A White House spokesman said Tuesday that President Barack Obama plans to reveal his decision on whether to send more U.S. troops to Afghanistan "within days" after holding a late-evening meeting with his top foreign policy and military advisers.

Media reports indicate that President Obama's announcement is expected to come in a prime-time televised address on Dec. 1.

As the Obama administration grapples with the question of whether to send more troops to Afghanistan, some historians have spoken about the similarities with Vietnam.

Despite the Taliban's campaign of violence targeting the elections, Afghanistan held its second-ever presidential vote on Aug. 20. USIP's Alex Thier explains the significance.

Special correspondent Nima Elbagir reports from a hospital in Kandahar, in the south of Afghanistan, on the toll that war has taken on the nation's civilian population.