Canadian operations at Kandahar/US Marines at Helmand (Update with video)

An interesting article by Matthew Fisher of Canwest News that highlights new Canadian strategy and tactics:

Canadians pick up pace to keep Taliban off-stride

Canadian troops have moved into several villages to the southwest of Kandahar City in the past few days to live among the population and be much closer to the heart of the Taliban insurgency.

The move to have troops dwell in small communities, such as Zhalakhan and Baladay, coincides with orders by U.S. Army General Stanley McChrystal, the new commander of all NATO forces in Afghanistan appointed by President Barack Obama, to focus on populated areas in order to separate the Taliban from the people.

The four-star general's directive to "clear, hold and build" fits with training that the Quebec-based Royal 22nd Regiment Battle Group did in Canada before deploying to Afghanistan this spring.

"The population is the key," said Maj. Stephane Briand, the battle group's chief of operations. "We go into hot spots to render the enemy uncomfortable. When we hold that terrain they must move somewhere else."

The strategy had already reaped some benefits, according to Capt. William Girard, the Van Doos' plans officer.

"When we live with villagers we gain their confidence," he said. "They come, for example, and tell us if the insurgents had come to them in the night."

The latest initiatives in the volatile Zhari District, including an operation that ended Sunday that involved more than 500 Afghan and Canadian forces [emphasis added], are part of a fast operational pace on which Canada's Brig.-Gen. Jon Vance has had the Van Doos and his other troops since before the onset of the searing Afghan summer several months ago. Among items seized from the Taliban in the past few days are suicide vests, material for making bombs and what was described as "a high-quality communications system."

In all, there have been 38 Task Force Kandahar-directed major operations since early this year [emphasis added]. The Van Doos and such other troops as combat engineers, artillery gunners and a reconnaissance squadron from Quebec, as well as tanks from Alberta, have launched two dozen operations involving 100 or more soldiers at a time, as well as more than 50 smaller operations.

"We started very early with a high tempo of large operations to try to knock the insurgency off its game as it tried to transition into what we call the fighting season," Vance said. "We selected large operations because we wish to ensure that the insurgents would flee and required sufficient forces to deal with that . . .

"The nature of the insurgency now is such that it (is) in positions quite close to population centres or in them and we need to work quickly to the get them out and relieve the population."

Vance's chief of operations, Lt.-Col. Mike Patrick, said that troops who once "chased the Taliban," are now more focused on defending the population. This requires operations where the Canadians "have to be more of a driver" than the enemy is.

With the Van Doos swarming parts of Zhari the Taliban "probably is not thinking it is such a good area to be set up in," the colonel said.

"We have had one operation after another because we need to move constantly to force the enemy," Girard said. "If reports indicate that we have affected their leadership, we need to exploit that before the leaders are replaced."

Several new wrinkles in the military situation in Kandahar had permitted the Van Doos to be more uptempo than the six Canadian battle groups which preceded them. Forward operation bases are now guarded by private security contractors, a U.S. infantry battalion is now working alongside the Van Doos [has been since August 2008, see Update here] and the arrival of Canadian helicopters early in the year makes it easier to move troops and supplies around.

These changes have allowed the Van Doos to operate company-sized missions with 120 or 130 men, rather than half that number as had often been the case previously [emphasis added--Update thought: I wonder if this restructuring of the battalion to have one more company is relevant].

"General Vance told us in Wainwright, (Alta.) that he did not want our soldiers in the FOBs (forward operating bases)," Briand said. "He wanted us all to be outside and that is how our companies live now."..

A Globe and Mail story focuses on the Afghan National Police:

Afghan police find weapons cache



Corporal Steven Kuzevski, a Canadian Forces MP, trains Afghan National Police officers on the firing range. Handling weapons is just one of the course being offered by Canadian military and civilian police to their Afghan counterparts, who will be on the frontline guarding polling stations when Afghans vote in presidential and provincial council elections.
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Dene Moore

There was nothing especially remarkable about the weapons cache – a suicide vest, some walkie-talkies, medical kits and the makings of explosives. What was extraordinary, at least to Canadian Forces Captain Alain Aubé, who was speaking to reporters during a briefing here, was who found it: The Afghan National Police.

“This is very significant for them,” Capt. Aubé said Tuesday, referring to the discovery by Afghan officers during Operation Constrictor, a four-day sweep of a violent cluster of villages in the Panjwai district, just west of Kandahar City.

As Afghanistan girds for elections on Aug. 20, the briefing underscored broader efforts to bolster confidence in the Afghan forces, notoriously corrupt and ineffective, that are responsible for securing polling stations across the country.

In some ways, the Afghan Police have come to represent NATO's greatest ambitions and frustrations in Afghanistan, particularly in the south, where the insurgency rages.

Here, Canadian soldiers have taken the lead in training Afghan forces to assume eventual control over their own security through mentoring and running joint patrols.

The upcoming elections will be their first major test and the stakes are high with an upsurge of violence, particularly in the south, despite an influx of U.S. troops.

On the ground, Canadian soldiers are keenly aware of the limitations of the Afghan counterparts, and will often voice their frustrations over the incompetence of those they train.

“When it's basic soldiering they are pretty good, but when we go to a higher level, it's more complicated,” Capt. Aubé said.

Operation Constrictor ranks as one of the largest operations involving Canadian forces so far this year, and was aimed at flushing the Taliban from a key district, south of Kandahar.

That region has been the focus of similar missions in recent months, reflecting a broader strategy of returning to Taliban strongholds again and again, in an effort to drive insurgents out for good...

This time, Afghan forces were given a more prominent role. Operation Constrictor was carried out in phases, with Canadian soldiers accompanying Afghan forces into position.

The Canadians then withdrew, leaving the Afghans to sweep through several villages alone, without any supervision [emphasis added].

“This was a good operation. It was all planned by them ... The whole thing was executed by them,” Capt. Aubé said.

“So contrary to some of the stuff that's out there, this is a visible sign of the improvement that's taken place,” he said.

Afghan forces were tipped off to the cache while interrogating a detainee, who led them to the weapons...

Col. Patrick predicted greater Afghan involvement would help neutralize opposition to Canada's presence in Afghanistan.

“Eventually we're going to go back [to former Taliban strongholds] and we're going to present ourselves in an non-threatening posture and drive through town and talk to people as opposed to looking for the Taliban,” he said.

“Hopefully, we won't find any Taliban because they've given up and left.”

But not, I would imagine, by 2011. More on mentoring in the field (aka combat) from BruceR.

The US Marine operation:

Marines assault Taliban town in Afghanistan

DAHANEH, Afghanistan -- Helicopter-borne U.S. Marines backed by Harrier jets stormed a Taliban-held town in southern Afghanistan before dawn Wednesday, the launch of a new operation to uproot Taliban fighters from a longtime base and provide security for next week's presidential election.

The troops exchanged heavy fire with insurgents, killing at least seven. Associated Press journalists traveling with the first wave said militants fired small arms, mortars and rocket-propelled grenades after helicopters dropped the troops over Taliban lines. Fighting lasted more than eight hours, as Harrier jets streaked overhead and dropped flares in a show of force [but no weapons--more here and in the second part here].

The Taliban put up such fierce resistance that Marines said they suspected the militants knew the assault was coming.

Other Marines met heavy resistance as they fought to seize control of the mountains surrounding Dahaneh in the southern province of Helmand. Another convoy of Marines rolled into the town despite roadside bomb attacks and gunfire.

It was the first time NATO troops had entered Dahaneh, which has been under Taliban control for years...

The new offensive, named "Eastern Resolve 2," is designed to break the monthslong stalemate in this southern valley where the Taliban are solidly entrenched. By occupying Dahaneh, the Marines hope to isolate insurgents in woods and mountains, away from civilian centers.

"I think this has the potential to be a watershed," said Capt. Zachary Martin, commander of Golf Company, 2nd Battalion, 3rd Marines, who led the assault.

The goal is to cut off the Taliban from a major rear base, and reclaim the area's market district. It is hoped this would have a ripple effect through nearby villages, making civilians more willing to cooperate with NATO forces. The Taliban levy taxes and maintain checkpoints in Dahaneh, which serves as a main trading route through northern Helmand, which produces 60 percent of the world's opium...

A combined force of some 500 U.S. and Afghan troops [emphasis added] took part in the attack, which included helicopters, snipers, and female Marines brought in to interact with Afghan women during the compound-by-compound search conducted by Afghan forces who accompanied the Americans.

Update: A Washington Post reporter at the fight with the Marines:

In Afghanistan, A Test of Tactics
Under Strict Rules to Protect Civilians, Marines Face More Complex Missions
...
The Marines, under strict rules to protect civilians, must wait for insurgents to attack and then attempt to ensnare them. Limited in their use of airstrikes and artillery -- because of the danger to civilians and because aircraft often frighten the Taliban away -- Marine riflemen must use themselves as bait and then engage in the riskier task of pursuing insurgents on foot...

Video:

Firefights Erupt as Troops Flush Out Taliban Fighters

These scenes show three separate firefights in southern Afghanistan, where Marines have been clashing regularly with Taliban forces. British troops and Afghan National Army are also fighting in the area.

Also (via Foreign Policy's "AfPak Channel"):

New [US] Army Handbook Teaches Afghanistan Lessons
...
The handbook, “Small-Unit Operations in Afghanistan,” strikes a tone of respect for the Taliban and other insurgent groups, which are acknowledged to be extremely experienced fighters; even more, American soldiers are warned that the insurgents rapidly adapt to shifts in tactics...

Copies of the 123-page handbook, produced by the Center for Army Lessons Learned, are being distributed throughout the service and are available to NATO allies and other nations with troops in Afghanistan. A copy was provided in advance to The New York Times by an official involved in the distribution, who said consideration was being given to a broader public release.

The manual includes a chapter titled “Cultural Engagements,” offering guidance to small-unit leaders on building relationships with wavering village elders and trust among distrustful village residents — a process that cannot be left to senior officers who may be back at headquarters...

We have the Canadian Army Lessons Learned Centre.