Here's a look at Afghanistan via a roundup of the state of affairs there by Reuter's Alertnet.
It has become Asia's poorest nation, and while the devastating conflicts and wars are well-known, it's also suffered terrible natural disasters including famine and flooding.

Lawlessness in rural areas, the presence of millions of mines and unexploded ordnance strewn throughout the countryside, and health crises including tuberculosis and cholera all blight the country though things seem to be improving in the main cities.