Former Anti-soviet Fighter Abdullah Abdullah

The United States' decision to extend its military presence in Afghanistan beyond 2016 has thrown the war-ravaged country's government a much needed lifeline even as its dysfunctionality, blamed for the Taliban's revival, shows no signs of abating.

The United States' decision to extend its military presence in Afghanistan beyond 2016 has thrown the war-ravaged country's government a much needed lifeline even as its dysfunctionality, blamed for the Taliban's revival, shows no signs of abating.