British Draw U.S. Further into Afghanistan Trap

April 16, 2010 (LPAC)—In interviews on Wednesday, General Petraeus announced a major build-up for a Spring-Summer offensive by U.S. forces into Kandahar. However, the offensive has already begun, as was done previously in the case of Marja in Helmand province with the deployment of special-operations death squads to pave the way for the later deployment of larger forces.

According to the LA Times, the Pentagon has doubled anti-Taliban special forces deployed to hunt down Taliban leaders. These teams were used in eliminating mid-level Taliban leaders before the Feb. offensive in Marja. The forces have begun similar operations in nearby Kandahar province. The teams include the Army's Delta Force and the Navy's SEAL Team Six as well as troops temporarily assigned to the Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC), such as Army Ranger units. The size of the military's JSOC is a highly classified secret. Special operations forces, including the JSOC teams, account for half or more of the missions being carried out by military forces in Afghanistan.

Meanwhile, the Guardian makes clear what the British intention is, that is to draw the U.S. into a quagmire in which it will be trapped long after Obama's 18-month deadline on ending the surge of the extra troops to Afghanistan.

The Guardian questions to focus on Kandahar, pointing out: "For the British to go there it might be to invite the nightmare of their entanglement in Basra to recur, only 10 times worse."

The article ends with the following conclusion: "The huge extensions to the runways and barracks at Camp Leatherneck in Helmand and at the Kandahar air base suggest that his [Obama's] commanders seem to know something he may not: that they are going to be in Afghanistan for many years to come."

 

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