U.S. launch major operation in Afghanistan

Thursday, 02 July 2009 07:59 Al Manar
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Afghanistan, July 2 (Al Manar) Almost 4,000 US Marines launched a major offensive against Taliban on early Thursday morning in Helmand province of southern Afghanistan in an air and ground assault that marked a high-risk test of President Barack Obama's new war plan ahead of Afghanistan's presidential elections on August 20.
The US troops, backed by 650 Afghan troops and police, pushed into the Helmand River valley, trying to take back the control of the poppy-growing region from the Taliban, a Marines press statement said.
Dozens of aircraft ferried out nearly 4,000 US forces from various bases before dawn, aiming to take the fight deep into the militant bastions of Helmand province in the country's south. It was the Marines' first major operation since they deployed recently as part of 21,000 US reinforcements pledged by Obama in an aggressive US strategy to turn the tide on the dragging conflict with the Taliban.
"What makes Operation Khanjar different from those that have occurred before is the massive size of the force introduced, the speed at which it will insert," Marine commander Brigadier General Larry Nicholson said.
Thursday's operation was different from previous ones because of the "massive size of the force", the US occupation forces said. Similar approaches have been tried in the eastern part of the country.
In the past two months, the United States has sent 8,500 Marines to Helmand, which is the largest province in Afghanistan and considered as a Taliban stronghold. The 8,500 is part of the 21,000 additional troops that U.S. President Barack Obama is deploying in Afghanistan. It is expected the total number of U.S. troops in Afghanistan will reach 68,000 by the end of the year.

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