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US Special Ops Forces Fight Taliban in Helmand
 [Tolo News] Following heavy festivities in southern Helmand...an Afghan province populated mostly by Pashtuns, adjacent to Injun country in Pak Balochistan... province, and the growing fear of districts falling to the Taliban, U.S Special Operations forces have secretly taken a more central role in the fighting in a bid to help drive out the holy warriors, reports the New York Times ...which still proudly displays Walter Duranty's Pulitzer prize....
It was reported that a Western diplomat said last week that the U.S special ops forces have in fact been involved in the fight for a few weeks -- despite the withdrawal of foreign combat troops by President Barack Obama teachable moment... at the end of last year. The New York Times reports that the extent of the American role has been kept largely secret, with senior Afghan officials in the area saying they are under orders not to divulge the level of cooperation, especially by Special Operations forces on the ground. The report states that the Pentagon is concerned that the involvement may suggest that the American combat role, which was supposed to have ended in December 2014, is still far beyond the official "train, advise and assist" mission. The elite ground units in Helmand include both Special Operations troops and the United States Air Force's Special Tactics Squadron, according to the Western diplomat, who spoke on condition of anonymity. The American intervention in Helmand comes amid reports of Taliban capturing more districts and Afghan cops being trapped and becoming more demoralized, read the report adding that if hard boyz are able to sweep away the tenuous government presence in district centers and the capital, Lashkar Gah, it would be a dire setback for the Afghan government, and would give the Taliban a strong foothold in southern Afghanistan. Asked whether American forces were taking a larger combat role in Helmand, a United States military front man, Col. Michael T. Lawhorn, would not reply directly. But he praised the Afghan forces' efforts so far. "There's little question that Helmand is a contested area," Lawhorn said. "But the Afghan National Security Forces have conducted no fewer than five major operations there to disrupt holy warrior and Taliban activities." Posted by: Fred 2015-12-15 |
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