But the information the Russians reportedly provided was incorrect, and it may actually have helped U.S. forces take the Iraqis by surprise.

NPR: Report: Saddam Doubted War Would Come

The U.S. military has tried to take action to prevent attacks by Afghan forces, appointing monitors to provide security for troops working with Afghans, boosting its counterintelligence infrastructure in Afghanistan, adopting an eight-step vetting process for Afghan recruits and revising the training they receive.

CNN: STORY HIGHLIGHTS

On Wednesday, Mr Hollande said that the "final phase" of the French intervention "will last through March and from April there will be a decrease in the number of French soldiers in Mali as African forces will take over, supported by the Europeans".

BBC: Mali crisis: French soldiers to be withdrawn in April

Mr Karzai said he was "very happy" to hear that Afghan forces would take over responsibility for providing security by this spring.

BBC: US troops will end 'most' Afghanistan combat this spring

They were killed in 1480 by raiding Islamist forces that were seeking to take over Europe, the Vatican website said, quoting Donald Prudlo, an associate professor of medieval history at Jacksonville State University in Jacksonville, Alabama.

CNN: Pope canonizes first saints from Colombia, Mexico

Lt Col Jim Turner said some 900 reserve personnel were believed to be needed from the region each year, in the long term, as the TA is expected to take on an increasing number of duties currently performed by regular forces.

BBC: TA training exercise

There was an assessment last week from General Peter Pace of the Joint Chiefs of Staff that only a small number of Iraqi security forces are able to take on the insurgents by themselves, and you just talked about some degree of dependence on coalition troops.

NPR: Iraqis Say They Will Meet Constitution Deadline

In a televised speech, he said the tide of war was receding, and that Afghan forces would take full control of the country's security by 2014.

BBC: Dannatt: US Afghan plan is 'bold, but risky'

But so many were dropped by Allied forces during the war that finding them all will still take years.

CNN: Experts defuse unexploded WWII bomb in central Berlin

Mr. Obama, who last visited Afghanistan in December 2010, has committed to withdrawing most U.S. troops by 2014 under an agreement with NATO members, with plans for Afghan forces to take the lead in combat operations next year.

WSJ: Obama, Karzai Sign Strategic Pact on Surprise Afghan Visit

The move will reduce by more than half the current force level there of 66, 000 troops as Afghan forces prepare to take the lead in combat missions.

CNN: Obama keeps pressure on Republicans with jobs plan