Operation Mushtarak
U.S. Marines of 1st Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment, near Marjah, Afghanistan, four days before Operation Mushtarak begins.
| date | February 13, 2010 to December 7, 2010 |
|---|---|
| place | Afghanistan , Helmand |
| output | Victory of the ISAF troops |
| Parties to the conflict | |
|---|---|
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| Commander | |
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Commander Qari Fasluddin |
| Troop strength | |
| 12,500 ISAF soldiers 2,500 Afghan soldiers |
approx. 25,000–36,000 fighters |
| losses | |
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presumably more than 120 dead |
| approx. 28 civilians killed and 70 wounded (according to the Afghan Independent Human Rights Commission ) | |
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Operation Mushtarak ( Persian مشترک, German: "together", English spelling: Moshtarak ) was a major offensive of the ISAF under NATO leadership in the war in Afghanistan since 2001 . The operation, led by the United States Army and the United States Marine Corps, began February 13, 2010 and ended December 7, 2010. It was the Alliance's largest operation since Operation Achilles in 2007.
With ground troops, tanks and helicopter gunships 12,500 man of NATO troops and 2,500 have Afghan soldiers the Taliban -Hochburg Marjah in the province of Helmand surrounded and attacked. The contested area of Helmand is one of the largest growing areas in the world for opium poppies , from which opium is extracted. The civilian population had been warned of the attack with leaflets for days. In view of the long-awaited offensive, thousands of civilians had fled the region in the past few days. It was the largest offensive to date against the radical Islamic fighters in Afghanistan since the start of the Afghanistan mission in 2001. Operation Mushtarak was aimed at breaking the power of the Taliban in the south of the country.
In this mission participated US (4,800 troops, including 4,500 marines of the United States Marine Corps ), British (1,200 soldiers), French , Canadian , Danish , Estonian and Afghan soldiers (2,500 soldiers).
In the months that followed, up to July 2010, the US-led troops managed to take up a position in Marjah, but did not completely drive the Taliban out of the area. In September 2010, the British ISAF Vice-Commander, Lieutenant General Nick Parker, stated that the commanders were overly optimistic about Marjah and that the Afghan government institutions were only now beginning to function.
On October 6, 2010, the village of Tarok Kolache was completely destroyed in the course of the fighting . Destruction on this scale by area bombing last occurred in the Vietnam War .
On December 7th, the operation was declared successful.
Michael Clarke, director of the British think tank RUSI , described the military campaign as "the most important operation since the invasion (by Western forces in Afghanistan) in 2001".
Web links
Wikinews: Operation "Mushtarak": 15,000 soldiers deployed in a major offensive in Afghanistan - news- Spiegelonline.de - NATO launches major offensive against Taliban
- Hamburger Abendblatt.de - “Muschtarak” started - Biggest offensive against Taliban is underway
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b Six NATO soldiers die in the offensive against the Taliban. (Spiegel Online) Spiegelverlag, February 19, 2010, accessed on February 20, 2010 : "The ISAF estimates the number of insurgents at 25,000 to 36,000 fighters."
- ↑ NATO missiles kill twelve civilians. (Zeit Online) Zeitverlag, February 14, 2010, accessed on February 14, 2010 .
- ↑ NATO troops kill civilians again. (Zeit Online) Zeitverlag, February 15, 2010, accessed on February 16, 2010 .
- ↑ Isaf kills civilians again in Afghanistan. (Zeit Online) Zeitverlag, February 15, 2010, accessed on February 16, 2010 .
- ↑ Morning Star: Taliban controlling Marjah by night ( memento of the original from June 26, 2010 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Stern: The Karzai's new clothes
- ↑ taz: Hopeless in Kandahar
- ↑ The State: Outgoing NATO deputy rues early optimism on Marjah ( page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Clarke, Michael: What Will Success Look Like in Operation Moshtarak? ( Memento of the original from June 1, 2010 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , February 2010. Accessed May 11, 2010.
