After a five-day operation to take back the only remaining town in Afghanistan under the control of Taleban insurgents, the Afghan flag was flying today over Musa Qala.
British and US troops began the operation on Friday, before Afghan forces moved in and took the market town in Helmand province. It has been one of the biggest operations carried out by the fledgling Afghan National Army so far.[…]
Musa Qala was a crucial stronghold for the Taleban because of its importance in the opium and heroin trade. Helmand province reportedly supplies half of the world’s opium and around 90 per cent of the heroin on British streets.
Afghan soldiers searching the town after the operation came across several opium warehouses, including one containing up to £150 million worth of opium.
“This may be one of the biggest finds in Helmand so far,” said Lieutenant Dan Hopwood of the 2nd Battalion.
They also found back street bomb making factories, used to churn out roadside bombs for attacks on British soldiers.
Most of the town’s civilians had fled before the operation. Buildings were shuttered and the streets were deserted. But they are already starting to return. Mr Wafa said he and a delegation from the capital Kabul would travel to Musa Qala this Thursday to hand out 5,000 tonnes of aid, including wheat and blankets.
After the Taleban were pushed out of their Musa Qala stronghold, they turned their attention to the neighbouring Sangin district of Helmand province.
“The terrorists, after being defeated in Musa Qala, attempted to put pressure on Sangin district,” the Afghanistan defence ministry said in a statement today.
“During 48 hours of intense clashes around Sangin, over 50 terrorists have been killed.”
More here
h/t Maz2
Yay!!!
When shall we hear the good news from our MSM? We probably shall not unless there is a way to put a negative spin on it.
Our brave troops gave us once again something of which we can be proud. Bravo and may God bless them and their families and friends.
Well done NATO. It seems the retreat to the mountains was well watched, and reports have it, are being dealt with. 50 dead in the mountains. Sympathies to the family and friends of the British KIA and a salute to the man. Apparently he put off taking his leave to stay for the battle.
Godspeed young warriors. Keep your heads down and try and come home safe.
I thought the Taliban stopped opium production? They must have started it up because of Bush, right?
“The Economist assesses Afstan”
Also, not quite warm and fuzzy:
“Dutch pound Taliban positions” (with video of Aussies)
Then there’s this video of the type of rather large self-propelled gun the Dutch are using. Kaboom.
Mark
Ottawa
Well done boys (and girls).
“When shall we hear the good news from our MSM? We probably shall not unless there is a way to put a negative spin on it.”
Um, where exactly did you think Kate is quoting from Alain?
Oh, and there is this too, if you want: news.google.ca/news?hl=en&q=Musa+Qala&um=1&ie=UTF-8&sa=X&oi=news_result&resnum=1&ct=title
What’s that? about 800 articles only (as at 8:49PM EST)? Damn that MSM!!! When will they start really covering this story!!!!!
just checked CBCpravda, there is no mention of this , they are all off busy making up questions for the Mulroney inquiry.
if all the inquiry questions were in French it would make more sense. after all , all payments in Canaduh are made to french politicians. whether cash, golf course shares or kickbacks , they all end up in Quebec.
free the west!!!
More: …-
Shushing Victory In Afghanistan
By INVESTOR’S BUSINESS DAILY | Posted Thursday, December 13, 2007 4:20 PM PT
War On Terror: Coalition forces captured the Taliban’s biggest stronghold on Tuesday in a major military victory. Funny, isn’t it, how the good guys winning doesn’t make banner front-page headlines? […]
While it controlled the town, the Taliban engaged in the kinds of oppressive activities it’s become known for, such as extorting money from farmers and businesses to fund its violence.
The Associated Press quoted a telephone shop owner relating how they used mosque collections as a form of extortion. Trucks passing through Musa Qala were forced to pay $50, while poppy farmers had to hand over 10% of their profits, the businessman said.
Now local tribal leaders want troops to build on their gains and keep control of Musa Qala by patrolling the town’s neighboring areas. That, they say, will keep the Taliban from planting roadside bombs and launching other attacks from bases outside of the town.
But have we seen any “V-A Day” headlines, or anything approaching that? As Matt Sanchez reported for World Net Daily this week, “Members of the Taliban boasted of holding ground and occupying territory. They even invited the international press to come visit the town (Musa Qala) under Taliban control.”
A lot of the coverage — or absence of it when there’s good news — certainly seems to have the earmarks of a Taliban PR operation. In late October, for instance, CBS News’ “60 Minutes” went to Afghanistan and interviewed villagers who claimed that Russian soldiers during the Soviet invasion of the 1980s behaved much better than the Americans.
“More civilians are dying,” the report began. “The enemy has killed hundreds of civilians this year, but surprisingly, almost the same number of civilians have been killed by American and allied forces. With relatively few troops on the ground, the U.S. and NATO rely on air power, and civilian deaths from airstrikes have doubled. Now there’s concern that those deaths are undermining Afghans’ support for the war.”
“60 Minutes” anchor Scott Pelley ended the segment with the thought that U.S. strategy “doesn’t bode well for the future.”
Major media outlets are only too happy to report things falling apart in Afghanistan, while Democrats just complain that Osama bin Laden hasn’t been caught yet. This week we saw all the signs of a major victory in the global war on terror, and a victory for freedom for the Afghan people. That’s nothing to be quiet about. …-
cal2
I’m disappointed.
Sure Quebec is the centre for all of Canada’s crooked politicians, but it’s so much more than just that!
It’s also H.Q. for Canada’s mafia, and biker gangs.
Next time, let’s say “Oui”.
And now the Dutch are looking to pull out of that theatre just when things are going our way. We should ask the Dutch government what pure language they would be speaking today if Canadians had pulled out of the Netherlands during WW2. They need to keep their eye on the ball.
“over 50 terrorists have been killed”
Is Jack Layton is flying his Canuck flag at half-staff?
mhb23re
at gmail d0t calm
Those troops deserve recognition and appreciation for their brave efforts.
There is a campaign to help us get that message to them whenever we see them.
Please watch this short clip and learn how. It’s simple and effortless, but will mean everything to the men and women in uniform.
HERE
I noted, at the end of the linked article, that the FIRST priority of the reconstruction team is rebuilding the mosque…
No comment.
I now hear that Hundreds of taliban have been killed. What happened to their bold boasts that they had 2500 fighters ready to wipe out NATO troops? C’mon, taliban, trot them out! We need more target practice.
Funny, this is what CBC has to say:
“Canadian, British, American and Dutch troops make up the bulk of the NATO-led force in the dangerous Kandahar region, where Taliban fighters have re-established strongholds.”
Compare this against the paragraph in the posted story:
“After a five-day operation to take back the only remaining town in Afghanistan under the control of Taleban insurgents, the Afghan flag was flying today over Musa Qala.” and “Musa Qala was a crucial stronghold …”
So, which is it? Have they re-established strongholds or have all the towns under Taleban control been freed?
Exclusive: Eyewitness Account of Huge Taliban Defeat
By Stephen Grey […]
As the only journalist to join NATO forces entering the town, I found it a ghost town abandoned by both the Taliban and its residents at the end of an eight-day coalition operation. The offensive was one of NATO’s biggest in the country since Operation Anaconda in 2002.
Embedded with a team of British troops and a detachment/”A–team” of U.S. special forces, I watched the Taliban being pounded these last few days with overwhelming force — vapor trails circled in the clear blue sky over the Helmand desert as B1 and B52 bombers backed by A10 tank busters, F16s, Apache helicopters and Specter gunships were used to kill hundreds of Taliban fighters. …-
http://blogs.abcnews.com/theblotter/2007/12/exclusive-eyewi.html
An embed account over at ABC says “hundreds” killed.
http://blogs.abcnews.com/theblotter/2007/12/exclusive-eyewi.html
Ted’s professional disingenuousness serves him well..nice try Tedster but googling the US/UK Media for this Musa Qala victory is not really a refute of Kate’s main thrust that the Kanukistani partisan left media would rather chew their own testicles off than expand on the victories in Iraq and Afghanistan…and as much as I bitch about the $$$$ cost of these victories they are undeniable victories and substantive progress none the less.
I’ve yet to see this simple self evident sentiment expressed by any Canadian news outlet besides the Post or Peter Worthington. The rat pack MSM commentary still alludes to a “swamp” in the ME
I googled this latest Afghan victory with my Canada news source only filter and got only 5 entries of those only the post did in depth coverage and the rest republished the small AP blurb on the action and have NO commentary on it.
Like Kate I’m still waiting to see the Kanuki MSM catch up to the positive events in Afghanistan….and the Dips formulated a total party policy around Canadian/NATO/Afghan defeat and Taleban victory…heh ha ..they must actually believe what they read in the star/globe/CBC..they must BELIEVE the lib-left Kanuki media are telling the WHOLE story…suckers…big schwack of egg on Taleban Jack’s yapper today.
That photo makes it look like that one guy has the best hat ever.
Bravo !! Great Job — well done indeed !
Spent time serving with the airborne regiment,vandoos,rcr’s,still have friends there,and I can tell you that they are kicking ass.Oh yeah,the locals love them,you won’t hear that in the so called news.
the Kanukistani partisan left media would rather chew their own testicles off…
They have testicles?
********And now the Dutch are looking to pull out of that theatre just when things are going our way. We should ask the Dutch government what pure language they would be speaking today if Canadians had pulled out of the Netherlands during WW2. They need to keep their eye on the ball.*******
ahhh, they are unionized, and must follow UNION protocals:-))))))