Troops in attack on Helmand 'heart of darkness'

Published on Saturday 13 February 2010 00:17

BRITISH troops last night joined Operation Moshtarak, marking the launch of the biggest offensive in Afghanistan since the overthrow of the Taleban in 2001.

&#149 US marines engage in a firefight with Taleban in the north-east of the stronghold of Marjah

Some 15,000 troops are geared up for a massive attack to seize control of the southern Afghan town of Marjah, a Taleban stronghold. Helicopter-borne troops swooped in a pre-dawn raid, the first phase of a US-led operation to re-establish Afghan government control over the region.

Several hundred US marines, supported by Afghan troops, were in the first wave flying over minefields the militants are believed to have planted around the town, 360 miles south-west of Kabul.

"The first wave of choppers has landed inside Marjah. The operation has begun," said Captain Joshua Winfrey, commander of Lima Company, 3rd Battalion, 6th Marines, which led the attack.The helicopter assault was preceded by illumination flares, which were fired over the town at about 2am local time. The explosive white flash of Hellfire and Tow missiles floodlit the town and the flares helped troops to identify targets.

US marine commanders estimate up to 1,000 insurgents are holed up in the town of 80,000 people in Helmand province – including more than 100 foreign fighters. Marjah is the biggest southern town under Taleban control and considered the linchpin of the militants' logistical and opium-smuggling network.

On the eve of the battle, one British commander warned his troops: "We are going into the heart of darkness."

Lieutenant-Colonel Matt Bazeley, the Commanding Officer of 28 Engineer Regiment, told his troops "it is bloody dangerous out there", but added "this is what you have been trained for".

Lt-Col Bazeley, speaking to about 200 of his soldiers at Camp Bastion in Helmand province, said the operation was a key part of delivering security to allow reconstruction. "You will be tested," he warned. "If things go wrong, no sad moments, no pauses; we regather, recock and go again. I repeat: much of this operation rests on us."

Operation Moshtarak involves about 3,500 US marines, and 2,000 British troops, from the Royal Welsh and Grenadier Guards.

Afghan forces have been at the forefront of planning for the first time and will share the burden of the fighting. Afghan police will provide support after the initial military operations end.

At the Pentagon, officials said Afghan president Hamid Karzai had signed off the attack. One US official said it marked a first in terms of both sharing information prior to the attack and planning collaboration with the Afghan government.

Many of the estimated 80,000 people who live in Marjah fled ahead of the assault after Nato distributed leaflets in the area warning of the planned offensive. But in recent days, militants who moved into the area have prevented many others from leaving. Radio messages have been broadcast telling people that the Afghan and international troops had come to rid their area of insurgents and that no civilians would be harmed.

Once the town is secured, Nato hopes to rush in aid and restore public services to win support in Marjah and the surrounding villages. The Afghans' ability to restore those services is crucial to the success of the operation and to preventing the Taleban from returning.

Tribal elders have pleaded for Nato to finish the operation quickly and spare civilians – an appeal that offers some hope the townspeople will co-operate with Afghan and international forces once the Taleban are gone.

On the eve of the attack, cars and lorries jammed the main road out of Marjah as hundreds of civilians defied militant orders and fled the area ahead of the assault.

Some residents said they had been forced to slip out of town when Taleban commanders were not watching.

"We were not allowed to come here. We haven't brought any of our belongings; we just tried to get ourselves out," said Bibi Gul, an elderly woman who arrived in nearby Lashkar Gah with three of her sons. She left three more sons behind in Marjah.

Police searched vehicles for any signs of militants, in one case prodding bales of cotton with a metal rod in search of hidden weapons.

"They don't allow families to leave," said Marjah resident Qari Mohammad Nabi of the Taleban. "The families can only leave the village when they are not seen leaving."

Daoud Ahmadi, a spokesman for Helmand province, said about 450 families – an estimated 2,700 people – had sought refuge in Lashkar Gah. Most moved in with relatives, but more than 100 were being sheltered by the government, he said.

Mr Ahmadi said the local government was prepared to shelter 7,000 families in nearby towns.

In advance of the attack, Afghan officials urged community leaders in Marjah to use their influence to persuade the Taleban to lay down their weapons and avoid a bloodbath. In return, the officials promised to improve the lives of the people there.