Operation Moshtarak Thread: Afghan flag hoisted over Marjah

[waraich66]

Marjah Offensive: Five foreign soldiers killed in southern Afghanistan
Font size: Decrease font Enlarge font
ennahar 13 February, 2010 05:24:00
image

KABUL (Afghanistan) - Two foreign soldiers were killed Saturday in southern Afghanistan in addition to the three Americans who had died that morning in a bomb blast, said the NATO force, without specifying whether it was during the Marjah offensive.

*
"A member of the International Force for Security Assistance (ISAF) was killed in the explosion of a missile in the south today and another died in a firefight with light weapons" also in the south, we read in a terse statement from the NATO force that does not specify their nationalities. "Three U.S. soldiers of ISAF were killed after the detonation of a missile in the south,"had indicated a previous text of the ISAF, without elaborating either.
*

Neither text did not specify whether these soldiers were killed in the Marjah offensive, where 15,000 soldiers of international and Afghan forces - Americans in the lead - launched in the night, a major offensive against the Taliban stronghold in Helmand province.
*

In the afternoon, a captain of the Afghan army had told AFP that a U.S. soldier of ISAF was killed and three others wounded in a suicide attack against their convoy on the outskirts of Kandahar, 200 km west of Marjah.
*

With these five deaths, the number of foreign soldiers killed in Afghanistan since the start of the year is 71, according to an AFP count. The Taliban insurgency, which has increased considerably over the past two years has caused 520 deaths in the ranks of international forces in 2009, by far the highest record in eight years of war.
*

2010 will be last year of ISAF in Afghanistan

 

[fawwaxs]

 

[fawwaxs]

Afghan resistance statement Invitation of the Islamic Emirate to (independent) Journalists to Visit Marjah

Since the enemy have forced the international media through coercion and cash incentives to make partial reporting about (the current fighting) to make it possible to hide their shameful defeat in the Marjah area of Nad Ali district, Helmand province, therefore, the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan requests all independent mass media outlets of the world to send their reporters to Marjah; see the situation with their own eyes and convey the facts to the public of the world.

Such visit will portray the ground realities and will show who have the upper hand in the area; what are the facts and who control vast areas of Marjah? In fact, the invading forces have made no spectacular advancement since the beginning of the operations. They have descended from helicopters in limited areas of Marjah and now are under siege.

The invaders are not able to come out of their ditches. Wherever they intend to move, they come under severe attacks of Mujahideen and face explosions of planted mines. Then they retreat hastily. The enemy troops have lost their morale. The local people are beholding the foreign troops crying loudly.

If the coalition invading forces give permission to independent reporters, they will unearth many secrets.

Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan
Afghan resistance statement Invitation of the Islamic Emirate to (independent) Journalists to Visit Marjah :: www.uruknet.info :: informazione dal medio oriente :: information from middle east :: [vs-1]

 

[S-2]

Snipers and fairly complex tactics are evolving as part of the battlefield milieu in Marjah. C.J. Chivers, embedded with K Co. 3/6 Marines, was with 1st Platoon as they manuevered west from the eastern end of their company area of operations when they came under fire from an AK to their south. Orienting that way, they then began to take well-placed sniper fire from their back to the north.

This is a slow, tedious and dangerous grind-

Snipers Imperil U.S. Troops in Offensive in Afghanistan - NYTimes Feb. 17, 2010

Thanks.

 

[Ahmad]

Afghan resistance statement Invitation of the Islamic Emirate to (independent) Journalists to Visit Marjah

Since the enemy have forced the international media through coercion and cash incentives to make partial reporting about (the current fighting) to make it possible to hide their shameful defeat in the Marjah area of Nad Ali district, Helmand province, therefore, the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan requests all independent mass media outlets of the world to send their reporters to Marjah; see the situation with their own eyes and convey the facts to the public of the world.

Such visit will portray the ground realities and will show who have the upper hand in the area; what are the facts and who control vast areas of Marjah? In fact, the invading forces have made no spectacular advancement since the beginning of the operations. They have descended from helicopters in limited areas of Marjah and now are under siege.

The invaders are not able to come out of their ditches. Wherever they intend to move, they come under severe attacks of Mujahideen and face explosions of planted mines. Then they retreat hastily. The enemy troops have lost their morale. The local people are beholding the foreign troops crying loudly.

If the coalition invading forces give permission to independent reporters, they will unearth many secrets.

Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan
Afghan resistance statement Invitation of the Islamic Emirate to (independent) Journalists to Visit Marjah :: www.uruknet.info :: informazione dal medio oriente :: information from middle east :: [vs-1]

But the problem is that the reporters will not go for a reason: What is the guarantee that the Taliban dont take the journalists as hostages and then behead them? they have done it in the past. And i dont think the taliban would be that keen either to let the reporters go everywhere they want, they will mostly like report about the human sheilds tactics of the taliban, unless the taliban limit their movements and let them in places that they(taliban) want them(reporters) to go.

 

[S-2]

It's a death sentence for a reporter. Not by losing their head but by being shot or bombed by ISAF. This isn't a trek through Konar and Nuristan. It's a mid-intensity infantry battle being fought in a fairly defined space. The land is flat and bare right now and there are a crapload of UAVs that are up. Movement is seen and, if certain to be taliban and absent civilians, attacked.

No reporter wants a piece of that and all the guarantees in the world by the taliban won't stop an ISAF bomb, mortar or artillery shell.

This battle will proceed slowly in deference to the civilians all throughout the area. Civilians, btw, that were mined in and kept from departing. Part of the taliban's plan. We've plenty of reports and intel indicating the use of human shields with women and children forced ot rooftops while taliban fire from within structures.

Such holy bravery is commonplace with the irhabists.

Thanks.

 

[Metallic]

Taliban ammunition 'running low'
18 FEBRUARY 2010

Taliban militants battling coalition troops in Marjah, in Afghanistan, are running out of ammunition, Nato officials say.

A BBC correspondent in Kandahar says that from eavesdropping on Taliban communications, Nato understands militants have called for support.

On Wednesday, an Afghan general said Taliban fighters were increasingly using civilians as "human shields".

The Afghan-Nato offensive in Helmand province has entered its sixth day.

Officials say they expect stiff resistance.

Nato officers told BBC security correspondent Frank Gardner in Kandahar that the resistance they were currently encountering was coming from small, disjointed but determined groups of fighters.

Air support

In the next few days, US Marines and Afghan government troops are due to push into south-west Marjah, which is believed to be an insurgent stronghold.

During fighting on Wednesday, US Marines had to had to call in air support as they came under heavy fire from fighters hiding in bunkers and in buildings including homes and mosques.

Afghan commander Gen Mohiudin Ghori said his soldiers had seen Taliban fighters placing women and children on the roofs of buildings and firing from behind them.

Gen Ghori, the senior commander for Afghan troops in the area, told the AP news agency: "Especially in the south of Marjah, the enemy is fighting from compounds where soldiers can very clearly see women or children on the roof or in a second-floor or third-floor window.

"They are trying to get us to fire on them and kill the civilians."

Nato has stressed the safety of civilians in the areas targeted during Operation Moshtarak is its highest priority.

One villager who had fled to Helmand's provincial capital, Lashkar Gah, told BBC Pashto that relatives could not leave Marjah because the area was heavily mined.

"They say they can't get out of their home. If anyone takes a look outside they are fired upon by the Nato troops - they have no food left and can't go out to shop.

"The Taliban left some places but are now resisting very strongly."

Tribal shura

On Wednesday, Helmand's governor, Gulab Mangal, visited Marjah and later travelled to Camp Bastion to visit injured civilians from the area.

Nato reports that he held a shura - a council meeting - with local tribal elders and officials to discuss security in Nad Ali.

British and Afghan troops have been reported to be advancing more swiftly in the nearby district of Nad Ali than are their US and Afghan counterparts in Marjah.

Afghan officials say that more than 1,200 families have been displaced and evacuated from Marjah and all are receiving aid in Lashkar Gah.

Operation Moshtarak, meaning "together" in the Dari language, is the biggest coalition offensive since the Taliban fell in 2001.



Source: BBC News

 

[Ahmad]

Gulab Mangal is alot more capable governer compare to the previous Hlmand governers. I wish success to this true son of the country.

 

[DaRk WaVe]

​

 

[AgNoStiC MuSliM]

Haven't read through the entire thread, so I apologize if this has been mentioned already, but it is nice to see Pakistan's COIN tactics and strategy from Swat and SW being replicated, albeit on a smaller scale, by ISAF.

A pretty large validation of Pakistan's strategy and tactics, especially after all the vitriol poured on the PA by people like Fareed Zakaria and various other talking heads, who were calling the Swat Ops an unmitigated disaster.

 

[Ahmad]

they have to be patient, and push this operation in precision, otherwise it will cause civilian casualty, that will be the last thing afghan gov and nato would want.

 

[Tiger Awan]

self delete

 

[Thomas]

Afghan Offensive May Take a Month, U.K. General Says (Update2)
February 18, 2010, 03:56 PM EST
By Viola Gienger

http://www.businessweek.com/news/2010-02-18/afghan-offensive-may-take-a-month-u-k-general-says-update2-.html

Feb. 18 (Bloomberg) -- A joint Afghan-NATO offensive against Taliban insurgents in southern Afghanistan will take “another 25 to 30 days,” the top coalition commander for the area said today.

British Major General Nick Carter said his forces are “very happy” with the pace of operations in northern Helmand Province and are making “slow but steady progress” in the area of the main target, the town of Marjah.

The operation by 15,000 U.S. Marines and Afghan and British troops aims to wipe out a Taliban stronghold whose opium crop has helped fund the guerrilla movement. It is the biggest operation against the Taliban since the 2001 U.S.-led invasion of Afghanistan.

“It will take us another 25 to 30 days to be entirely sure that we have secured” the Taliban haven, Carter told reporters at the Pentagon via satellite from Afghanistan.

The North Atlantic Treaty Organization-led forces and their Afghan counterparts continue to encounter “stiff resistance” from insurgents in Marjah, with progress slowed by the need to clear improvised explosive devices, Carter said.

“U.S. Marines, in partnership with Afghan security forces, are still fighting an intense series of actions in the process of clearing Marjah as a whole,” he said.

Winning Confidence

It might take another 120 days for the Afghan soldiers, gendarmerie and police, along with government civilians, to win the initial confidence of the local people, he said.

“In three months time or thereabouts, we should have a pretty fair idea about whether we’ve been successful,” Carter said.

The offensive is the biggest joint military campaign with the Afghan National Army, which the U.S. and its allies aim to train in time to start a drawdown of foreign forces in July 2011. It’s also the first major test of how U.S. Army General Stanley McChrystal, the top commander in Afghanistan, will use the 30,000 added forces that President Barack Obama authorized in December.

Most of these additional forces are being targeted for southern Afghanistan’s Helmand and Kandahar provinces, where the Taliban-led insurgency has been strongest, including shadow governments throughout much of the region of about 3 million.

Death Toll

Four coalition troops were killed in the operation today, three of them in two separate roadside bomb explosions. That adds to four U.S. troops, one British and one Afghan soldier who had died earlier. About 10 civilians were killed on the second day of the offensive and a few more have been injured in the past three to four days, Carter said.

McChrystal’s strategy, endorsed by Obama with the additional troops, focuses as much on protecting and winning over the population as killing militants.

“The Marjah offensive will test the president’s new strategy, and show whether a population-centered strategy can work,” Anthony Cordesman, a military analyst at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, said in a report today.

Some parts of Marjah are clear enough for Afghan gendarmerie to enter yesterday and begin reassuring the population, Carter said. The provincial governor, Mohammad Gulab Mangal, who has been involved in the planning of the operation, went into part of Marjah yesterday.

The next stage will be to “roll eastwards into Kandahar,” Carter said. More U.S. and other troops are scheduled to come into Afghanistan from March onward as part of the surge, and additional Afghan security forces coming available every week will aid that next push.

 

[waraich66]

Afghan Offensive May Take a Month, U.K. General Says (Update2)
February 18, 2010, 03:56 PM EST
By Viola Gienger

Afghan Offensive May Take a Month, U.K. General Says (Update2) - BusinessWeek

Feb. 18 (Bloomberg) -- A joint Afghan-NATO offensive against Taliban insurgents in southern Afghanistan will take “another 25 to 30 days,” the top coalition commander for the area said today.

British Major General Nick Carter said his forces are “very happy” with the pace of operations in northern Helmand Province and are making “slow but steady progress” in the area of the main target, the town of Marjah.

The operation by 15,000 U.S. Marines and Afghan and British troops aims to wipe out a Taliban stronghold whose opium crop has helped fund the guerrilla movement. It is the biggest operation against the Taliban since the 2001 U.S.-led invasion of Afghanistan.

“It will take us another 25 to 30 days to be entirely sure that we have secured” the Taliban haven, Carter told reporters at the Pentagon via satellite from Afghanistan.

The North Atlantic Treaty Organization-led forces and their Afghan counterparts continue to encounter “stiff resistance” from insurgents in Marjah, with progress slowed by the need to clear improvised explosive devices, Carter said.

“U.S. Marines, in partnership with Afghan security forces, are still fighting an intense series of actions in the process of clearing Marjah as a whole,” he said.

Winning Confidence

It might take another 120 days for the Afghan soldiers, gendarmerie and police, along with government civilians, to win the initial confidence of the local people, he said.

“In three months time or thereabouts, we should have a pretty fair idea about whether we’ve been successful,” Carter said.

The offensive is the biggest joint military campaign with the Afghan National Army, which the U.S. and its allies aim to train in time to start a drawdown of foreign forces in July 2011. It’s also the first major test of how U.S. Army General Stanley McChrystal, the top commander in Afghanistan, will use the 30,000 added forces that President Barack Obama authorized in December.

Most of these additional forces are being targeted for southern Afghanistan’s Helmand and Kandahar provinces, where the Taliban-led insurgency has been strongest, including shadow governments throughout much of the region of about 3 million.

Death Toll

Four coalition troops were killed in the operation today, three of them in two separate roadside bomb explosions. That adds to four U.S. troops, one British and one Afghan soldier who had died earlier. About 10 civilians were killed on the second day of the offensive and a few more have been injured in the past three to four days, Carter said.

McChrystal’s strategy, endorsed by Obama with the additional troops, focuses as much on protecting and winning over the population as killing militants.

“The Marjah offensive will test the president’s new strategy, and show whether a population-centered strategy can work,” Anthony Cordesman, a military analyst at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, said in a report today.

Some parts of Marjah are clear enough for Afghan gendarmerie to enter yesterday and begin reassuring the population, Carter said. The provincial governor, Mohammad Gulab Mangal, who has been involved in the planning of the operation, went into part of Marjah yesterday.

The next stage will be to “roll eastwards into Kandahar,” Carter said. More U.S. and other troops are scheduled to come into Afghanistan from March onward as part of the surge, and additional Afghan security forces coming available every week will aid that next push.

Operation may take months,years ----US Gen

Problem is not the number of troops , even ISAF increase their forces to 150 or 200K level they could not get desired results.

Talaban are using snipers effectively

 

[DaRk WaVe]

Operation may take months,years ----US Gen

Problem is not the number of troops , even ISAF increase their forces to 150 or 200K level they could not get desired results.

Talaban are using snipers effectively

yeah right the snipers of US army are rag tag idiots right?

Thinking about 6th Army Bogged down By Russians in Stalingrad?
I am sorry to burst your bubbles but even a 5,000 Snipers with their rusty dragunovs can't hold them for long