lucky wilbury
03-31-2004, 06:17 PM
http://www.lasvegassun.com/sunbin/stories/w-asia/2004/mar/31/033105109.html
Marines to Step Up Afghan al-Qaida Hunt
By STEPHEN GRAHAM
ASSOCIATED PRESS
KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) -
A force of 2,000 Marines has begun arriving in Afghanistan as part of a stepped-up mission to crush Taliban-led insurgents and flush out al-Qaida fugitives.
The 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit will work a specific area of the country in an attempt to improve intelligence on enemy activity, spokesman Lt. Col. Bryan Hilferty said. He declined to give details, citing security concerns.
"The plan is to continue to place pressure on al-Qaida and the Taliban throughout the south and east while providing enduring security," Hilferty said. He said they were not part of a troop rotation, but additional troops.
The American military is building up its forces for an offensive intended to finish off Taliban and al-Qaida militants whose attacks have prevented reconstruction along the Pakistani border.
In the latest operation, troops detained six suspected Taliban members - including a "mid-level" leader - in a raid in southern Afghanistan late Tuesday, Hilferty said. He did not disclose the leader's identity.
The Marines will bring the U.S.-led coalition to 15,500, the largest force since the United States decided to oust the Taliban for sheltering al-Qaida in 2001.
Based in Camp Lejeune, N.C., the 22nd Marines are skilled in high-technology weapons such as unmanned planes.
The stint is the 22nd's second in Afghanistan following a 2002 deployment.
Afghan military officials said they had no information on the American troops' destination or mission, but said they were willing to provide support forces.
In their sector, the Marines will send forces from one unit to the same villages again and again.
"They will conduct operations in one set area of the country to get to know the terrain and the local people," Hilferty said.
The military says the approach has helped them uncover weapons caches across the country, but it has yet to net any top militants.
The six suspected Taliban detained Tuesday were caught in a nighttime search operation near Deh Rawood, 250 miles southwest of the capital, Kabul, in Uruzgan province.
"We appear to have surprised the personnel there," Hilferty said. "They did not put up a fight." Troops found weapons and "other material which lead us to believe they are Taliban."
The province is considered a Taliban stronghold where some observers believe the hardline Islamic movement's supreme leader, Mullah Mohammed Omar, could be hiding.
Thirteen people were killed in three days of fighting in Uruzgan earlier this month, including two U.S. soldiers and nine suspected militants.
At a conference in Berlin on Wednesday, donor nations pledged $4.4 billion over the next year to help rebuild Afghanistan and smooth its transition to post-Taliban democracy, Afghan Finance Minister Ashraf Ghani said. The donors promised $8.2 billion in total over the next three years, Ghani said.
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Marines to Step Up Afghan al-Qaida Hunt
By STEPHEN GRAHAM
ASSOCIATED PRESS
KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) -
A force of 2,000 Marines has begun arriving in Afghanistan as part of a stepped-up mission to crush Taliban-led insurgents and flush out al-Qaida fugitives.
The 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit will work a specific area of the country in an attempt to improve intelligence on enemy activity, spokesman Lt. Col. Bryan Hilferty said. He declined to give details, citing security concerns.
"The plan is to continue to place pressure on al-Qaida and the Taliban throughout the south and east while providing enduring security," Hilferty said. He said they were not part of a troop rotation, but additional troops.
The American military is building up its forces for an offensive intended to finish off Taliban and al-Qaida militants whose attacks have prevented reconstruction along the Pakistani border.
In the latest operation, troops detained six suspected Taliban members - including a "mid-level" leader - in a raid in southern Afghanistan late Tuesday, Hilferty said. He did not disclose the leader's identity.
The Marines will bring the U.S.-led coalition to 15,500, the largest force since the United States decided to oust the Taliban for sheltering al-Qaida in 2001.
Based in Camp Lejeune, N.C., the 22nd Marines are skilled in high-technology weapons such as unmanned planes.
The stint is the 22nd's second in Afghanistan following a 2002 deployment.
Afghan military officials said they had no information on the American troops' destination or mission, but said they were willing to provide support forces.
In their sector, the Marines will send forces from one unit to the same villages again and again.
"They will conduct operations in one set area of the country to get to know the terrain and the local people," Hilferty said.
The military says the approach has helped them uncover weapons caches across the country, but it has yet to net any top militants.
The six suspected Taliban detained Tuesday were caught in a nighttime search operation near Deh Rawood, 250 miles southwest of the capital, Kabul, in Uruzgan province.
"We appear to have surprised the personnel there," Hilferty said. "They did not put up a fight." Troops found weapons and "other material which lead us to believe they are Taliban."
The province is considered a Taliban stronghold where some observers believe the hardline Islamic movement's supreme leader, Mullah Mohammed Omar, could be hiding.
Thirteen people were killed in three days of fighting in Uruzgan earlier this month, including two U.S. soldiers and nine suspected militants.
At a conference in Berlin on Wednesday, donor nations pledged $4.4 billion over the next year to help rebuild Afghanistan and smooth its transition to post-Taliban democracy, Afghan Finance Minister Ashraf Ghani said. The donors promised $8.2 billion in total over the next three years, Ghani said.
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