[edpc]

About 40 militants were killed, including bombers, their financial backers and local leaders responsible for attacks against Afghan civilians and the army, the military said.

Great news. I accept this at face value. I will wait, however, for another 6 months when questionable 'eyewitnesses' say all but one or two were actual militants who just happened to be dropping off food and medicine to a group of handicapped orphans and their nurses.

[mark502inf]

U.S., Canadian, British and Afghan troops have fanned out over four restive provinces — Helmand, Uruzgan, Kandahar and Zabul — to hunt down Taliban fighters blamed for the surge in ambushes and bombings. Extremist forces, primarily Taliban, have escalated attacks against coalition and Afghan troops, particularly in the south, in the bloodiest campaign of violence launched since 2001. More than 500 people, mostly militants, have been killed in the past month.

Actually, the prime reason for the escalation is that we are moving coalition troops in strength to areas of the south where the Taliban have been left alone. What is being described as Taliban escalation is actually Taliban resistance to our offensive.

[Irish_Thatcherite]

U.S., Canadian, British and Afghan troops have fanned out over four restive provinces

Ping.