer to solving the problem of increasing Afghan violence would be to empower tribal militias that have influence in both Pakistan, where U.S. forces have limited access, and Afghanistan, where the United States is training more Afghan security forces to bolster troop levels.