WASHINGTON - US President Barack Obama has signed a secret order authorizing a broader military mission in Afghanistan in 2015 than originally planned, the New York Times reported on Saturday.
The decision ensures a direct role for American troops in fighting in Afghanistan for at least another year, it said, adding Obama's decision was made during a White House meeting with national security advisers in recent weeks.
In May, Obama said the American military would have no combat role in Afghanistan next year. Missions for the remaining 9,800 troops would be limited to training Afghan forces and to hunting the "remnants of al-Qaida", he said.