Washington - The US military has begun a large-scale
offensive against the Taliban in Helmand province in southern
Afghanistan, media reports said Thursday.
Around 4,000 US marines and 650 Afghan soldiers were taking part
in Operation Khanjar, which began early Thursday, US military
spokesman said.
The aim is to drive the Islamist militants out of the region,
which has been a Taliban stronghold for years, they said.
The operation is the first large military offensive in President
Barack Obama's new strategy for Afghanistan.
The soldiers are attempting to set up a series of bases and to
stay in Helmand. The aim is to improve the security situation in the
province long term and create stability, Brigadier General Larry
Nicholson said.
The United States has reportedly deployed about 8,500 marines to
Helmand in the past two months. As part of Obama's new strategy, the
US contingent in Afghanistan would be strengthened by an extra 21,000
soldiers and there would be a new emphasis on civil and economic aid.
Obama is prioritizing the war against the Taliban in Afghanistan
and in neighbouring Pakistan over the war in Iraq, where US troops
withdrew from cities and towns Tuesday.
General Stanley McChrystal, a specialist in covert operations,
replaced David McKiernan as the US commander in Afghanistan in
mid-June after the security situation there noticeably deteriorated.
Militants carried out more than 400 attacks in the first week of
June, according to the US commander in the Middle East and Central
Asia, General David Petraeus. That was the highest figure since the
US-led military overthrow of the Taliban regime in 2001.
In June last year, there were fewer than 250 Taliban attacks per
week, and in January 2004, there were fewer than 50 per week, a
spokesman for the four-star general said.
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