Summary: May 2011 was the deadliest month for Afghan civilians since the war began shortly after the terrorist attack of September 11, 2001, with 368 civilians killed and 593 wounded, according to a U.N. midyear civilian casualty report. … One-year retrospective: One year ago today, on June 14, 2010, Aubrey Immelman reported that in 1916 President Woodrow Wilson issued a proclamation establishing June 14 as Flag Day, and that President Harry Truman made it official in 1949 when he signed legislation designating June 14 of each year as National Flag Day.

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Summary: In testimony before the Senate Armed Services Committee, Gen. David Petraeus, the U.S. commander in Afghanistan, says much of the Taliban’s battlefield momentum has been halted, putting the U.S. on course to begin pulling out troops in July 2011 and shifting security responsibility to the Afghans. He cautioned, however, that security progress remains “fragile and reversible,” with tough days ahead as the Taliban launch an expected spring offensive. … One-year retrospective: One year ago today, on March 15, 2010, Aubrey Immelman reported that the arrest of Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar — second in the Taliban only to one-eyed leader Mullah Mohammed Omain — reportedly infuriated Afghan President Hamid Karzai, who was said to have been holding secret peace talks with the Taliban’s No. 2 when he was captured in Pakistan the previous month, in February 2010.

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Summary: Lt. Col. Victor Garcia, deputy commander of the 1st Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division deployed in Kandahar province, Afghanistan, says he expects the Taliban to “come back at us hard” in their spring offensive. … One-year retrospective: One year ago today, on February 8, 2010, Aubrey Immelman reported that deputy national security adviser John Brennan told NBC’s David Gregory on “Meet the Press” that politicians were using national security to score political points and that he was exasperated with partisan political football over counterterrorism professionals’ handling of failed airline bomber Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab.

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