Posted on 07/02/2009 8:22:12 AM PDT by Diana in Wisconsin
Camp Leatherneck, Afghanistan (AHN) - The Obama administration launched its first major offensive in Afghanistan early Thursday, pushing deep into Helmand Province, where militants suppport their activities from one of the world's largest opium poppy fields.
Thousands of U.S. Marines and Afghan security forces quickly moved into towns and villages along the river valley, securing the Taliban stronghold.
Operation Khanjar, or Strike of the Sword, involves nearly 4,000 Marines and 650 soldiers from the Afghan Army and police forces. The assault comes only two days after American forces withdrew from the cities of Iraq, and less than two months before Afghanistan's Aug. 20 presidential elections.
"What makes Operation Khanjar different from those that have occurred before is the massive size of the force introduced, the speed at which it will insert, and the fact that where we go we will stay, and where we stay, we will hold, build and work toward transition of all security responsibilities to Afghan forces," Brig. Gen. Larry Nicholson, commanding general of Marine Expeditionary Brigade-Afghanistan, said in a statement.
Over 90 percent of Afghanistan's opium is harvested in Helmand. Most of the crop is made into black tar opium and then smuggled out of the country to be processed into heroin. The province's opium economy suppports half of miiltant funding, according to the Pentagon.
The United States is currently increasing its troops in Afghanistan by 21,000. The new troops will train Afghan Security Forces following a shift in the U.S. mission to training and increasing the size of the Afghan Army to 134,000, and the police force to 82,000 by 2011.
There are currently 57,000 American troops in Afghanstan, 28,850 of which are in NATO's International Security Assistance Force (ISAF).
Violence in the war-torn nation is at the highest level since the 2001 U.S. invasion, and is expected to continue increasing.
"Some of this [violence] will go up, because we are going to go after their sanctuaries and safe havens as we must. There are some difficult times ahead," Army Gen. David Petraeus, commander of U.S. Central Command, said last month.
That 0bama. What a MASTER at everything he commands.
*PUKE*
Boooo for 0bama! (who probably had nothing to do with this operation anyway)
Well this explains the planes flying over a week or so ago. Before each major offensive since the Gulf Was some kind of transport/cargo planes, with a loud low hum, fly over from midnight till dawn. It wakes the dog and who wakes me.
In a week to ten days someone gets the shiite bombed out of them.
I wonder if all of the troops are required to take portable teleprompters with them into battle.
That would be the true sign that this is a Barry administrative offensive.
War or terroist = War on drugs!
Don’t tell THE ONE he’ll stop both.
“Operation Miranda Rights” is under way!
If Obama really wants to ruin the Taliban he’ll announce that Tim Geithner is going to run it.
"I cannot accept the fact that 4,000 US troops have taken part in this operation".
"I consider it a part of a psychological war, but if 4,000 US troops really are taking part in the operation, they will not have any permanent victory."
Politics aside, I’m glad about this. Keep it up.
the headline is very misleading...tries to make it look like the miliary is doing this behind Bam’s back and without his knowledge (provide deniability for the Kos Kidz...)
Wait a minute. Didn’t he say we were air-raiding villages and killing civilians in Afghanistan? I supose this makes him a war criminal then by his own reasoning.
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