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The Battle of Arghandab - June 2008

  • Thread starter Thread starter jollyjacktar
  • Start date Start date
"I honestly think that this will wind up being one of the last stands for the Taliban in the South"

Don't count on it. These movements have a habit of reincarnating every few years.
 
I can't wait to see how this plays out. I wish I was over there  :threat:
 
I don't see the logic in this move for the TB, other than a show of force and/or presence around KC. It seems like a potentially high price to pay for what amounts to a morale/PR move. Everytime they try to hold ground, they are utterly destroyed. The only question is at what cost in Canadian and Afghan blood.

To the boys in the 2VP battle group....... get some!
 
NATO warns villagers ahead of Taliban showdown

KABUL, Afghanistan (CNN) -- NATO has warned residents of villages seized by the Taliban in southern Afghanistan to take cover before an operation is launched to recapture the lost ground.

Aircraft flown by NATO dropped hundreds of leaflets Monday night on several villages near Kandahar that have been seized by the Taliban, officials said, while thousands of extra Afghan troops headed to the region.

The militants, in apparent preparation for an impending military operation, planted mines and destroyed bridges -- and forced villagers to stay and fight alongside them, a tribal elder said.

The planned operation would target villages in the Arghandab district of Kandahar province. It is the same province where 400 Taliban militants escaped from prison in a mass jailbreak Friday.

"ANSF (Afghan National Security Forces) supported by ISAF are coming to remove the enemies of Afghanistan," the leaflets read. "Keep your family safe when there is fighting near your home. STAY INSIDE while ANSF defeats the enemies of Afghanistan."

A Defense Ministry statement Tuesday said "most of the 300 to 400 terrorists, who have gathered around Arghandab district, are foreign fighters" and reported a confrontation in the region.

"Today the terrorists approached a police post in the area and through an interpreter asked the forces to surrender, but the terrorists encountered a tooth-smashing response by the forces.

"This shows that most of the destructive actions and terrorist attacks in our country are done by foreigners, who enter Afghanistan from outside of the country" the statement added.

A spokesman with the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) said the operation will primarily be conducted by Afghan police and military.

More on link.


Baker
 
GAP said:
Someone is doing some pretty good strategic thinking here......This does have the hint of the Tet  Offensive, and I have this hunch that this is not the end of it.  If someone can initiate diversionary tactics at this level, there are probably more surprises in Pandora's Box....I just hope NATO troops and commanders don't get complacent and assume everything will work out.

Using your and others' comparison to the Tet Offensive, let's hope those on our side do the full court press on the public communications front - if we're winning, don't be shy about saying so.

Good luck to all participating.....
 
"Today the terrorists approached a police post in the area and through an interpreter asked the forces to surrender, but the terrorists encountered a tooth-smashing response by the forces

Lovely ;D

Too bad they didn't give more details.
 
There is a lot of assuming that the insurgents have not learned since being defeated during MEDUSA.  I think it is far too early to make such an assumption.  There is a very real threat that they have learned, that their intentions are different, and that they will bring a whole new type of fight.
 
MCG said:
There is a lot of assuming that the insurgents have not learned since being defeated during MEDUSA.  I think it is far too early to make such an assumption.  There is a very real threat that they have learned, that their intentions are different, and that they will bring a whole new type of fight.
Exactly my thoughts.  I mean, they could want us to think that they are preparing to dig in, for MEDUSA ROUND TWO.  We go in, flatten everything, nothing is there, and they have won a second PR victory in as many weeks.  Or worse.  Or something completely different.

Whatever the case, I sure am root root rooting for the good guys*


*ANSF, ISAF and OEF, of course. ;D
 
im with the whole there running lowon fighters idea
i read something today that theyve been brining in arab extremists and and pakistani fighters as well
the taliban have seem to have grown a cuple balls as mentioned earlyer they get raped every time they come up against ISAF
but depending on how many fighters from "out of town" their brining in this might get a bit ugly
but for our poeple overseas, SAVE SOME FOR ME !!!!!!!!
next year and im in  ;D ;D :cdnsalute:
Give 'em hell boys and girls :fifty:

 
recon_hopeful18 said:
Give 'em hell boys and girls
Ignoring the rest of your post for its poor spelling and grammar, which is contrary to this site's standards, the CF does not have any boys or girls within its ranks: we are all men or women.

(NB: Please search, find and heed the site guidelines.  Welcome to army *dot* ca)
 
hey sorry no offence
i have the utmost respect for the men and women in uniform and overseas, didint mean anything by it
 
you gotta make sure you don't make any spelling mistakes, use spellcheck if necessary or your future interaction with those that dwell on this site will be sour.


cheers
 
I wish I could be there to help, well still got about a year and perhaps a half to go until that can happen.

Give them hell  :salute: :cdn:
 
An Update from CTV:

Kandahar 'under control': Canadian commander
Updated Tue. Jun. 17 2008 5:25 PM ET

CTV.ca News Staff


"It is clear that Kandahar City remains firmly under control of the Afghan government and its people," said Dave Corbould, battle group commander with Canada's Joint Task Force Afghanistan.

"Indeed, having just returned from the Arghandab district centre, I can tell you there were no obvious signs of insurgent activity. While this does not mean that the Taliban are not there, it just means that they don't appear to have the strong foothold they apparently claimed."

http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20080617/afghan_violence_080617/20080617?hub=TopStories
 
Does it strike anyone that the media was rubbing their hands with glee when the Taliban bombed the prison? We're almost celebratory when the Taliban claimed to control 5 villages and have 600 fighters in the Argendaub? Notice how they just reported this as fact?
The shrill panicked reaction from some reporters, who kept suggestion that the war was DOOMED because of this stank of self interest and the pursuit of a headline.
Some elements of the Canadian Press seem to have a complicit relationship with the Taliban propaganda machine, they print the propaganda as sensationalist 'news', it creates a negative reaction with the public, the Taliban accomplish their IO objectives, and the Canadian Media sell more ads and more newspapers as a result.
The Canadian Media is after all a big multi-billion dollar business, and something has to feed that ravenous monster. 
 
I think that the 700 plus ANA troops from Kabul may have added substance to their guess work of an impending battle.
 
I find it odd that the Commander went on record saying they cannot see any signs of insurgent activity*. I would think that the Taliban is laying low so that way the emigrants of the Valley come back and the Taliban could go to work with a civilian population around.

For some reason, I'm picturing a group of bearded men singing and dancing to Broadway musicals whenever they say Insurgent Activity.
 
Kaplan - You may be right. On the other hand, the locals most likely know if the Taliban was still there, certainly in small villages where everybody knows everybody and where their 'guests' would very soon start levying for food and such.  As well, the locals generally are not fond of the Taliban; most of them do not want to live under their control.
 
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