Taliban Bobi Dead

Generally when Canadians are killed the international press uses the term "NATO Soldiers" to describe them. I hope that this also applies below in the use of the term "NATO".

NATO kills Taliban commander in targeted operation

KABUL, Afghanistan – NATO and Afghan forces killed a Taliban commander during a targeted operation just south of Kabul in a province militant fighters have poured into this year, the NATO-led force said Tuesday.

The commander, Mohammad Bobi, had facilitated suicide bombings and had a history of torturing and kidnapping Afghan civilians in the province of Logar, NATO said.

Bobi was given the option of surrendering, but he instead attacked the combined force and was killed during an overnight raid, NATO said. His death was confirmed Tuesday.

Logar province, which is directly south of Kabul province, has seen an influx of Taliban militants this year. Residents there say the government has little or no control in the province outside the provincial capital.

Between 3,000 and 3,500 additional U.S. troops scheduled to arrive in Afghanistan in January will be sent to Logar and Wardak provinces, two regions adjoining Kabul that have seen an influx of militant fighters over the last year.

U.S. commanders say the troops will aggressively attack militants in those regions and that they expect violence there to spike over the coming months as the number of clashes increases.

The main highways that run through Wardak and Logar are extremely dangerous. Convoys of supply trucks are regularly attacked and militants set up temporary checkpoints in search of government employees and foreigners to kidnap or kill.

Martin Regg Cohn makes a good point in The Toronto Star. Something the pea-brains in Parliament need to think about.

Afghan attention deficit disorder

Anyone who doubts the importance of Canada's mission in Afghanistan should consider the eight schoolgirls who were sprayed with acid in Kandahar last month, a reminder of the old Taliban ban on female education. Their injuries put the lie to the fantasy that education and reconstruction are possible without security.

Afghans are looking to the West for a signal that we won't abandon them again. Staying the course in Afghanistan doesn't mean sticking to outdated tactics or a discredited strategy. There is every reason for Canada and its allies to reassess where we have gone wrong, where the Taliban have succeeded, and what the Afghans themselves must to do set things right.

Hippy Report Says "Taliban Everywhere, Man"

I have my doubts about this "thinktank".

Taliban Expanding Foothold in Afghanistan, Report Finds

The Taliban have expanded their footprint in Afghanistan and now have a permanent presence in nearly three-quarters of the country, according to a new report.

The Paris-based International Council on Security and Development, a think tank that maintains full-time offices in Afghanistan, said the Taliban have spread across much of the country and are beginning to encircle the capital, Kabul.

The group said Taliban fighters have advanced out of southern Afghanistan, a region where they often hold de facto governing power, and carry out regular attacks in western and northwestern Afghanistan as well as in and around Kabul. Taliban forces can be found in 72% of Afghanistan, up from 54% a year earlier.

"While the international community's prospects in Afghanistan have never been bleaker, the Taliban has been experiencing a renaissance that has gained momentum since 2005," the report said. "The West is in genuine danger of losing Afghanistan."

Afghanistan has seen a sharp spike in violence this year, with U.S. fatalities and civilian casualties hitting records. Some American commanders fear the Taliban will start an offensive this winter. President-elect Barack Obama has said he will deploy tens of thousands of new troops to Afghanistan, shifting resources from Iraq.

There are currently about 34,000 American troops in Afghanistan, and the Pentagon has announced plans to send at least 20,000 reinforcements in 2009. Obama aides have said the new administration also will work to strengthen Afghanistan's central government, judiciary and national police force.

The think tank mapped recent attacks in Afghanistan and said provinces with at least one strike per month had a "permanent Taliban presence."

Norine MacDonald, the think tank's president and lead researcher, said the Taliban, following the strategy of earlier Afghan insurgents, are slowly encircling Kabul by establishing bases close to the city and regularly attacking three of the four major roads leading out of the capital.

Ms. MacDonald said the number of attacks inside the city, including assassinations and kidnappings of Westerners and Afghans, has also increased sharply.

The group recommends that U.S. and NATO commanders minimize their use of military power, recruit troops from Muslim nations into the current American- and European-dominated multinational force and expand economic assistance.

So the Taliban are expanding and NATO should not use military power? Huh? If you had any doubt this "Thinktank" was in Paris...

There is one central problem with this report. Even if the Taliban were every where and ready to pounce... They can't fight our troops beyond the road-side bomb method.

For every "attack" they try they lose 10 men to NATO's one. In some cases NATO hasn't lost any men while killing dozens of these idiots. So if the Taliban is indeed in 72 percent of the country all that really means they're just that much closer to being killed.

Run Away!!

'We're not going to win,' British commander says of bid to quash Taliban

Britain's top commander in Afghanistan says the war will not end in victory, the latest indication of soul-searching as Canada's allies grapple with how to handle the rising power of the Taliban insurgency.

Wasn't some spineless twit like this responsible for the first British routing in Afghanistan?

The blunt statement from Brigadier Mark Carleton-Smith - "We're not going to win this war" - came just days after a leaked diplomatic cable hinted that the British ambassador in Kabul has a similarly dark forecast. The brigadier suggested that a negotiated settlement will be necessary.

Blunt? He's smoking a blunt?

Speaking to the Sunday Times, Brig. Carleton-Smith said a "decisive military victory" is not feasible and that NATO should lower its expectations about the outcome of the war. "If the Taliban were prepared to sit on the other side of the table and talk about a political settlement, then that's precisely the sort of progress that concludes insurgencies like this."
"That shouldn't make people uncomfortable," he said.

No, people should be comfortable talking to a bunch of murderous bandits who want to force their stupid beliefs on their fellow citizens. Right. Thanks for that advice. Twit.

That places Britain, with at least 3,500 troops standing alongside Canada's forces in southern Afghanistan, in direct conflict with U.S. leaders, who continue to argue strenuously that the war can only be won by substantially defeating the Taliban. Prime Minister Stephen Harper and his ministers have endorsed that view, although most other NATO nations have favored negotiations.

It places one General, not Britain in conflict. I would bet my hardly earned cash that 98% of the 3,500 British troops would like to prove General Negotiations wrong.

Brig. Carleton-Smith's words are the most explicit expression yet of a view that has become
dominant in many member nations of NATO's International Security Assistance Force.

You know this how?

That view effectively isolates the United States, the biggest donor of money and troops to the war. Starting later this month, the U.S. Afghanistan strategy will be designed by General David Petreus, who devised the "surge" of extra troops in Iraq last year and who has become the head of U.S. Central Command in order to shift the country's priorities toward the Afghan war.

The British proved you can beat insurgencies in Malaysia.

Prime Minister Harper has previously sided with the Americans on such questions, refusing any suggestion of direct negotiations with the Taliban and ridiculing politicians who have suggested a political solution. Conservatives gave NDP Leader Jack Layton the nickname "Taliban Jack" for lobbying in favour of negotiations in recent years, and the moniker became popular among Canadian troops as a derisive shorthand for politicians who don't support the war.

During last week's election debate, however, Mr. Harper avoided discussing the possibility of a victory and suggested that Canada's goals now involve empowering Afghan forces rather than totally defeating the Taliban: "If we are to truly pacify that country and see its evolution, we have to train the Afghan army and police so that they are credibly able to take greater responsibility for their own security."

Well we all know who the staff at the Glob and Mule will vote for.

Negotiations should consist of the following.

a) Do you surrender?
b) No? Okay. Blam!
c) Clean up stain.

Diggers Kick Taliban Ass in Duffy

Its good to see the Taliban getting exactly what they deserve.



DIGGERS DEFEAT TALIBAN ATTACK IN HEAVY FIGHTING

In their heaviest fighting to date, Australian soldiers with the Reconstruction Task Force (RTF) in Afghanistan have successfully repelled a prolonged attack by approximately 50 Taliban extremists.

RTF Commanding Officer, Lieutenant Colonel Harry Jarvie, praised the skill and determination of his soldiers.

“Over the last few months Australian soldiers have been regularly tested by Taliban extremists. In every case they have performed magnificently.”

The failed attack was one of a number of decisive defeats suffered by the Taliban in Oruzgan Province and the neighbouring Helmand Province during the past week. The attack came as the RTF was conducting a reconnaissance mission for the construction of Afghan National Police outposts about eight kilometres north of Tarin Kowt.

Taliban extremists fired automatic weapons and Rocket Propelled Grenades (RPGs) at the Australian patrol from the cover of an orchard. The patrol immediately returned fire and then engaged in an intense confrontation with the Taliban during the next four hours.

Infantry Platoon Commander Lieutenant Glenn Neilson said the Taliban had established strong firing positions and were reinforced with more fighters as the attack progressed.

“We were engaged with some very accurate fire from a range of about 300m and there were a lot of bullets coming our way. Making use of all the weapons at our disposal, including the Australian Light Armoured Vehicle (ASLAV) and Bushmaster Infantry Mobility Vehicle (IMV), we held our ground.”

The soldiers were also able to employ Dutch F16 fighter aircraft and Apache helicopters. Afghan National Army troops that were trained by Australian Forces in Oruzgan participated in the patrol and performed admirably.

“Together we neutralised the positions that were causing us trouble,” Lieutenant Neilson said.

Another Australian platoon supported the movement of RTF troops by providing essential covering fire as soldiers moved across hazardous open ground.

The Taliban are known to have suffered heavy casualties during the incident, but the ADF will not discuss specific details.

There were no civilian casualties resulting from this incident. No Australian soldiers were wounded, nor was there any damage to Australian vehicles.