Contact - Afghanistan

[Tab]

Paras strike deep into the Taliban heartland
By Thomas Harding in Kabul
(Filed: 19/06/2006)



British forces have scored dramatic successes against the Taliban during a lightning push deep into the lawless regions of southern Afghanistan, senior commanders revealed yesterday.

The scale and effect of the operation had not previously emerged but the British force in southern Afghanistan has advanced 75 miles into the insurgents' stronghold leaving dozens of Taliban dead.


Members of 3 Bn the Parachute Regiment prepare a vehicle patrol in Goreskh, Helmand province

Despite suffering one dead and two seriously wounded last week, Operation Mountain Thrust has forced the insurgents out of villages and recovered areas not held by security forces for 30 years.

The full range of military hardware has been used against the Islamist guerrillas, including artillery from 7 Parachute Regiment and the Royal Horse Artillery and four attacks mounted by Apache helicopters using machineguns, missiles and rockets.

In one engagement troops pinned down by heavy gunfire called in artillery for the first time since the 2003 invasion of Iraq.

The extent of the battle was illustrated yesterday when the military reported killing six Taliban fighters who had been firing mortars at a police station from the Kajaki dam in northern Helmand. After observing the gun crew for several days, the Paras obliterated their position in a matter of seconds with their own mortars late on Saturday night.

Led by troops from 3 Bn the Parachute Regiment, the operation has pushed into villages up to 75 miles north of the British base at Camp Bastion and has killed up to 40 Taliban fighters.


Brig Butler: battle against the Taliban is ‘winnable’
Platoon houses, containing about 30 Paras, have been set up in at least five villages with troops driving out the Taliban and preventing them from returning.

While British commanders are reluctant to trumpet the early success of the mission, one senior officer said the Para battlegroup had been doing a "cracking job".

Brig Ed Butler, commander of the 3,300-strong 16 Air Assault Brigade, which has been leading the attacks, said there had been successes "from a security and tactical point of view".

"We very much have a window of opportunity which is emerging now. We are not just sitting in our bases," he said. "We are getting out and about and we are engaging with the locals." The battle against the Taliban was "winnable" although that would not necessarily be this year.

"The key thing to me is that as long as we have the popular support back home for this operation we can do it. If we lose the support back home and it becomes another Iraq then that will make our job as soldiers that much harder."

The British hope to drive out the Taliban from Helmand province by the end of the summer, paving the way for reconstruction teams to enter previously no-go zones. It is then hoped that they will be able to turn farmers away from growing opium, construct roads, windmills and wells and restore the rule of law.

Brig Butler said that the Taliban had not launched an offensive in the spring and with summer progressing there was still no suggestion of a "massing" of insurgents.

"They have got fewer and fewer places to go and hide," he added.

Taliban strength in the area has been estimated at more than 1,000. Some leadership is provided by mullahs hiding in mountains bordering Pakistan. British commanders described the terrorists as reasonably well armed, organised and motivated. They are also said to be equipped for suicide attacks or roadside bombs.

Brig Nick Pope, commander of 1 Signal Brigade based in Kabul, who had just returned from visiting troops in Helmand, said soldiers had advanced into the insurgents' "back yard".

"We have put the terrorists on the back foot and seized the initiative," he said.

[Whitey]

Well Wholley it is too bad when men become so intimidated by fabian socialists and pacified with mediocre free healthcare and enough dole dosh to stay drunk that they swallow whatever liberal left wing communist B/S their government sells them and lose their nation in the end. The answer for all our nations problems and others is NATIONALISM! Malcome X said it and I'll repeat it.

I shrugged off the white guilt my second year in college, I learned that I could become more intelligent than the commies intended.

Head dress?, I have no problem with it as long as they have no problem with me going to their country wearing blue jeans, drinking beer and wearing a cruxifix or a Star of David. See how that shit works? Ohhhh, but they can have nationalism.

Welcome to the police state, global police state.

We Americans have revolutionary blood. My family goes back to 1630 America. Yeah we sided with you redcoats and then fought against you and even our own governement. Free people do shit like that, kept citizens don't. Anyway a revolutionary once said "If ye love wealth better than liberty, the tranquillity of servitude better than the animating contest of freedom, go home from us in peace. We ask not your counsels or arms. Crouch down and lick the hands which feed you. May your chains set lightly upon you, and may posterity forget ye were our countrymen. Samuel Adams I'm glad we made the split and glad Wholley and Frank who both hate the chains broke loose and came over.

God save the Queen, because you wouldn't be allowed to if you even wanted to.

[Whitey]

BTW Wholley you sound tired and haggard, WTF? Where is the fire? You aren't tired and haggard, you are a f@#k Lion!!!! ROOOOAAAAAAAARRRRRRHHHH!!!!!!!

Stiff upper lip or whatever, come on man, get pissed off, get hard. You look like Robert E Lee, act like it, well before Gettysburg.

Frank, wtf chuck?

Harry, you there? You miss me? Want to come Elk hunting this winter?

Artist, seriously, we have beer in the USA, come on.

Sticky!!!!!!!

Where is Lew's butcher ass?

Tab, Tab, Tab!!!!!!

[Brian-]

Lew vanished without a trace. Hasn't posted since December.

[JoJo82]

Whitey, is it safe to say I am slightly worried about your mental state?

We can go over to an Arab state and wear what we like, Christianity is not a dead religion over there and it is part of their history too. However, come Ramadan you would have to abide by their laws. No eating/drinking/smoking in c@#t after sunset and efore sunrise, this is respect for the culture, breaking this could set you back a little time in their police cells.

Guns etc, there is a good enough reason as to why the UK has gun laws and restrictions. Ever heard the saying ' its not guns who kill people, its people who kill people'? Give a weapon to a halfwit who thinks they have a right, your only see the bad. And too be honest there is enough illegal crap going on that it would over do the legal side.

Right, am I still tired or did that make sense?

[Whitey]

Well I read what you say Jojo88? But if I had to paraphrase it and then pass judgement on it I'd have to say I am reading a diatribe that reflects the creed of a slave.

I'm sorry you are afraid of people with guns. Over here most of us aren't and those who misuse them are quickly put into the dirt by guys like Wholley or armed citizens. 290 million people shootings everyday and you know what? I don't know a God Damned one of them or someone who does.

Yeah,,,, last time I was in haji land it was no jeans. Wear a star of David and your ass was grass. I was accused of being an Israeli for taking a piss and having a circumsised dick. They take their anti-semitism more serious than the KKK.

Also Christianity might be their history, but Christianity still isn't Muslim and in their countries they aren't whistling Dixie and fangerin the fiddle about us infidels as I remember walking in their high cotton. Or did I miss something between my time there and the last beheading?

You said it yourself, be out of the norm at Ramadan and you are done. When is the last time we killed Muslims for being Muslims on Christmas?

So do you want the blue pill or the red pill. If you chose to wake up all I can do is promise you reality.

My sanity is intact, Frank can vouch for that.

Lew, damn. I missed him. Did he ever become a RM?
Oh well Ashes to Ashes, funky to funky, we all know major tom is a junkie.

[Boxingmad]

So..the Paras in Afghanistan, doing well, aren't they?

[JoJo82]

So..the Paras in Afghanistan, doing well, aren't they?

Heard that they are being kept busy, no rest for the wicked!

Whitey, you may have misread what I said but please don't take it to heart. You see the Arab lands, eygptm greece, cyprus etc all still hold and old day look on their culture and are proud that they still keep a good up keep with this. This is something that the UK and even the US are slowly forgetting about their land. You also need to keep in mind that you either chose or forced your presence into that country, therefore we have no right to argue what their practises are gaining a religous state.

I hate guns, best mate was shot in the head standing next to me for being coloured when I was 12.

As for the paras, heard they are doing a very good job out in the hot lands. Hope they come home safely!

[Whitey]

You also need to keep in mind that you either chose or forced your presence into that country, therefore we have no right to argue what their practises are gaining a religous state.

Like our illegal aliens, for instance the arab highjackers?
When I went I was a guest, legal entry.
Don't try it and I call bullshit on your gun story, too fabian. Every chick in the US has an abuse story, alll of you have a hate guns story wrapped in sorrow.

[harry hackedoff]

White boy, I love it when you post here
Have you been binned from sensible bastard.com, again
Jo, please wind your head in. Whitey makes far more sense than you ever did.
Over to you D,
Harry slips off his flip flops and sucks on another tinnie

[harry hackedoff]

Good to see you back Don don`t be put off by the stereotypes
We ain`t all like that, from around heah, you heah?

[Whitey]

Bert, I always look forward to your posts. I live at SFTT you know, but I'm from here

I need a break I guess, so I'll pull up a chair here.

Jojo, get ready to get schooled. Wholley, lay off the back pain meds, you're depressing

What is the price of membership here now?

[Whitey]

Making contact in Afgahnistan. Making contact? What did they call the god damned Jawa's up and ask them for some sweet tea, hukkah pipe and some homosexual relations? Contact? Don't soldiers just ever ambush and kill anyone anymore?

We had two good kids today, really good kids actually mutilated while still alive by your sacred brown people there . Poor kids, tied up, disimboweled and then beheaded. There is no reason for soldiers uniformed or not to do such things to other soldiers.

That is okay though, Ramadi is about to pay the price Fallujah paid for that.

They could have just requested a prisoner exchange or something, they didn't have to kill two low ranking kids who knew nothing and had done nothing. It is time to show Iraq the bayonet and let them smell American powder and feel unmittigated American steel.

[Greenronnie]

A contact with the enemy is what professional soldiers call it, not your gung-ho 'kill em all' statements. And Iraq has felt plenty of US steel and gunpowder.

[JoJo82]

Making contact in Afgahnistan. Making contact? What did they call the god damned Jawa's up and ask them for some sweet tea, hukkah pipe and some homosexual relations? Contact? Don't soldiers just ever ambush and kill anyone anymore?

We had two good kids today, really good kids actually mutilated while still alive by your sacred brown people there . Poor kids, tied up, disimboweled and then beheaded. There is no reason for soldiers uniformed or not to do such things to other soldiers.

That is okay though, Ramadi is about to pay the price Fallujah paid for that.

They could have just requested a prisoner exchange or something, they didn't have to kill two low ranking kids who knew nothing and had done nothing. It is time to show Iraq the bayonet and let them smell American powder and feel unmittigated American steel.

See, you are all gun happy! That is never a way to approach a situation. Watching Band of Brothers doesn't give you free passage to open fire to gain satisfaction, does it?

I don't agree with what is being done out there, like alot of others, however not every one is the enemy. There are alot of civilians out there who have had their lifes destroyed by a war mongor, a guy with no sense of portraying kindness to the people who need it.

Punishment and justification will come to those who have done wrong in no time.

Maybe, whitey, you should rethink how you are going to word a reply without sounding arrogant.

Sorry Harry, I'll shut up now!