Senators to ask U.S. general about troop levels in Afghanistan


              FILE - In this Dec. 28, 2014 file photo, Gen. John Campbell is seen in Kabul, Afghanistan. Afghan forces who reported being under Taliban fire requested the U.S. airstrike that killed 22 people at a medical clinic in northern Afghanistan over the weekend, the top commander of American and coalition forces in Afghanistan said Monday, correcting an initial U.S. statement that the strike had been launched because U.S. forces were threatened. The strike wasn't sought by Campbell said at a hastily arranged Pentagon news conference. (AP Photo/Massoud Hossaini, File)
FILE - In this Dec. 28, 2014 file photo, Gen. John Campbell is seen in Kabul, Afghanistan. Afghan forces who reported being under Taliban fire requested the U.S. airstrike that killed 22 people at a medical clinic in northern Afghanistan over the weekend, the top commander of American and coalition forces in Afghanistan said Monday, correcting an initial U.S. statement that the strike had been launched because U.S. forces were threatened. The strike wasn't sought by Campbell said at a hastily arranged Pentagon news conference. (AP Photo/Massoud Hossaini, File)

WASHINGTON (AP) - The top U.S. commander in Afghanistan is to face questions on Capitol Hill about how many troops should stay in the war-torn nation where the Taliban recently overran a northern city and a U.S. airstrike hit a medical clinic.

When he testifies Tuesday before the Senate Armed Services Committee, Gen. John F. Campbell will be asked whether he thinks President Barack Obama should reduce the U.S. troop presence from its current level of about 9,800 to about 1,000 after 2016

Campbell is testifying three days after an airstrike on a medical clinic killed 22 people in the northern city of Kunduz (KUHN-duz), the scene of heavy fighting in recent days. The Taliban held Kunduz for three days before a government counter-offensive began. Afghan forces have retaken the city.

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