U.S. Marines pushed deeper into Taliban areas of southern Afghanistan today, seeking to cut insurgent supply lines and win over local elders on the second day of the biggest U.S. military operation here since the American-led invasion of 2001.On the other side of the border, U.S. missiles struck a Pakistani Taliban militant training centre and communications centre, killing 17 people and wounding nearly 30, Pakistani intelligence officials said. Both U.S. operations were aimed at what President Barack Obama considers as the biggest dangers in the region: a resurgent Taliban-led insurgency allied with al-Qaida that threatens both nuclear-armed Pakistan and the U.S.-backed government in Afghanistan.
The 4,000-strong U.S. force met little resistance today as troops fanned out into villages in Afghanistan's southern Helmand province, although one Marine was killed and several others were wounded the day before, U.S. officials said. Despite minimal contact, the Marines could see militants using flashlights late Thursday to signal one another about American troop movements.
Military spokesman Capt. Bill Pelletier said the goal of the Helmand operation was not simply to kill Taliban fighters but to win over the local population -- a difficult task in a region where foreigners are viewed with suspicion.
It's made more difficult by the knowledge that next year at this time the Marines are going to be somewhere else, whereas the Haqqani forces expect to be right where they are now.
Marines also hope to cut the routes used by militants to funnel weapons, ammunition and fighters from Pakistan to the Taliban. The new U.S. operation will test the Obama administration's new strategy of holding territory to let the Afghan government establish a presence in rural areas where Taliban influence is strong.
Haqqani is telling himself right now that the Marines are doing what the Russers used to do -- surging, then withdrawing to base.
As Operation Khanjar, or "Strike of the Sword," entered its second day, Marines took control of the district centres of Nawa and Garmser, and negotiated entry into Khan Neshin, the capital of Rig district, Pelletier said.
In Nawa, Marines met with about 20 Afghan men and boys, seeking to reassure them that the Americans wanted to protect them from the Taliban. "Are you going to enter our houses?" asked Mohammad Nabi, 25, who was there with five of his younger brothers. "We are afraid that you will leave, and the Taliban will come back."
Bingo.
They also complained that local police were thieves not to be trusted.
Marine officers promised not to enter homes and said they would remain in the area to keep out the Taliban.
One elder with a grey beard asked the Marines whether they would prevent residents from saying Muslim prayers. The troops assured him they would not.
In one village near Nawa, however, the atmosphere was tense. "When we asked if they had a village elder or mullah for the American commander to talk to, the answer was no," said Capt. Drew Schoenmaker, a Marine company commander. "It's fear of reprisal. Fear and intimidation is one thing the enemy does very well."
Taking territory from the Taliban has always proved easier than holding it. The challenge is especially great in Helmand because it is a centre of Afghanistan's thriving opium production, and drug profits feed both the insurgency and corrupt government officials.
On Wednesday, a British lieutenant colonel was killed in an explosion in Helmand. Lt. Col. Rupert Thorneloe, commander of the 1st Battalion Welsh Guards, was the highest-ranking British officer killed in Afghanistan.