US Military in Afghanistan - Conflict in AfghanistanThis is a featured page

US Military in Afghanistan - Hot Military Spouses by AidaUSMC More than two decades of conflict severely hindered Afghanistan's progress toward meeting development goals. A Communist coup in 1978 and Soviet invasion one year later ushered in years of fighting that continued after the Soviets pulled out in 1989. Guerilla factions carried on the violent, internal conflict throughout the early 1990s. In 1994, a group of Islamic fundamentalists, the Taliban, emerged as a political force and within two years controlled most of the country. Their strict interpretation of the Koran led to significant restrictions on basic freedoms and resulted in violent clashes with anti-Taliban groups.

Afghanistan War

deployment

The War in Afghanistan, began on October 7, 2001, and was launched by the United States and the United Kingdom in response to the September 11, 2001 attacks. It was the beginning of the War on Terror. The stated purpose of the invasion was to capture Osama bin Laden, destroy al-Qaeda, and remove the Taliban regime which had provided support and safe harbor to al-Qaeda.

US Military in Afghanistan - Hot Military Spouses by AidaUSMC

A soldier checks the sights of a machine gun atop an American outpost.

In October 2001, the US and and its allies launched an aerial bombing campaign against the Taliban, with ground forces supplied primarily by the Afghan Northern Alliance. In 2002, American, British and Canadian infantry were committed, along with special forces from several allied nations. France publicly announced a rein- forcement of 700 fresh troops. NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) then pledged to send nearly 2,000 additional soldiers to support the alliance force's operation in Afghanistan.

US Military in Afghanistan - Hot Military Spouses by AidaUSMC

A US marine under fire.

The 2,300-strong US Marine Expeditionary Unit was part of Washington's contribution to the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) against Islamic rebels. Marines and sailors arrived and the unit began operations after weeks of flying personnel and equipment there. They began their operations in southern Afghanistan. The Marine force conducted full-spectrum operations from humanitarian assistance missions to combat operations.

US Military in Afghanistan - Hot Military Spouses by AidaUSMC

A medic treats a U.S. Army Soldier for shrapnel wounds from a rocket-propelled grenade explosion. The soldier continued fighting minutes after he was treated.

Within weeks, the initial attack, by US-led Combined Forces Command-Afghanistan (CFC-A, formerly called Coalition Forces) had forced the Taliban from Kabul by late 2001,and had began to wage an ongoing military campaign to weed out remnants of the Taliban and al-Qaeda in Afghanistan, but Taliban forces regained some strength. The insurgency, which included suicide bombings, was said to be supported by the Al-Qaeda terror network, which had increased especially in the country's south and east.

Hot Military Spouses by AidaUSMC

Conflict in Afghanistan 2


dewy500
dewy500 		Latest page update: made by dewy500 , Nov 4 2008, 6:16 PM EST (about this update About This Update dewy500 Edited by dewy500


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