This sprawling, three-mile bottleneck of NATO oil tankers and supply trucks shows how easily a blockade of the Kyhber Pass can stop America's war against the Taliban. Yes, Pakistan is fighting our fight against Islamic extremism with traffic jams.
The image above and the gallery below were snapped by satellites operated by DigitalGlobe. They offer a visual indication of Pakistan's ability to stop American forces in their tracks. As Wired's Danger Room explains:
"The blockade came after months of mounting tension between U.S and Pakistani officials, with the number of American drone strikes on Pakistani territory hitting an all-time high - at least 21 - in September. But officials in Pakistan were spurred to retaliate after NATO helicopters chased militant suspects into Pakistani territory late last month, and NATO helicopters killed two of the country's soldiers who fired their guns in an attempt "to warn the helicopters of their presence."
Pakistan's 10-day blockade against NATO convoys has ended, but shutting down the border crossing providing 50% of the non-lethal resources for the war in Afghanistan will have repercussions to come for many weeks and months to come.