US President Obama in Afghanistan on unannounced trip

President Barack Obama slipped unannounced into Afghanistan on Friday, one year after widening an ever deadlier war and just days before a pivotal review about the nine-year-plus conflict. Plans for a face-to-face meeting with Afghan President Hamid Karzai were scrapped at the last minute.

Under intense security, Obama landed in darkness after a clandestine departure from the White House on Thursday, where plans of his trip into the war zone were tightly guarded. Obama stepped off Air Force One just after 8:30 pm local time, clad in a leather jacket. He was to personally thank US troops for their service during the holidays. (AP)