After Marjah And Kandahar, How Many More Operations In Afghanistan?
As Operation “Moshtarak” (Together) in the Marjah and Nad Ali districts of southern Helmand Province enters its final stage, preparations are already under way to launch another full-fledged military campaign named “Omaid” (Hope) in the Zirai and Panjawai districts of Kandahar. The conventional wisdom among Western military generals and diplomats is that such operations are crucial in order to halt the advance of the Taliban, who now control large swathes of rural Afghanistan. Afghanistan’s emerging security establishment too is eager to see these operations implemented. Afghan deputy intelligence chief Naim Baluch recently declared that the insurgents pose a serious security threat to 15 provinces of Afghanistan (consisting of well over 100 districts). Ten districts in those 15 provinces have already fallen into Taliban hands since the Taliban resurgence began in 2005. Afghanistan has 34 provinces with a total of 364 districts. The question now is: how many more military operations wi
