Deadly Notes In The Night

So life for Afghans across the country continues to swing between hope and cruelty. In Panjwai, where a U.S. air strike in May killed 24 suspected Taliban along with 16 civilians, wails of mourning were mixed with sighs of relief that the Taliban might finally have been defeated. But then the night letters resumed, warning villagers not to become puppets of the American "infidels." Two weeks later, the Taliban seized two local police officers accused of collaborating with the government. Within two hours, they were publicly tried, sentenced and beheaded. It took more than 48 hours to gather enough men to retrieve the bodies. It was a sobering rebuke to local leaders who had decided to put their faith in the state. "The Taliban says it is heaven, and so does the government," says Mir Hamza, one of Panjwai's tribal elders. "But I think they are both hell." And until Karzai--and his U.S. allies--delivers peace and security, Afghans like Hamza can expect to receive more messages in the night.

> For more of TIME's coverage of the situation in Afghanistan, go to time.com