By Jamie McIntyre for The Washington Examiner

PLAYING A BAD HAND: If you’re looking for a graphic depiction of what U.S. special representative Zalmay Khalilzad is up against as he tries to bring the Taliban to the peace table with the American-backed Afghan government, the living mapmaintained by the Foundation for Defense of Democracies’ Long War Journal is a good place to start.

The map, based on open-source information, shows the breakdown of Taliban control by districts and population centers. The data show that half of Afghanistan’s population lives under Taliban controlled or contested districts. Continue reading…