Military News
02-16-2010, 09:42 AM
02-15-2010 10:59 PM
LASHKAR GAH, Afghanistan — The Afghan military told Taliban fighters Monday to lay down their arms and help their countrymen build a better future as the offensive against the militant stronghold of Marjah slowed in the face of gunbattles and sniper attacks.
“This is your country,” Defense Minister Abdul Rahim Wardak said after meeting with members of the Afghan government and NATO, which is leading the offensive. “Leave the weapons and help the government.”
“I want the Taliban to help rebuild their country and cooperate with their village elders,” he said.
Elders from Marjah here in the capital of Helmand province said their people may wish to be free of the Taliban but are worried about backing the Afghan government.
“Today we have coalition forces and the Afghan army,” said Khalifa Muhammad Shah, a village elder from Marjah. “When they leave, the Taliban will come back.”
Keeping Taliban militants out after clearing them from Marjah is the goal, said Gen. Stanley McChrystal, the top commander here.
Marjah is in the heart of southern Afghanistan, where the Taliban is strongest, and at the center of an opium poppy network that has fueled the insurgency.
Since Saturday, more than 15,000 Afghan and coalition troops have descended on this town of 80,000. Afghan officials told The Associated Press that at least 27 insurgents have been killed. NATO reported an American and a British soldier killed.
Wardak said most insurgents decided to flee rather than confront coalition troops. Those who chose to fight should realize that the Afghan government will not rest until it has asserted its authority throughout the region, Interior Minister Hanif Atmar said.
“There is no way to win,” Atmar said.
Atmar said the weakening of the Taliban in Marjah allows the government to make the case to those who had joined with the Taliban that they are on the losing side.
“This is the first big opportunity to show sufficient pressure being applied to the insurgents,” said British Maj. Gen. Nick Carter, commander of coalition forces in southern Afghanistan.
Shah, the elder, said villagers in this remote area remain wary of government pledges of protection. Wearing a black turban and a gray beard, Shah leaned on a cane waiting to speak with coalition officials here about reconstruction and other needs in Marjah.
Wardak admitted that in previous regional offensives, the Taliban has returned because the government lacked adequate forces to hold areas that had been cleared.
This time, he said, “we will not leave.”
Afghanistan’s government plans to help modernize Marjah’s infrastructure and boost its economy to entice people away from the Taliban. One plan calls for building roads in this largely agricultural area to connect the region with its neighbors, said Rory Donohoe, a USAID officer in Helmand.
Atmar said some people have approached shuras, or councils of elders, to inquire about reconciliation with the government. He said it is too early to measure the response.
U.S. Army Maj. Gen. Michael Flynn, the top coalition intelligence officer, said residents must be convinced Afghan forces will keep them safe if the plan is to work. “They really want to believe we’re going to stay,” he said.
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Contributing: The Associated Press
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LASHKAR GAH, Afghanistan — The Afghan military told Taliban fighters Monday to lay down their arms and help their countrymen build a better future as the offensive against the militant stronghold of Marjah slowed in the face of gunbattles and sniper attacks.
“This is your country,” Defense Minister Abdul Rahim Wardak said after meeting with members of the Afghan government and NATO, which is leading the offensive. “Leave the weapons and help the government.”
“I want the Taliban to help rebuild their country and cooperate with their village elders,” he said.
Elders from Marjah here in the capital of Helmand province said their people may wish to be free of the Taliban but are worried about backing the Afghan government.
“Today we have coalition forces and the Afghan army,” said Khalifa Muhammad Shah, a village elder from Marjah. “When they leave, the Taliban will come back.”
Keeping Taliban militants out after clearing them from Marjah is the goal, said Gen. Stanley McChrystal, the top commander here.
Marjah is in the heart of southern Afghanistan, where the Taliban is strongest, and at the center of an opium poppy network that has fueled the insurgency.
Since Saturday, more than 15,000 Afghan and coalition troops have descended on this town of 80,000. Afghan officials told The Associated Press that at least 27 insurgents have been killed. NATO reported an American and a British soldier killed.
Wardak said most insurgents decided to flee rather than confront coalition troops. Those who chose to fight should realize that the Afghan government will not rest until it has asserted its authority throughout the region, Interior Minister Hanif Atmar said.
“There is no way to win,” Atmar said.
Atmar said the weakening of the Taliban in Marjah allows the government to make the case to those who had joined with the Taliban that they are on the losing side.
“This is the first big opportunity to show sufficient pressure being applied to the insurgents,” said British Maj. Gen. Nick Carter, commander of coalition forces in southern Afghanistan.
Shah, the elder, said villagers in this remote area remain wary of government pledges of protection. Wearing a black turban and a gray beard, Shah leaned on a cane waiting to speak with coalition officials here about reconstruction and other needs in Marjah.
Wardak admitted that in previous regional offensives, the Taliban has returned because the government lacked adequate forces to hold areas that had been cleared.
This time, he said, “we will not leave.”
Afghanistan’s government plans to help modernize Marjah’s infrastructure and boost its economy to entice people away from the Taliban. One plan calls for building roads in this largely agricultural area to connect the region with its neighbors, said Rory Donohoe, a USAID officer in Helmand.
Atmar said some people have approached shuras, or councils of elders, to inquire about reconciliation with the government. He said it is too early to measure the response.
U.S. Army Maj. Gen. Michael Flynn, the top coalition intelligence officer, said residents must be convinced Afghan forces will keep them safe if the plan is to work. “They really want to believe we’re going to stay,” he said.
———
Contributing: The Associated Press
More... (http://www.marinecorpstimes.com/news/2010/02/gns_afghanistan_marjah_taliban_021510/)
[Clicking on more will open up a popup box with the complete news story from the news source. MilitaryWoman.org is not responsible for content.]