Troops move in to secure Taliban stronghold
Source: Agencies |
February 22, 2010, Monday
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MARINES and Afghan units converged on a dangerous western quarter of the Taliban stronghold of Marjah yesterday, with NATO forces facing "determined resistance" as their assault on the southern town entered its second week.
Fighter jets, drones and attack helicopters hovered overhead, as Marine and Afghan companies moved in on an area where more than 40 insurgents have apparently holed up.
"They are squeezed," said Lt Col Brian Christmas, commander of 3rd Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment. "It looks like they want to stay and fight but they can always drop their weapons and slip away. That's the nature of this war."
Insurgents are putting up a "determined resistance" in various parts of Marjah, though the overall offensive is "on track," NATO said yesterday, eight days after thousands of Afghan and international forces launched their largest joint operation since the Taliban regime was ousted in 2001.
The Marjah operation is a major test of a new NATO strategy that stresses protecting civilians over routing insurgents as quickly as possible.
It's also the first major ground operation since President Barack Obama ordered 30,000 reinforcements to Afghanistan to curb the rise of the Taliban.
Once the town is secure, NATO plans to rush in a civilian Afghan administration, restore public services and pour in aid to try to win the loyalty of the population and prevent the Taliban from returning.
Twelve NATO troops and one Afghan soldier have died so far in the offensive. Senior Marine officers say intelligence reports suggest more than 120 insurgents have died.
NATO said one service member died yesterday in a roadside bombing in southern Afghanistan, and two died on Saturday - one by rocket or mortar fire in eastern Afghanistan and another in a bombing in the south.
None of the fatalities was related to the Marjah area fighting. Their nationalities were not given.
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