KANDAHAR, Afghanistan - Taliban rebels launched a large-scale attack on a coalition military base Wednesday in southern Afghanistan, killing an American and a Canadian soldier but losing 32 of their own in a fierce American-led retaliation. The fighting was the deadliest in months and reflected a growing intensity of militant attacks after the Taliban warned of a renewed offensive this year, more than four years after the hard-line militia was ousted by U.S.-led airstrikes. More than 3,000 British troops are readying to take control of the volatile area."Over the last five or six weeks there have been various proven attacks mainly at night by the Taliban on that base, but I think it is fair to say this is the largest we have seen thus far," British spokesman Col. Chris Vernon told reporters in Kandahar.
The battle was sparked late Tuesday when Taliban insurgents ambushed an Afghan supply convoy as it returned to the remote forward operating base, killing eight Afghan soldiers, Vernon said.
U.S. and British warplanes and helicopters were called in to provide close air support and a Canadian quick reaction force was sent from Kandahar to the base, where a small contingent of American and Canadian soldiers are based alongside Afghan troops in the Sangin district of the southern Helmand province.
Oh, nooooo -- the dreaded Taliban perennial "Spring Offensive" has begun!
Somehow I doubt that the Coalition forces are shaking in their boots.
The truth is, the Taliban and Al-Qaeda have got one trick in their arsenal, and that's using suicide bombers and IEDs to create havoc. Considering that they mainly manage to blow up civilians, it's probably not that productive in the long run, either.
If the Taliban want to show their prowess as soldiers, I'm sure our guys will be delighted to oblige them.
These people fight like morons. One of the big problems U.S. Special Forces had in the early days of the Afghan War when they were directing the air campaign and liaising with the Northern Alliance was in convincing their erstwhile allies that it wasn't "unmanly" to fire from a prone position and to take advantage of cover; this contrasted from the more typical Afghan tactic of shouting Allahu Akbar! (or its local equivalent) while dancing around in the open and wildly firing their AK-47s from the hip.
Though such romantic flourishes might have had some psychological value while fighting against other morons, it doesn't work too well against professional Western armies, who have a phrase for it: Target practice.
Only a 16:1 kill ratio? They must have been brushing up on their trick shots. No doubt their commanders will be having a word with them.
* Note: The Hindu Kush is in fact several hundred miles to the north and east of where this battle took place. I had an alternate title -- "Kicking Ass In The Khyber Pass"; but alas, the Khyber Pass is the major route through the Hindu Kush, so that was kind of off the mark, too. Plus, I would never be so vulgar.