HTTP://WWW.STOPNATO.COM --------------------------- http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1962126,00.html?xid=rss-fullnation-yahoo
Time February 9, 2010 U.S. Troops Prepare to Test Obama's Afghan War Plan By Mark Thompson -Unlike earlier battles over towns and villages further east, where many Taliban are from Pakistan, the enemy in Marja is largely local, which will further complicate the fight. "It's harder to separate the enemy from the people," a Pentagon planner says, "when they are the people." Washington: U.S. and allied commanders in Afghanistan are preparing for the biggest battle of the eight-year war, knowing that its outcome will reveal the chances of success for President Obama's revamped Afghan strategy. About 20,000 U.S., British and Afghan troops will soon storm Marja, the Taliban's final redoubt in the southern province of Helmand. A town of 80,000, Marja.... The battle has actually been under way for several weeks, as Afghan and Western forces have announced their plans to the local population while moving into position.... But U.S. and Afghan officials know that die-hard Taliban forces have been burying hundreds of improvised explosive devices around the town in recent weeks. "It's giving time and space to those who want to fight to dig in," says Ali Jalali, who served as Afghanistan's first post-Taliban Interior Minister and now works with the Pentagon's National Defense University in Washington. "It could be very bloody, and that could affect public opinion in Europe and the U.S." .... [S]ome of the additional 30,000 U.S. troops ordered to Afghanistan by Obama in December have given commanders the ability to storm Marja, U.S. officers say. .... The offensive, when it begins in earnest, will largely be conducted on foot.... Both sides predict the fight for Marja could be brutal, with belts of IEDs believed to be buried along all major approaches to the town. Unlike earlier battles over towns and villages further east, where many Taliban are from Pakistan, the enemy in Marja is largely local, which will further complicate the fight. "It's harder to separate the enemy from the people," a Pentagon planner says, "when they are the people." .... As McChrystal prepares to launch the offensive, he's got one eye on Marja and the other on the calendar. If he and his forces prevail, it will serve as the template for the far more challenging battle this summer for the Taliban capital of Kandahar, about 100 miles to the east.... ========================== Stop NATO http://groups.yahoo.com/group/stopnato Blog site: http://rickrozoff.wordpress.com/ To subscribe, send an e-mail to: [email protected] or [email protected] Daily digest option available. ============================== --------------------------- ANTI-NATO INFORMATION LIST --^---------------------------------------------------------------- This email was sent to: [email protected] EASY UNSUBSCRIBE click here: http://topica.com/u/?a84x2u.bNM5nn.YXJjaGl2 Or send an email to: [email protected] For Topica's complete suite of email marketing solutions visit: http://www.topica.com/?p=TEXFOOTER --^----------------------------------------------------------------
