Marjah prelude to larger military campaigns, next stop: Kandahar [View All]

[G_j]

http://www.democracynow.org/2010/3/1/headlines/us_begins_planning_for_assault_on_kandahar

US Begins Planning for Assault on Kandahar

The Washington Post reports the recent US assault on the Afghan area of Marjah is a prelude to larger military campaigns. Senior Obama administration officials say the United States has begun initial planning for a bigger, more complex offensive in Kandahar later this year. Eleven thousand US and Afghan troops fought in Marjah, making it the largest US-NATO military operation since 2001. The city of Kandahar is ten times larger than Marjah

.........................


http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/02/26/AR2010022606008.html

In Afghanistan, U.S. plans major push into Kandahar

By Anne E. Kornblut and Greg Jaffe
Washington Post Staff Writer
Saturday, February 27, 2010

Even as Marines in Afghanistan continued to fight for control of the Taliban stronghold of Marja, senior Obama administration officials said Friday that the United States has begun initial planning for a bigger, more complex offensive in Kandahar later this year.

The assault on Marja, the largest U.S.-NATO military operation since 2001, is a "prelude to larger, more comprehensive operations," senior Obama officials said Friday. Administration officials declined to say when the Kandahar offensive will begin, but military officials have said that it probably will kick off in late spring or early summer after additional U.S. forces have moved into the area.

"Bringing comprehensive population security to Kandahar City is really the centerpiece of operations this year, and, therefore, Marja is the prelude. It's sort of a preparatory action," said one senior official, speaking on the condition of anonymity.

U.S. officials telegraphed the Marja offensive for many weeks before it began, and they appear to be laying the same kind of groundwork before moving into Kandahar, Afghanistan's second largest city and the original base of Taliban leader Mohammad Omar. The drives into Marja and Kandahar come as part of the administration's decision to deploy 30,000 additional troops in the country, a final push to secure major population centers almost nine years after the Sept. 11 attacks.

Any military operation to drive the Taliban from Kandahar will probably play out very differently than the battle taking place in Marja, which is a tenth the size. About 11,000 U.S. and Afghan troops pushed into Marja and within the first 13 days of the operation raised the Afghan flag over the district's government center. Afghan officials also quickly selected a new district governor to oversee reconstruction efforts.

..more..