Cables from Kabul: The Inside Story of the West's Afghanistan Campaign - Sherard Cowper-Coles

One of the events I went to as part of the British Museum's exhibition on Afghanistan: Crossroads of the Ancient World was the screening of the 1979 documentary Khyber. The director, Andre Singer, recommended Cables from Kabul, and I treated myself to the hard cover edition.

It's a great book. Sherard Cowper-Coles was British Ambassador to Afghanistan from 2007 to 2009, and the Foreign Secretary's Special Representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan from 2009 to 2010 - roles that put him at the heart of Britain's diplomatic missions to AfPak during the War in Afghanistan during 2007 - 2010. In these memoirs he shares his first hand experience of the political and military developments of the time, and provides insights into key players, British, American and Afghan.

Amazon.co.uk link: Cables from Kabul: The Inside Story of the West's Afghanistan Campaign - Sherard Cowper-Coles

19 August 2011: All the more recommended, in light of today's attack on the British Council office in Kabul.