Afghanistan and the Resurgent Taliban (1/4/07)
It has now been more than five years since the U.S.-led invasion of Afghanistan and the overthrow of the Taliban, and much has been accomplished in that time. A new constitution was written and adopted, surprisingly high percentage of the people turned out for elections, and a democratically elected government was installed. There have been improvements in the construction of paved roads, in access to health care, in education, and in the status of women and girls.
Unfortunately, however, substantial problems remain. Control by President Hamid Karzai's government is tentative, at best, outside the capital, Kabul. The parliament is virtually dysfunctional, and numbers warlords and drug kingpins among its members. NATO forces, in their first deployment outside Europe, are having difficulty with the resurgent Taliban; insurgents take refuge across the border in Pakistan. Opium poppy cultivation has reached an all-time high, and the drug trade is on the increase. Security problems and lack of funds have slowed reconstruction efforts considerably. And the country's economy remains backward; Afghanistan is one of the world's poorest nations. There is concern that the country could collapse into chaos and become once again a "failed state."
All of these issues, Afghanistan's successes and its failures, will be the subject of this Thursday's IIF discussion. We will be privileged to have as our guest, to help guide our discussion, Dr. Rashid Naim from the Department of Political Science at Georgia State.
As usual, I am sending along some background information:
Here is an article from The Wall Street Journal that attempts to describe the good and the bad about Afghanistan's recent history:Hot off the presses, here is an article from the current issue of Foreign Affairs:Saving Afghanistan by Barnett R. RubinI thought these three items from the Council on Foreign Relations web site were all quite informative, and all contain links to additional articles:Here is a link to the executive summary of a report from the International Crisis Group, which contains a link to the full report:Also from the ICG, here is a report on the history of the conflict in AfghanistanHere are several reports on different aspects of the situation in Afghanistan from the Congressional Research Service:
From The Economist, here are two Backgrounders and a link to recent articles on Afghanistan:Finally, here is an op/ed piece by Max Boot that originally appeared in the Los Angeles Times, which accurately sums up concerns about the situation in Afghanistan:Get Serious About Afghanistan
So join us Thursday evening at Villa for the first IIF discussion of the new year. Afghanistan, I fear, will be appearing in the news more frequently in the coming months, and this is a good chance to get some good information on the conflict there. And come party with us on Saturday!
posted by IIF BlogMeister @ 7:36 AM
33 comments
33 Comments:
I have recently returned from a year in Afghanistan. Working within a Capacity Development Program, as Head of the Private Sector Development Team.
It is clear that education - skills training is only one of the keys to keeping the young men "and women" out the hands of the Taliban. This is about survival of the familes at the core-level and slow progess is being made.
It should also be stated that there are many, many young Afghans that want a new-life and are willing to work and fight for it. Private fee-based educational businesses are setting up in the major cities and many are at capacity. The young Afghans rise before light, go to these schools and then to work.
There are also private technical schools that provide technical training in basic construction skills, automotive and IT.
So, things are changing but the Taliban has a grip on the nation that will take many years of international support and education to change.
Many of the "good stories of change" miss the media. Sometimes to avoid the high-level exposure and the intervention of the Taliban and sometimes it is not as glossy as the bad news.
Over 500 military lives have been lost and many more civilains. There is a new focus within the Taliban's strategy and it includes attacks and kidnappings of AID working of all nationalities... striking at the core of the people dedicated to change.
My friends,
One of the key activities I was involved in Afghanistan was working with the PRT Team in the Kunar province to build and staff the first construction training center.
The following article was forward to me. It sends a message as to the shift in strategy of the Taliban and the pround men that protect the teams trying to bring change.
Subject: FW: 9 Funerals for 9 Warriors
Date: Mon, 18 Aug 2008 12:46:37 -0700
Guys,
The Platoon leader 1LT Jon Brostrom is the son on a good friend of 20
years. When Jon's father David retired, as a COL three years ago,
Boeing hired him and he took the office next to me. After a year he
took a job in our HI Boeing office. Jon's was the picture of an
Infantry Platoon leader, paratroopers, ranger, tall and ran like the wind. The unit would have been shipping home, back to Italy, in less than a month. If they had been green vs. been in country for over a year I think they may have all been lost. They did one hell of a job. All great troopers and warriors. God bless all the families.
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Dettmer-Parker, Trena M 1SG USA NORAD USNORTHCOM HQs J11
> Sent: Thursday, August 14, 2008 2:21 PM
> To: NORAD USNORTHCOM ARMY OFFICER - DL; NORAD USNORTHCOM ARMY ENLISTED
- DL
> Subject: 9 Funerals for 9 Warriors
>
> Classification: UNCLASSIFIED
>
> Team,
>
> I just received this and like it worthy of sharing. We all should be proud. > Maybe a little long, but well worth the read.
>
> Thank you for all you do.
> AIRBORNE!!!!
> 1SG
>
>
> Trena M. Parker
> Trena M. Dettmer-Parker, 1SG, USA
> NORAD and USNORTHCOM
> Army Element First Sergeant
> Comm: 719-554-9429 DSN: 692-9429
> Cell: 719-304-4451
> 250 Vandenberg St
> Suite B016
> Peterson AFB, CO 80914
>
> 'It's amazing what you can get done if you don't care who gets the credit.' > General Colin Powell
>
>>
> Subject: 9 Funerals for 9 Warriors
>
> The untold story that you did not see in the news about 9 brave
soldiers in Afghanistan. Most of you will identify since you have been there, the others will get a glimpse of why we will never forget!!
>
> And when the talk in your home, in the class room or in your own
private
> solitude turns to courage, valor and leadership after you read the
following
> your standards for those lofty terms may change. No study, no textbook
will
> ever be able to define or quantify why men exercise the extreme
courage that
> men such as these have done since our nation's birth Some modicum of
insight
> might be sensed by the words I have highlighted at the end. To those
who have
> forged those very special relationships with 'brothers' those are the
bonds
> that will drive warriors beyond medically defined limits of flesh and
extend
> such commitment that all who see stand in jealous amazement and dip
their
> colors to the valor of which elite unit legends are continued: without
need
> for embellishment.
>
>
> 9 Funerals for 9 Warriors
>
> I'm sure you heard about 9 soldiers being killed in Afghanistan a
couple of
> weeks ago. As AP reported it , it was a 'setback', the 'newly
established
> base' there was 'abandoned' by the Americans. That, of course, was the
extent
> of their coverage.
>
> Steve Mraz of Stars and Stripes and Jeff Emanuel tell the rest of the
> story. Emanuel, who went out and dug into the story sets the enemy
force at
> 500 while AP sets it at 200. Frankly I'm much more inclined to believe
> Emanuel than AP.
>
> July 13, 2008 was the date, and Jeff Emanuel, an independent combat
> reporter sets the scene:
>
> Three days before the attack, 45 U.S. paratroopers from the 173d
Airborne
> [Brigade Combat Team], accompanied by 25 Afghan soldiers, made their
way to
> Kunar province, a remote area in the northeastern Afghanistan-Pakistan
border
> area, and established the beginnings of a small Combat Outpost (COP).
> Their movement into the area was noticed, and their tiny numbers and
> incomplete fortifications were quickly taken advantage of.
>
> A combined force of up to 500 Taliban and al Qaeda fighters quickly
moved
> into the nearby village of Wanat and prepared for their assault by
evicting
> unallied residents and according to an anonymous senior Afghan defense
> ministry official, 'us[ing] their houses to attack us.'
>
> Tribesmen in the town stayed behind 'and helped the insurgents during
the
> fight,' the provincial police chief, told The Associated Press. Dug-in
mortar
> firing positions were created, and with that indirect fire, as well as
heavy
> machine gun and RPG fire from fixed positions, Taliban and al Qaeda
fighters
> rushed the COP from three sides.
>
> As Emanuel notes, the odds were set. 500 vs. 70. Even so, Emanuel
entitled
> his article, 'An Alamo With a Different Ending.' The 500 terrorists
> apparently didn't realize they were attacking US Army paratroopers.
>
> The unit in question was 2nd Platoon, Company C, 2nd Battalion, 503rd
> Infantry Regiment (Airborne), 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team, led
by 1LT
> Jonathan Brostrom.
>
> The first RPG and machine gun fire came at dawn, strategically
striking the
> forward operating base's mortar pit. The insurgents next sighted their
RPGs
> on the tow truck inside the combat outpost, taking it out. That was
around
> 4:30 a.m.
>
> This was not a haphazard attack. The reportedly 500 insurgents fought
from
> several positions. They aimed to overrun the new base. The U.S.
soldiers knew
> it and fought like hell. They knew their lives were on the line.
>
> The next target was the FOB's observation post, where nine soldiers
were
> positioned on a tiny hill about 50 to 75 meters from the base. Of
those nine,
> five died, and at least three others -- Spc. Tyler Stafford among them
> -- were wounded.
>
> When the attack began, Stafford grabbed his M-240 machine gun off a
> north-facing sandbag wall and moved it to an east-facing sandbag wall.
> Moments later, RPGs struck the north-facing wall, knocking Stafford
out of
> the fighting position and wounding another soldier.
>
> Stafford thought he was on fire so he rolled around, regaining his
senses.
> Nearby, Cpl. Gunnar Zwilling, who later died in the fight, had a
stunned look
> on his face.
>
> Immediately, a grenade exploded by Stafford, blowing him down to a
lower
> terrace at the observation post and knocking his helmet off. Stafford
put his
> helmet back on and noticed how badly he was bleeding.
>
> Cpl. Matthew Phillips was close by, so Stafford called to him for
help.
> Phillips was preparing to throw a grenade and shot a look at Stafford
that
> said, 'Give me a second. I gotta go kill these guys first.'
>
> This was only about 30 to 60 seconds into the attack.
>
> Kneeling behind a sandbag wall, Phillips pulled the grenade pin, but
just
> after he threw it an RPG exploded at his position. The tail of the RPG
> smacked Stafford's helmet. The dust cleared. Phillips was slumped
over, his
> chest on his knees and his hands by his side. Stafford called out to
his
> buddy three or four times, but Phillips never answered or moved.
>
> 'When I saw Phillips die, I looked down and was bleeding pretty good,
> that's probably the most scared I was at any point,' Stafford said.
'Then I
> kinda had to calm myself down and be like, 'All right, I gotta go try
to do
> my job.' '
>
> The soldier from Parker, Colo., loaded his 9 mm handgun, crawled up to
> their fighting position, stuck the pistol over the sandbags and fired.
>
> Stafford saw Zwilling's M-4 rifle nearby so he loaded it, put it on
top of
> the sandbag and fired. Another couple RPGs struck the sandbag wall
Stafford
> used as cover. Shrapnel pierced his hands.
>
> Stafford low-crawled to another fighting position where Cpl. Jason
Bogar,
> Sgt. Matthew Gobble and Sgt. Ryan Pitts were located. Stafford told
Pitts
> that the insurgents were within grenade-tossing range. That got Pitts'
> attention.
>
> With blood running down his face, Pitts threw a grenade and then
crawled to
> the position from where Stafford had just come. Pitts started chucking
more
> grenades.
>
> The firefight intensified. Bullets cut down tree limbs that fell on
the
> soldiers. RPGs constantly exploded.
>
> Back at Stafford's position, so many bullets were coming in that the
> soldiers could not poke their heads over their sandbag wall. Bogar
stuck an
> M-249 machine gun above the wall and squeezed off rounds to keep fire
on the
> insurgents. In about five minutes, Bogar fired about 600 rounds,
causing the
> M-249 to seize up from heat.
>
> At another spot on the observation post, Cpl. Jonathan Ayers laid down
> continuous fire from an M-240 machine gun, despite drawing small-arms
and RPG
> fire from the enemy. Ayers kept firing until he was shot and killed
Cpl.
> Pruitt Rainey radioed the FOB with a casualty report, calling for
help. Of
> the nine soldiers at the observation post, Ayers and Phillips were
dead,
> Zwilling was unaccounted for, and three were wounded. Additionally,
several
> of the soldiers' machine guns couldn't fire because of damage. And
they
> needed more ammo.
>
> Rainey, Bogar and another soldier jumped out of their fighting
position
> with the third soldier of the group launching a shoulder-fired
missile.
>
> All this happened within the first 20 minutes of the fight.
>
> Platoon leader 1st Lt. Jonathan Brostrom and Cpl. Jason Hovater
arrived at
> the observation post to reinforce the soldiers. By that time, the
insurgents
> had breached the perimeter of the observation post. Gunfire rang out,
and
> Rainey shouted, 'He's right behind the sandbag.' Brostrom could be
heard
> shouting about the insurgent as well.
>
> More gunfire and grenade explosions ensued. Back in the fighting
position,
> Gobble fired a few quick rounds. Gobble then looked to where the
soldiers
> were fighting and told Stafford the soldiers were dead. Of the nine
soldiers
> who died in the battle, at least seven fell in fighting at the
observation
> post.
>
> The insurgents then started chucking rocks at Gobble and Stafford's
> fighting position, hoping that the soldiers might think the rocks were
> grenades, causing them to jump from the safety of their fighting hole.
One
> rock hit a tree behind Stafford and landed directly between his legs.
He
> braced himself for an explosion. He then realized it was a rock.
>
> Stafford didn't have a weapon, and Gobble was low on ammo.
>
> Gobble told Stafford they had to get back to the FOB They didn't
> realize that Pitts was still alive in another fighting position at
> the observation post. Gobble and Stafford crawled out of their
> fighting hole. Gobble looked again to where the soldiers had been
> fighting and reconfirmed to Stafford that Brostrom, Rainey, Bogar
> and others were dead
>
> Gobble and Stafford low-crawled and ran back to the FOB. Coming into
the
> FOB, Stafford was asked by a sergeant what was going on at the
observation
> post. Stafford told him all the soldiers there were dead. Stafford lay
> against a wall, and his fellow soldiers put a tourniquet on him.
>
> From the OP, Pitts got on the radio and told his comrades he was
alone.
> Volunteers were asked for to go to the OP.
>
> SSG Jesse Queck sums up the reaction to the call: 'When you ask for
> volunteers to run across an open field to a reinforced OP that almost
> everybody is injured at, and everybody volunteers, it feels good.
There were
> a lot of guys that made me proud, putting themselves and their lives
on the
> line so their buddies could have a chance.'
>
> At least three soldiers went to the OP to rescue Pitts, but they
suffered
> wounds after encountering RPG and small-arms fire, but Pitts survived
the
> battle.
>
> At that time, air support arrived in the form of Apache helicopters,
A-10s
> and F-16s, performing bombing and strafing runs.
>
> The whole FOB was covered in dust and smoke, looking like something
out of
> an old Western movie.
>
> 'I've never seen the enemy do anything like that,' said Sgt. Jacob
Walker,
> who was medically evacuated off the FOB in one of the first
helicopters to
> arrive. 'It's usually three RPGs, some sporadic fire and then they're
gone
> .... I don't where they got all those RPGs. That was crazy.'
>
> Two hours after the first shots were fired, Stafford made his way --
with
> help -- to the medevac helicopter that arrived.
>
> 'It was some of the bravest stuff I've ever seen in my life, and I
will
> never see it again because those guys,' Stafford said, then paused.
'Normal
> humans wouldn't do that. You're not supposed to do that -- getting up
and
> firing back when everything around you is popping and whizzing and
trees,
> branches coming down and sandbags exploding and RPGs coming in over
your head
> ... It was a fistfight then, and those guys held ' em off.'
>
> Stafford offered a guess as to why his fellow soldiers fought so hard.
>
> 'Just hardcoreness I guess,' he said. 'Just guys kicking ass,
basically.
> Just making sure that we look scary enough that you don't want to come
in and
> try to get us.'
>
> Jeff Emanuel summed the fight up very well:
>
> 'Perhaps the most important takeaway from that encounter, though, is
the
> one that the mainstream media couldn't be bothered to pay attention
long
> enough to learn: that, not for the first time, a contingent of
American
> soldiers that was outnumbered by up to a twenty-to-one ratio soundly
and
> completely repulsed a complex, pre-planned assault by those dedicated
enough
> to their cause to kill themselves in its pursuit.
>
> That kind of heroism and against-all-odds success is and has been a
> hallmark of America's fighting men and women, and it is one that is
worthy of
> all attention we can possibly give it.'
>
> Of the original 45 paratroopers, 15 were wounded and The Sky Soldiers
lost
> 9 killed in action in the attack. They were :
>
> 1LT Jonathan Brostrom of Aiea, Hawaii SGT Israel Garcia of Long
> Beach, California SPC Matthew Phillips of Jasper, Georgia SPC Pruitt
> Rainey of Haw River, North Carolina SPC Jonathan Ayers of
> Snellville, Georgia SPC Jason Bogar of Seattle, Washington SPC
> Sergio Abad of Morganfield, Kentucky SPC Jason Hovater of Clinton,
> Tennessee SPC Gunnar Zwilling of Florissant, Missouri
>
> Of the 9 that were lost, Sgt Walker says:
>
> ' I just hope these guys' wives and their children understand how
> courageous their husbands and dads were. They fought like warriors.'
>
> They fought like warriors.
>
> Last week, there were 9 funerals in the United States. 9 warriors were
laid
> to rest. 9 warriors who had given their all for their country. All
proud
> members of a brotherhood that will carry on in their name. They fought
and
> died in what most would consider impossible circumstances, and yet
they
> succeeded. A nameless fight in a distant war which, until you
understand the
> facts, could be spun as a defeat. It wasn't. And it is because of the
pride,
> courage and fighting spirit of this small unit that it was, in fact, a
> victory against overwhelming odds. And there's little doubt, given
that pride
> and given that fighting spirit, that they'll be back to reestablish
the base,
> this time with quite a few more soldiers just like the ones who
'kicked ass'
> the last time there.
>
> Dave Laughlin
> Site Chief
> MPRI SIF Team DTC
> Al Asad
> APO, AE 09333
>
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