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  • Coalition forces begin major offensive in Afghanistan

    Coalition forces begin major offensive in Afghanistan

    Last Updated Sat, 15 Jul 2006 11:04:55 EDT
    CBC News


    Coalition forces killed 10 insurgents on Saturday during the start of an offensive against hundreds of suspected Taliban fighters in southern Afghanistan, military officials said.

    As many as 400 insurgents are believed to be entrenched in the Sangin region of Helmand province.

    Canadian, American, Afghan and British forces are attacking from both the air and on the ground, hoping to encircle fighters loyal to the country's old Taliban regime, military officials said.

    The U.S. forces are pushing down from the north, the Canadians are sweeping up from the south and helicopters are airlifting British soldiers into the middle of the battlefield.

    A Canadian military spokesman told CBC News there is solid intelligence indicating a concentration of Taliban in the area.

    "The purpose is to move in, remove the Taliban from the security equation, and then continue with the local engagement between Afghan officials, coalition officials and the local population to look at what can be done in the way of reconstruction." said Maj. Scott Lundy of the Canadian Forces.

    "The operation kicked off before dawn with the helicopter insertion into several designated landing zones," Lundy said. "On arrival, the infantry fought a short battle in which 10 Taliban were killed."

    Helmand is a hotspot in the conflict and one of Afghanistan's most dangerous provinces, with almost daily clashes between insurgents and foreign and Afghan troops.

    A military commander told CBC that the search for insurgents is like "punching a fly," and said it's bound to be a difficult mission because the insurgents know the area well.
    To sit down with these men and deal with them as the representatives of an enlightened and civilized people is to deride ones own dignity and to invite the disaster of their treachery - General Matthew Ridgway

  • #2
    Canadian troops join major assault in Afghanistan

    Updated Sat. Jul. 15 2006 10:31 AM ET

    CTV.ca News Staff

    Canadian soldiers have joined the largest coalition effort thus far to root out hundreds of suspected Taliban fighters in southern Afghanistan.

    The operation is the largest to date in "Operation Mountain Thrust," and involves about 5,000 U.S., British and Canadian troops.

    The aim is to attack about 400 Taliban guerrillas believed to be operating in the Sangin district of Helmand province, west of Kandahar.

    CTV's Steve Chao, reporting from the base in Kandahar, says the Sangin area is a challenging war zone. There are many mud-walled buildings in maze-like communities, which have to be searched with caution.

    "They have to be very careful about the civilian population," Chao reported. "There was a great deal of concern that the Taliban would be using people as human shields, though there's no word that this is happening so far."

    Chao, who was out with Canadian soldiers during a 60-hour firefight near Pashmul last weekend, said one officer told him that fighting the Taliban is "like punching flies -- you punch them and they come back again."

    Sangin is the area where a Canadian soldier was killed last March.

    Canadian coalition spokesman Major Scott Lundy told Canadian Press that 10 Taliban have been killed in a brief battle, as this weekend's operation continues.

    The joint Canadian-American-British mission is also the largest combat operation of its kind since the Korean War. It is led by Brig. Gen. David Fraser, a Canadian who is commander of coalition forces in southern Afghanistan.

    About 600 Canadian soldiers are assigned to the operation, and Chao says they've been fighting in 50 degree Celcius heat in recent months. Many are exhausted and are counting the days until they can go home.

    With files from Canadian Press and CTV's Steve Chao in Kandahar
    To sit down with these men and deal with them as the representatives of an enlightened and civilized people is to deride ones own dignity and to invite the disaster of their treachery - General Matthew Ridgway

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    • #3
      DoD Releases. Descending order of receipt.

      Battle damage assessments from operations in the Nowzad District Center in Helmand Province have yet to conclude that non-combatants were killed as a result of Coalition operations July 12 against extremists, indicating that claims of numerous civilian deaths were fabricated by extremists as a propaganda ploy to discredit Coalition forces and the Government of Afghanistan.
      Coalition forces have had a presence in the Nowzad District since mid-May, working alongside the Afghan National Police to protect the district’s center in assisting the provincial government in providing security. Since then, Coalition forces have come under repeated attack from extremists.
      During engagements in the last 16 days, the Coalition has reported 22 attacks, including 13 incidents of small arms fire, 13 incidents of heavy machine gun fire, 48 incidents where rocket propelled grenades were used, 40 where mortar rounds were used and five sniper attacks.
      In response to the fiercest of these attacks, air support was called in on six occasions. Ordnance was dropped against identified locations from which extremists were firing at Coalition forces; no munitions missed their targets.
      In one strike, the Coalition did hit a building used as a former school which was closed by the Taliban. This building had been empty for some time and extremists were using it as a position to launch mortar attacks. Other areas targeted in the July 12 operation were also clear of civilians after days of fighting between Coalition forces and extremists.
      One ANP member was wounded during the operations.
      The Coalition expects extremists, as a propaganda ploy, to continue to level accusations of civilian deaths against the Coalition. Although the Coalition takes every allegation seriously, extremist spokespersons fabricate claims on a near daily basis. Media representatives are asked to be skeptical about such reports and to validate such claims with the Coalition or Ministry of Interior and Government of Afghanistan public information offices.
      Coalition forces take extreme precaution to limit the chances of civilian casualties. As long as the enemy chooses to fight in or near civilians, however, the possibility of civilians being endangered will exist.
      “We take great care to prevent and minimize any damage to property or injury to law-abiding citizens,” said Col. Tom Collins, a Coalition spokesperson. “We will continue in our operations to defeat those who attempt to impose their will upon the local population through intimidation and fear. We also call on the citizens of Helmand to cooperate with the Coalition to defeat extremists who offer nothing for the betterment of the people. Until such time as a sufficiently safe and secure environment is established in Helmand Province , development prospects will remain limited and the population’s quality of life will remain low.”

      The Coalition has received the following updated information concerning this morning’s release on operations in Uruzgan Province on July 13. Patrol reports and debriefings concluded that an estimated 31 enemy extremists were killed during engagements in Chora, Kala Kala, and Khorma villages. The release as transmitted this morning follows:

      Afghan National Army and Coalition forces attacked more than 40 extremists in Chora, Kala Kala, and Khorma districts during separate operations July 13 and 14 in Uruzgan Province in an effort to disrupt and deny enemy operations in those areas.
      In Deh Rawod, two extremist suicide bombers, wearing burkas and disguised as women, were killed during a cordon and search of a compound.
      Elsewhere, near the district of Khas Uruzgan, ANA and Coalition forces repelled an attacked by 20 enemy fighters with small arms fire, killing one extremist. The joint patrols took precautions to avoid harm to Afghan civilians during each operation, and there were no reports of Afghan civilian injuries.
      In Helmand Province , in the village of Mosulmani near Musa Qaleh, ANA and Coalition forces attacked several enemy fighters operating in the village. “We will continue to disrupt and hunt down extremists operating in southern Afghanistan ,” said Lt. Col. Paul Fitzpatrick, spokesman for Combined Joint Task Force – 76. “Extremists offer nothing to the people of Afghanistan . Only the legitimate government can create jobs, build schools and establish infrastructure.”

      The Coalition is aware of media reports of civilian casualties from an operation Wednesday in the Nowzad District of Helmand Province but has no information yet to confirm these reports. The Coalition will provide information to government authorities on all available assessments.
      Close air support was used in the operation to target extremists, but there is no reason to believe at this time that these targets were anything other than buildings used by enemy forces. Coalition ground forces were fired upon from these locations. Coalition forces operating in the Nowzad District over the last several days have reported repeated attacks by extremists.
      It is a common extremist tactic to fight without regard for civilian lives, and to mix in with and operate around civilians, knowing Coalition forces will use extraordinary restraint to prevent injury to innocent civilians.
      Just as one example, on Thursday, in Uruzgan Province near the district of Khas Uruzgan, ANA and Coalition forces repelled an attack by 20 enemy fighters with small arms fire, killing one extremist. The joint patrols took precautions to avoid harm to Afghan civilians during the operation, and there were no reports of Afghan civilian injuries.
      On Wednesday, 20 extremists engaged a Coalition patrol with rocket propelled grenades and machine gun fire in and around the village of Sharageh in Helmand Province, needlessly putting innocent civilians in danger. Close air support was available but not employed due to the possibility of endangering innocent Afghan civilians.

      Afghan and Coalition forces conducted offensive operations on several known extremist targets in the Sangin District, Helmand Province, in the early morning hours today killing 10 enemy fighters. Coalition forces, supported by Afghan and Coalition ground forces, conducted a nighttime air assault into Sangin and killed 10 enemy extremists in a brief battle. The operation will reduce the extremists’ ability to intimidate Afghan civilians and attack both the Afghan security forces and Coalition forces in the Sangin District.
      “This operation seeks to remove the Taliban from the security equation in Sangin,” said Brig. Gen. David Fraser, commander of Coalition forces in southern Afghanistan. This morning’s assault is a continuation of Operation Mountain Thrust and a necessary stage on the road to security and a better long term future for the Afghan people, said Coalition forces today. Mountain Thrust is disrupting enemy forces, interdicting safe havens as a means to facilitate reconstruction and humanitarian assistance in southern Afghanistan.
      A shura will occur upon completion of this operation. It will involve engagement with tribal and local leaders to ensure that reconstruction follows the security improvements created by recent and on-going Afghan-Coalition operations.

      Afghan National Army and Coalition forces attacked more than 40 extremists in Chora, Kala Kala, and Khorma districts during separate operations July 14 in Uruzgan Province in an effort to disrupt and deny enemy operations in those areas.
      In Deh Rawod, two extremist suicide bombers disguised as women were killed during a cordon and search of a compound. Elsewhere, near the district of Khas Uruzgan, ANA and Coalition forces repelled an attacked by 20 enemy fighters with small arms fire, killing one extremist. The joint patrols took precautions to avoid harm to Afghan civilians during each operation, and there were no reports of Afghan civilian injuries.
      In Helmand Province , in the village of Mosulmani near Musa Qaleh, ANA and Coalition forces attacked several enemy fighters operating in the village. “We will continue to disrupt and hunt down extremists operating in southern Afghanistan ,” said Lt. Col. Paul Fitzpatrick, spokesman for Combined Joint Task Force – 76. “Extremists offer nothing to the people of Afghanistan . Only the legitimate government can create jobs, build schools and establish infrastructure.”

      Coalition forces captured an extremist on July 14 after he pre-detonated an improvised explosive device he was attempting to place in the Day Chopan District of Zabul Province. The would-be bomber succeeded only in severely injuring his own leg when his IED prematurely exploded during his attempt to place it in the road. Coalition forces transported the insurgent to a Coalition medical facility for treatment after being captured.

      In a separate incident on July 14, a suicide bomber killed himself and injured an Afghan National Policeman in the Tere Zayi District of Khost Province. The suicide bomber’s suspicious activity caught the attention of alert ANP conducting a mounted patrol. The bomber detonated the explosive vest he was wearing, killing himself and injuring one ANP officer.
      “Fortunately, these extremists did not maim or kill innocent Afghans in their misguided attacks on Coalition and Afghan security forces,” said Lt. Col. Paul Fitzpatrick, Combined Joint Task Force -76 spokesman. “All they accomplished was to wound a policeman and injure or kill themselves. We hope the brave police officer who confronted the suicide bomber has a speedy and complete recovery. His actions may have saved the lives of police officers and innocent civilians alike. ” Afghan citizens are encouraged to report any suspicious activity to Afghan or Coalition security forces for the safety and security of all Afghans.
      To sit down with these men and deal with them as the representatives of an enlightened and civilized people is to deride ones own dignity and to invite the disaster of their treachery - General Matthew Ridgway

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      • #4
        Of course it was a propoganda ploy by the extremists. The BBC had a three minute report on the news the other day and not a single body was shown. Unfortunately people tend to believe the extremists more than their own people nowadays.

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