Afghan offensive: scarcely a shot fired
Updated on 30 July 2010
British troops launch an operation to secure the last village under Taliban control in central Helmand. International Editor Lindsey Hilsum, embedded with the 1st Battalion of the Duke of Lancaster's Regiment, writes that scarcely a shot has been fired.
Several hundred British troops from Combined Force Nad-e-Ali are involved in Operation Tor Shezada (Black Prince), to secure the village of Saidabad which has a population of about 6,000 - mostly from Pashtun Ishaqzai and Hazara backgrounds.
International Editor Lindsey Hilsum, embedded with the 1st Battalion of the Duke of Lancaster's Regiment, says The operation appears to be going well from the point of view of British troops on the ground. Scarcely a shot fired. It may be that the insurgents have all gone south into Marjah, part of the US marine area of operations, or out west into the desert.
Although this is a relatively small operation, it is significant because Saidabad is the last population centre under Taliban control in central Helmand.
The operation commander, Lieutenant Colonel Frazer Lawrence, said "They run the town, and there is said to be a 'shadow governor' there."
Around 180 insurgents are reported to be in the area, notably a commander believed to have recently arrived from Pakistan.
Taliban hunt Wikileaks outed Afghan informers
Exclusive: The Taliban has issued a chilling warning to Afghans, alleged in secret US military files leaked on the internet to have worked as informers for the Nato-led coalition, telling Channel 4 News "US spies" will be hunted down and punished.
Speaking by telephone from an undisclosed location, Zabihullah Mujahid told foreign affairs correspondent Jonathan Miller that the insurgent group will investigate the named individuals before deciding on their fate. "We are studying the report," he said, confirming that the insurgent group already has access to the 92,000 intelligence documents and field reports.
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The operation was delayed 48 hours because of poor visibility, but started in the early hours of this morning with an air assault to the north of Saidabad which is said to have met with no resistance.
Spokesman for Task Force Helmand, Lt Col James Carr-Smith, said: "During the early hours of today, under the cover of darkness, the joint ISAF and Afghan Operation TOR SHEZADA launched successfully. The operation is currently ongoing and reports back from the commanders on the ground say it is progressing according to plan."
Will the strategy win the war?
The British strategy is to drive the Taliban out of the villages and then begin projects which can make a quick impact, such as wells, cash-for-work schemes and clearing irrigation ditches, writes Lindsey Hilsum from Afghanistan.
Then they try to start development projects, hoping that the people will decide that their lives are better under government rather than Taliban control.
The strategy sounds fine, but as I watched troops fanning out into the reeds and irrigation ditches of central Helmand today, I kept thinking about the bigger picture.
Everyone here knows that the foreigners will leave in the end - and many say they look forward to that day. The Taliban are still not necessarily regarded as enemies, regardless of how many clinics the Afghan government builds with British money.
Elsewhere the Taliban are gaining ground. Pretty much everyone accepts now that there will have to be negotiations.
The British will doubtless capture the village of Saidabad, possibly without even a skirmish. But it won't help win a war being waged in many different areas in Afghanistan. A war which many believe is unwinnable.
British troops partnered with Afghan forces from 3rd Brigade, 215 Corps to clear insurgents from Saidabad (also known as Sayedebad) to the south of Ned-e Ali in the Helmand province, in parallel to similar operations by the US Marine Corps in Northern Marjah.
British forces have had some success in central Helmand, but the war beyond is widening, and President Karzai is expected to have to do a deal with the Taliban which could end up with them controlling some parts of the country.
Although significantly smaller than previous operations in this area, the Ministry of Defence said that Operation Black Prince aims to push insurgent fighters further from the population centres successfully cleared by previous elements of Operation Moshtarak.
Operation Tor Shezada: the Taliban won't fight
Some TV news channels will no doubt present the current Operation Tor Shezada (Black Prince), in southern Afghanistan in the same, ludicrous fashion as they reported Operation Moshtarak earlier in the year in Helmand. Or Operation Panther’s Claw before that.
The story is not about how big or long or fat or noisy the current operation is. Because the current operation is almost irrelevant in its significance, writes Channel 4 News chief correspondent Alex Thomson.
Read more here
