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| Afghanistan |
| Biggest Afghan Offensive Imminent |
| 2010-02-05 |
| [Quqnoos] US troops and their Afghan and NATO allies are preparing to launch their biggest offensive in southern Afghanistan, officials said. Afghan and American commanders gave notice on Wednesday that the assault is imminent, targeting a key Taliban town in the volatile southern Helmand province. The operation is expected to involve up to 15,000 personnel and could last between six and eight weeks. NATO spokesman Brig Gen Eric Tremblay told reporters on Wednesday in Kabul that the operation will include at least 1,000 Afghan police and thousands of Afghan soldiers as well as thousands of NATO troops. No date for the start of the operation has been released, but US commanders have said they plan to capture the town of Marjah known as a hub of Taliban's opium trade. The town has been described as a centre of militant fighters, bomb makers and opium traffickers and is believed to have given sanctuary to many fighters who fled military operations in central Helmand last July. US officers believe between 600 and 1,000 fighters, including 150 foreign volunteers, are thought to operate in the area. This is known the first joint military operation with highest number of Afghan forces involved. British Prime Minister Gordon Brown in a major international conference in London last week said Afghan forces should gradually take leadership of military operations in the country. Spokesman for the Afghan Ministry of Defence, Gen Zahir Azimi, didn't not mention Marjah, but told reporters that a large operation is to take place "in the near future" in Helmand province. The announcement of the operation parallels the Pentagon's preparation to deploy an additional 18,000 troops to Afghanistan, particularly in the s south, by late spring. |
| Posted by:Fred |
| #3 The ROE: "Don't hurt anyone. Don't arrest anyone. Don't break anything. Don't do anything that will be embarrassing to the administration. Win. And be quick about it, you drones." |
| Posted by: Anonymoose 2010-02-05 08:27 |
| #2 I think the idea behind announcing it in advance is that they won't have to shoot. |
| Posted by: Pstanley 2010-02-05 02:55 |
| #1 OK, but are they allowed to shoot? |
| Posted by: Glenmore 2010-02-05 00:22 |