Marines push militants out of Taliban region

[Twain]

CAMP LEATHERNECK, Afghanistan – U.S. Marines trapped Taliban fighters in a residential compound and persuaded the insurgents to allow women and children to leave. The troops then moved in — only to discover that the militants had slipped out, dressed in women's burqa robes.

The fighters, who may owe their lives to the new U.S. commander's emphasis on limiting civilian casualties, were among hundreds of militants who have fled the offensive the Marines launched last week in southern Helmand province. Marine officers say keeping the Taliban from returning so the Afghan government can establish a stable presence will be a bigger challenge.

"We have dislocated them while still protecting the people," said Col. Eric Mellinger, the operations officer for the 2nd Marine Expeditionary Brigade. "Now the key is to prevent militants from coming back in, and the way to do that is to earn their (Afghan villagers') trust so that they don't allow them to come back in."

The offensive, which began Thursday when about 4,000 Marines and sailors stormed into the Helmand River valley, seeks to cut off a major Taliban supply route. The militants bring in weapons and fighters from Pakistan and ship out opium — one of their main sources of income.

Before the operation, their biggest of the Afghan war, Marine commanders believed up to 1,000 insurgents were operating in the fertile valley. But most of them fled without a major battle, instead launching scattered but ineffective attacks.

As a result, only one Marine has died so far in the mission, although several have been wounded. Others have collapsed from heat exhaustion after hiking for days with 50-100 pounds of food, water, weapons and ammunition in temperatures approaching 120 degrees Fahrenheit.

Militants seemed keen to avoid an all-out fight with the better armed Marines.

On Monday, images from a Predator drone showed a dozen fighters and at least 15 to 20 civilians inside a mud-brick compound in the village of Khan Neshin, about 60 miles north of the Pakistani border.

Because of the civilians, the U.S. troops held their fire, and instead used a military translator and village elder to persuade the militants to free women and children.

Two groups — children and what appeared to be women in burqas — left the compound. When the Marines entered, they found no one. The fighters had clearly donned burqas and slipped away among the civilians, according to Marines who took part in the mission.

The Americans didn't have female Marines with them to search the robed figures and make sure no men were among them in disguise. And the new U.S. and NATO commander, Gen. Stanley McChrystal, has said he would rather see militants escape than for civilians to be harmed in battle; a declassified version of his new guidelines for troops were released Monday.

The ease with which the Marines moved into the Helmand Valley does not necessarily mean the area will remain quiet.

Throughout the seven-year war, the Taliban have traditionally melted away in the face of overwhelming force only to re-emerge, using traditional guerrilla tactics such as roadside bombs, ambushes and suicide attacks.

For years, Helmand has proved to be one of the toughest regions to tame. Some 8,000 to 9,000 British troops have been in Helmand since 2006, but the force has been too small to control the militant-infested province about 325 miles southwest of Kabul. The U.S. deployment in southern Helmand will help British troops concentrate their efforts in the central and northern areas of the province.

Helmand is Afghanistan's biggest province and was once known as its breadbasket. Today it produces more than half the country's opium. Tribal rivalries for control of the lucrative trade have contributed to instability which the Taliban exploited.

That will make it difficult for the Afghan government to establish a long-term presence that will guarantee stability, experts believe.

"I think the biggest challenge will be holding the area over the long run. In my view, successful holding will require careful dialogue with a range of key tribes in Helmand," said Seth Jones, an analyst for the RAND Corp.

"The central government has never been able to establish order in rural Helmand, let alone other areas of Afghanistan," he said.

Jones suggested the Marines seek alliances with the two main tribes in the area who have demonstrated "a willingness to fight the Taliban."

"It does not appear that the Marines have adopted this approach — at least yet," Jones said.

Mellinger said the U.S. presence will also disrupt the opium industry, because militants will no longer be able to intimidate farmers into growing poppy. He said Afghans understand that growing poppies is "intrinsically wrong."

Now that the Marines are in place, Mellinger said other U.S. agencies can come in and help farmers grow wheat and other traditional crops.

This year's poppy harvest is already in, but the Marines should help stem the flow of opium and heroin from Helmand.

The Marine mission is the largest U.S. operation since President Barack Obama ordered 21,000 additional U.S. forces to Afghanistan this year. The total U.S. presence here will rise to a record 68,000 troops later this summer — more than twice the 32,000 in the country last year.

The 2nd Marine Expeditionary Brigade should be in Helmand for another six or eight months — allowing villagers to vote in the Aug. 20 presidential election — and another Marine unit will come in afterward, Mellinger said.

After that, the U.S. hopes Afghan forces can provide security. Right now, only about 500 Afghan security forces are participating in the operation alongside the 4,000 Marines.


Marines push militants out of Taliban region - Yahoo! News

Feel free to move this if it belongs in a different area.

 

[Slides]

Will they be pushed into Pakistan?

 

[TruthSeeker]

Will they be pushed into Pakistan?

Of course. they were in Fall, 2001, why should now be any different? did Pakistan learn anything from 2001?

 

[Slides]

Of course. they were in Fall, 2001, why should now be any different? did Pakistan learn anything from 2001?

Did the US learn anything is the more important question because it is what the US does that will matter the most in how the fight goes against the taliban.

 

[Twain]

I didn't have time to put my thoughts down when I posted the article but I think there are 2 important points to this.

1. While the marines are having some success initially, this will be a long road but I have more hope of a positive outcome in Afghanistan than I have had in years. I doubt they are pushing any significant numbers of Taliban into Pakistan just yet.

2. The strategies and tactics have changed. I think it is extremely important to notice the measures that were taken to prevent civilian casualties. Obama, Patraeus and Mcchrystal are in charge now and I think the emphasis is changing dramatically. We will see more emphasis on preventing civilian casualties and protecting the people of Afghanistan from the Taliban rather than seek and destroy missions against the taliban.

This does not mean there won't be any more civilian casualties, unfortunately some civilian casualties are unavoidable. There will be more fighting but fewer air and artillery strikes.

Pakistan won't like all the current US policies, but I think they are greatly preferable to the policies of just a year ago.

 

[Durran3]

Another reason why Burqa needs to be banned lol..

With that being said i think Obama seems a tad bit more responsible than the previous governments. With more focus on Afghanistan than Iraq the end result even though still not entirely clear does seem alot more positive. I like Patreus he seems like a very reasonable and clear minded guy especially given his credentials. Also Pakistan's chief of Army staff General Kayani has till now had a pretty impressive track record so overall i think the whole conflict against the Taliban fighters generally seems to be in control

 

[muse]

We will see more emphasis on preventing civilian casualties and protecting the people of Afghanistan from the Taliban rather than seek and destroy missions against the taliban.

This does not mean there won't be any more civilian casualties, unfortunately some civilian casualties are unavoidable. There will be more fighting but fewer air and artillery strikes.

Pakistan won't like all the current US policies,..

As long as it does not then become incumbent on Pakistan to do the butcher work U.S. will not do, while protecting the Afghan -- I think though your comment about Pakistan "won't like all the current US policies.." should be taken by Pakistani readers as reflecting just how much Pakistan will have to do by itself.

 

[Twain]

As long as it does not then become incumbent on Pakistan to do the butcher work U.S. will not do, while protecting the Afghan -- I think though your comment about Pakistan "won't like all the current US policies.." should be taken by Pakistani readers as reflecting just how much Pakistan will have to do by itself.

Just my opinion, but the us army and particularly the marines will be killing taliban every chance they get, but I think some of the events of the last few weeks point to much greater concern for civilian casualties.

As to how much Pakistan will have to do by itself, There is no doubt that Pakistan will be shouldering a heavy burden. The US and Pakistan are not going to agree on every issue, but right now we have some problems in common. At least now we are seeing more cooperation between both countries to accomplish mutual goals. One primary example being some of the drone strikes occurring in Pakistan. They are definitely in cooperation with the GoP, both in sharing intelligence and who they are targeting.

Like I said, the US and Pakistan aren't going to see everything eye to eye but it is in both countries best interests to work together as much as they can. We can continue to argue and debate the differences but it is just common sense to work together on the things we agree about.

 

[muse]

Crossing the Helmand
By Brian M Downing

The offensive launched last week by United States forces in the southern Afghan province of Helmand signals the start of a new chapter in the conflict. With over 4,000 US troops involved, mostly marines, it is one of the largest operations of the war that began in late 2001 with the ouster of the Taliban.

The goals are ambitious. The campaign first seeks to drive the Taliban out of the region and then begin a counter-insurgency program - providing services to the local population to win them over to the government side. The offensive also likely seeks to disrupt the opium trade in Helmand - which provides revenue to the Taliban - and to throw the Taliban off balance so as to limit a wave of attacks aimed at disrupting national elections scheduled for August 20.

Two potential problems come to mind. First, though the scale of the operation is smaller than the big operations of the Vietnam War, it may be sufficient to cause dismay among the indigenous populace, many of whom are ambivalent about the Taliban but blame US troops for bringing war to their districts. This bolsters support for the Taliban, as in the "accidental guerrilla" dynamic identified by former Australian army officer and now author David Kilcullen.

Second, counter-insurgency doctrine calls for beginning in "easy" districts, where insurgent support is relatively weak and government control relatively strong. From there, having benefited from a learning curve, counter-insurgency operations can spread out into adjacent areas or begin in tougher areas. The present operation has ignored that tenet and chosen to begin in a Taliban stronghold.

Perhaps geography trumped doctrine in choosing Helmand to begin the counter-insurgency. It is relatively flat compared to Kandahar, Paktia and Kunar provinces, where mountainsides afford insurgents formidable positions to rain fire on supply lines and helicopter-borne reaction forces. Accordingly, resupply and responding to Taliban attacks in strength will be less arduous in Helmand.

Engagements have so far been few and brief, though recent reports indicate stiffening resistance in some places. It is unclear if the Taliban have vanished into the population or headed for defensible positions. No one should believe that the US can now write off Helmand and concentrate on Kandahar or other strong points.

The experience of other insurgencies offer several tactics to the Taliban. Among them will be interdiction of supplies coming to forward operating bases in the province. This can be done through ambushes and improvised explosive devices (IEDs) which have become a tactic of choice by the Taliban since costly efforts at large-scale operations in 2007.

The dispersal of US units into small fire bases and checkpoints offer attractive targets for a few dozen or so Taliban fighters whose fellow guerrillas will set ambushes for relief forces. The Taliban might also launch attacks in numerous districts across the country, to pressure the US to withdraw troops from Helmand and to disrupt the August elections.

Foremost in the Taliban response will be disruption of counter-insurgency efforts. Insurgents will seek to assassinate elders and others deemed to be collaborating with US forces. They can also focus on attacking newly founded local forces before they can coalesce into effective fighting forces, and destroying logistical centers that store equipment for local development programs. In every engagement, the Taliban will seek to ensure that US forces inflict casualties on civilians.

Failing to thwart the counter-insurgency program in Helmand, the Taliban may well face desertions from the numerous part-timers who flesh out their fighting forces, and also the threat of shifting local support in the face of an agency whose resources are foreign but virtually limitless.

Helmand will be a test of Pashtun amenability to counter-insurgency. Will they respond to government services and participate in security forces, or has the province become too closely attached to the Taliban over the years? The forces are in place and the stakes are clear to all. The die has been cast, in Helmand.

Brian M Downing is the author of several works of political and military history, including The Military Revolution and Political Change and The Paths of Glory: War and Social Change in America from the Great War to Vietnam. He can be reached at brianmdowning@gmail.com.

 

[muse]

Helmand braces for Taliban battle
By Mohammad Ilyas Dayee and Aziz Ahmad Tassak

The residents of Nawa, in Afghanistan's Helmand province, are not accustomed to seeing foreign soldiers on their streets. In fact, for most of the past year they have not seen even their own military - Nawa has been under Taliban control.

That changed on July 2, when a combined force of 4,000 United States Marines Corps and 650 Afghan troops, along with 50 aircraft and dozens of combat vehicles, rolled out their biggest offensive since Fallujah, in Iraq, in 2004.

Operation Khanjar (Dagger Thrust) is no ordinary military action. Its aim, according to the officers in charge, is to win the hearts and minds of Helmandis. Instead of the "clear and withdraw" tactics of previous years, which did little more than temporarily displace the insurgents, Operation Khanjar will leave foreign troops holding an area, aiming to make reconstruction and development possible.

"What makes Operation Khanjar different from those that have occurred before is the massive size of the force introduced, the speed at which it will insert, and the fact that where we go we will stay, and where we stay, we will hold, build and work toward transition of all security responsibilities to Afghan forces," said Brigadier General Larry Nicholson, commanding general of the Marine Expeditionary Brigade-Afghanistan, in a statement issued on July 2.

But they will have an uphill battle convincing war-weary Afghans that this time things will be different.

"I cannot remember a single operation involving foreign soldiers that has not resulted in civilian casualties," said Pacha, a resident of Lashkar Gah, whose family is in Nawa. "I called my father a few minutes ago and told him to get the family out of the house, to come here."

The issue of civilian casualties has caused considerable tension between the Afghan government and the foreign community over the past year. But the recently appointed US military commander in Afghanistan, General Stanley McChrystal, has made the protection of civilians his highest priority. In late June, he issued a new tactical directive, calling on troops in battle to take particular care to avoid endangering non-combatants, especially when calling in air strikes.

"We have been fully assured that there will not be any civilian casualties in this operation," said Daoud Ahmadi, spokesman for the Helmand governor. "We are confident that this operation will be conducted with extreme care."

Ahmadi said the operation would target Nawa, Garmsir, Nad Ali and Greshk districts.

Even without the air strikes that have killed hundreds of civilians in recent months, many Afghans are unhappy about the presence of foreign troops in their backyard.

"Our entire village is surrounded," said Sefatullah, a resident of a village in Nad Ali called 31 West. "The foreigners are driving their tanks in our fields. They will not let anyone come out of their houses."

A resident of Nawa told a similar tale. "There are more than 60 tanks in our fields," said Sher Agha. "Why can't they drive on the roads? Do they think they are going to find Taliban in our fields? They are causing enormous damage."

The Taliban have offered little resistance so far, although some residents reported the sound of heavy machine-gun fire, and one said that a few rockets had landed on his village in Nawa.

"There is no fighting yet, but there have been a huge number of airplanes patrolling," said Sharafuddin, in Nawa. "I can see the Taliban. They are sitting on the riverbank, just watching, and preparing themselves for the fight."

In Lashkar Gah, the provincial capital, life is going on normally, although the sound of explosions can be heard faintly, according to residents and foreign visitors. Shops are open, and people are out on the streets. There was even an election rally on July 2 by about 2,000 women in support of President Hamid Karzai.

Afghanistan is holding presidential elections on August 20, and one of the stated reasons for Operation Khanjar is to provide a more secure environment for the poll. If the turnout is too low, say observers, it could compromise the result and throw doubt on the legitimacy of the victor.

"This operation is to bring peace and opportunity for employment of people," said Helmand governor Gulab Mangal. "We want to create the opportunity for people to participate in the elections."

While there are those who are angered by the heavy foreign troop presence, significant numbers of locals are tired of living under the Taliban, and are relieved that the insurgents may soon be gone.

"This operation will be good if done correctly," said Abed, a resident of Nawa. "We would love to live in peace, and without the Taliban authoritarianism."

According to Abed, the Taliban have left his area and are congregating in Khosrabad village. "They are just waiting for the fight," he said. "I am very happy that they are gone. We have a lot of houses here, and if anyone drops a bomb it will kill a lot of people."

A resident of Khosrabad, who did not want to give his name for fear of the Taliban, confirmed that there was now a heavy insurgent presence in his village. "The Taliban are telling people to leave, to get out of their houses," he said. "This is the opposite of what they usually do. They used to make people stay, to use them as shields."

The Taliban, for their part, say they are preparing for battle. "We will fight until our last breath," said Mullah Abdullah, a local Taliban commander in Helmand, who returned to Nawa just a few days ago. He was seriously injured in a skirmish with international forces in May, and had gone to Pakistan for treatment. He is now back, and ready for jihad.

"This operation will not have any result. The Taliban will never let the Americans and these other kafirs [infidels] control the villages. We will fight until our last breath."

The Taliban have already claimed at least one victim: press reports indicate that one US Marine was killed and several others wounded or injured during the first day of fighting.

Helmandis, meanwhile, are a bit puzzled about all the hardware. The Taliban cannot be defeated with a frontal assault, they say. Guerrilla warfare, or so-called asymmetric combat, is hard on the larger army, and on the civilians caught in the middle.

"The foreigners are bragging that they will get rid of the Taliban. Give me a break!" said one angry resident in Nad Ali. "They could bring 70,000 soldiers, [but] they still would not be able to do it. One Taliban fighter attacks them from inside a house, then he escapes. The Taliban are never going to get together all in one place, to have a major fight. The only thing they will be able to do is kill civilians."

Political analyst Wahid Muzhda, who worked as a civil servant under the Taliban regime, is also skeptical about the success of Operation Khanjar.

"With all the soldiers and hardware, it is not going to be difficult to gain control of the areas," he told the Institute for War and Peace Reporting. "But how long are they going to stay? This is the rule of guerrilla warfare: if the guerrillas are facing a decent army, they are not going to stay and fight. They will flee, and come back once the army has left.

"Let's wait until the end of this operation. If the Americans set up bases after gaining control, then it is clear that [President Barack] Obama's strategy for resolving Afghanistan's problems is going to be implemented. If not, this invasion is just a tactical move. It's nothing more than a propaganda campaign for the new general."

Mohammad Ilyas Dayee and Aziz Ahmad Tassal are IWPR-trained reporters in Helmand. Aziz Ahmad Shafe also contributed to this report from Helmand.

 

[S-2]

"Just my opinion, but the us army and particularly the marines will be killing taliban every chance they get, but I think some of the events of the last few weeks point to much greater concern for civilian casualties."

Concur. The ROEs are even tighter and the conduct on the battlefield is confirming as much. We'll engage at every opportunity and we'll seek to manuever to create those opportunities but the primary objective remains area security.

Likely, we'll create movement of taliban into still unaffected areas by these current operations. That movement may be detectable and targeted by everything available. ROEs won't affect clearly identified enemy combatants in the open which may become the case. Let's hope so.

Many of these pashtu combatants are local and would likely never actually spill over into Pakistan unless things went completely to hell for them in their traditional harbor points. As such, spillover would be interesting. Of course, we'll likely never know the real story on that. Neither do I believe that we've seen the last ops of the summer with this recent marine mission.

Stay tuned in Kandahar...

 

[Fracker]

Two groups — children and what appeared to be women in burqas — left the compound. When the Marines entered, they found no one. The fighters had clearly donned burqas and slipped away among the civilians, according to Marines who took part in the mission.

Ahaan, so now this fight is no not against Afghan taliban but afghan "MEN". If you are man, then you will be talib. Russia also done same, murdered all men in Chechnya. Of-course, US marine troops are a bit more kind to women & children. but stance remain same, eliminate all men, so no one could come up.

war on terror is now as "war against afghan men"

 

[S-2]

"...war on terror is now as 'war against afghan men'"

Yeah, especially those whom are armed combatants and flee to cover amidst civilians aftering firing on our troops. Real warriors, they. My guess is you've an axe to grind and are prepared to suspend reality to do so.

Your problem.

"On Monday, images from a Predator drone showed a dozen fighters and at least 15 to 20 civilians inside a mud-brick compound in the village of Khan Neshin, about 60 miles north of the Pakistani border.

Because of the civilians, the U.S. troops held their fire, and instead used a military translator and village elder to persuade the militants to free women and children.

Two groups — children and what appeared to be women in burqas — left the compound. When the Marines entered, they found no one. The fighters had clearly donned burqas and slipped away among the civilians, according to Marines who took part in the mission."

 

[zubair723]

MARINES have the WATCHES, AFGHANS have a lot of time. They are just setting the targets up so they can train there young ones on sniping. MARINES have tried to enter roaring but will come out 'yanking'

 

[Fracker]

Yeah, especially those whom are armed combatants and flee to cover amidst civilians aftering firing on our troops. Real warriors, they.

so you ain't shamed of calling it a fight against afghan men. Should i need to answer you any way... Sorry, i don't speak to terrorists!!