Events Calendar
In This Section
Iraq War milestone passes with little fanfare
Pope's address to Ireland under Catholics' scrutiny
Man nabbed after aiding U.S. relief group in Haiti
Dutch fuming at retired U.S. general's gays comment
'Lawyer' for U.S. missionaries in Haiti is arrested
World diplomats urge resumption of Mideast talks
Most Read Stories
Tallmadge man dies after motorcycle crash
Passers-by call police over topless gardener
Akron police arrest suspect in Iraq war veteran's killing
Man on leave from Iraq war slain in Akron
Teen accused of drinking, dancing topless in club
Soldier on leave dies after shooting near UA
Route for funeral procession for slain Marine
Blogs:
Akron Docs in Haiti:
Almost home
First Bell - On Education:
21st Century Skills and Akron’s new middle school
Pets:
Lost Mini Schnauzer around Cascade Valley Park
The Heldenfiles:
Fess Parker, R.I.P.
Akron Zips:
Is it time to go after transfers?
Tribe Matters:
Wood sidelined at least six weeks
Cleveland Browns:
Yates latest to re-sign
Balanced Ledger:
How times have changed?
Kent State Sports:
Flashes fall in WNIT
Cleveland Cavaliers:
Gameblog: Cavs at Chicago Bulls (Green Mascot and All)
Buckeye Blogging:
Bucks High Seed – Turner High Praise
Varsity Letters:
Jackson advances to Division I state semifinal
All Da King's Men:
ObamaCare To Reduce Premiums By 3000% ?
Blog of Mass Destruction:
Pathetic GOP Nullification Attempts
Akron Law Café:
More on Shaming Corporate Criminals
Car Chase:
2010 CONCOURS SEASON IS UPON US
Let's Talk Real Estate:
Deals in Miami?!.
Sound Check:
Willie Nelson & Family coming to the Akron Civic Theatre May 11
See Jane Style:
Who Wore What – The Oscars
HRLite House:
Horses of Courses
Akron Gamer:
Video: Gamers expected to 'reach' for new 'Halo'
U.S. wants to root out militants, help stabilize government before Aug. 20 election
Published on Friday, Jul 03, 2009
Associated Press
NAWA, AFGHANISTAN: U.S. Marines suffered their first casualties of a massive new military campaign Thursday as they engaged in sporadic gunbattles along 55 miles of Taliban-controlled heartland in southern Afghanistan.
One Marine was killed and several others were injured or wounded on the first full day of the assault, the largest military operation in Afghanistan since the fall of the Taliban government in 2001.
The offensive will test the Obama administration's new strategy of holding territory and letting the Afghan government sink roots in Helmand province. The insurgency has proven particularly resilient in this area, where foreign troops have never before operated in such large numbers.
President Barack Obama told the Associated Press Thursday that he has a ''very narrow definition of success when it comes to our national security interests'' in the region. ''And that is that al-Qaida and its affiliates cannot set up safe havens from which to attack Americans.''
''I think we can measure it by whether or not they've got training camps where people are coming in and getting trained in explosives, being sent out and directed in carrying out terrorist activity,'' Obama said in Washington.
An immediate goal, the military says, is to clear away insurgents before the nation's Aug. 20 presidential election. Southern Afghanistan is a Taliban stronghold but also a region where Afghan President Hamid Karzai is seeking votes from fellow Pashtun tribesmen. Without such a large Marine assault, the Afghan government would likely not be able to set up voting booths to which citizens could safely travel.
The Pentagon is deploying 21,000 additional troops to Afghanistan in time for the elections and expects the total number of U.S. forces there to reach 68,000 by year's end. That is double the number of troops in Afghanistan in 2008 but still half as many as are now in Iraq.
Even bigger challenges, perhaps, will come in the weeks and months after the Marines have established their presence here.
The U.S. will have an opportunity to help develop alternate livelihoods for farmers whose opium poppy crops bankroll the Taliban. Helmand province is the world's largest opium poppy-producing area.
Obama told the AP he wants to help ensure that Afghans ''are benefiting from development and improved agricultural systems and education systems and health care systems.''
Pakistan's army said Thursday it had moved troops from elsewhere on its side of the Afghan border to the stretch opposite Helmand to try to stop any militants from fleeing the offensive. Helmand's strategic setting will give the U.S. an opportunity to interdict fighters coming from Pakistan
Elsewhere, the U.S. military announced that insurgents were believed to have captured an American soldier in eastern Afghanistan on Tuesday. The missing soldier was not involved in Operation Khanjar, or ''Strike of the Sword,'' under way in southern Afghanistan.
The southern offensive was launched shortly after 1 a.m. Thursday as thousands of Marines poured from helicopters and armored vehicles into villages along the Helmand River. Officials described the offensive, involving almost 4,000 newly arrived Marines and more than 600 Afghan security forces, as the largest and fastest-moving of the war's new phase.
Get the full article here.
Comments
Click here to post your comments
akron, oh
Posted 09:56 AM, 07/03/2009
to the controled media, how many al-Qaida were killed in this battle, we know this battle didn't only have one casualty......WITH THE MEDIAS AGENDA THE CITIZENS OF AMERICA WILL NEVER KNOW THE DEAD U.S SOLDIERS TRUE SACRIFICES THEY'VE MADE..EVEN THOUGH THEY LOST THEIR LIVES..
