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THE STANS
Up to 200 insurgents dead in Afghan operation: govt

Britain's death toll in Afghanistan overtakes Iraq
The number of British soldiers to die in Afghanistan overtook the toll in Iraq on Friday, underlining the shift in focus between the two theatres of war. The Ministry of Defence on Friday announced the deaths of eight soldiers Afghanistan, taking to 184 the total number killed since operations against the Taliban Islamists began in late 2001. Of these, at least 147 were killed as a result of hostile action. Friday's deaths took the Afghanistan toll past that in Iraq, where 179 soldiers died since the campaign began in 2003. Of these, at least 136 were killed due to hostile action. The last solider to die in Iraq was Private Ryan Wrathall following a gunshot wound suffered in the southern city of Basra. He was the only British soldier to die in Iraq this year. British forces formally ended combat operations in Iraq on April 30, one month ahead of schedule, and have withdrawn from their last remaining base in Basra. A small Royal Navy training team remains at the nearby port of Umm Qasr. British troop numbers were the second largest in the Iraq campaign, peaking at 46,000 at the height of combat operations. British troop levels in Iraq were at 4,100 before the final withdrawal. As British troop numbers were scaled down in Iraq, the numbers in Afghanistan rose. Some 8,300 British troops are now in Afghanistan, largely in the troubled southern Helmand Province battling Taliban insurgents. The deaths of five soldiers in two explosions while on patrol near the town of Sangin in Helmand was one of the worst incidents in terms of British casualties since the start of operations in Afghanistan. Four soldiers were killed in a blast in June 2008, and 14 people died in a Nimrod aircraft crash in 2006.

Two NATO soldiers killed in Afghanistan violence
Two soldiers with the NATO-led force were killed in improvised bomb explosions in southern Afghanistan, the alliance said Sunday. The International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) said the troopers were killed "as a result of improvised explosive device strikes from insurgents" on Saturday. Separately, a US Force Afghanistan spokeswoman said both were US nationals. The ISAF had initially said four soldiers had been killed but later corrected the figure, saying the deaths had been mistakenly double-counted. "There was a mistake, the same incident was counted twice. Two ISAF US service members were killed by an IED," said a spokeswoman, referring to improvised explosive devices. Another soldier died of wounds received in combat in Afghanistan last month, ISAF added. It did not give the exact locations of the incidents. The casualties follow the deaths on Thursday and Friday of eight British soldiers also deployed under NATO ISAF -- the deadliest 24-hour period for the British forces in decades. The new fatalities come as about 4,000 US Marines, thousands of British troops and Afghan security forces battle their way into some of the most dangerous insurgent strongholds in the southern province of Helmand. Photo courtesy AFP.
by Staff Writers
 Kabul (AFP) July 12, 2009
 Mainly British and Afghan troops have killed up to 200 insurgents in a major assault on Taliban strongholds in southern Afghanistan launched three weeks ago, the Afghan interior ministry said Sunday.

Thousands of NATO-led US Marines, British troops and Afghan security forces have been fighting their way into some of the most dangerous insurgent strongholds in the southern province of Helmand for weeks.

The operations are designed to clean out areas of rebels to allow Afghans to vote in presidential and provincial council elections due on August 20.

"We have killed around 150 to 200 enemy fighters" as part of the British-led Operation Panther's Claw, interior ministry spokesman Zemarai Bashary told reporters.

"This is not a final death toll as the operations continue," the spokesman said.

It was the first official figure issued for insurgent casualties in the operation. Authorities have not said how many have been killed in a US Marines operation launched further south in Helmand on July 2.

A US Marine was killed by hostile fire on the first day of Operation Khanjar (dagger), one of the biggest anti-militant operations since 2001, while 15 British soldiers have died in 10 days as Panther's Claw pushes on.

The Taliban were in power between 1996 and 2001 before they were toppled in a US-led offensive following the 9/11 attacks on US cities.

Since being ousted the remnants of the militia have been waging an insurgency aimed at regaining power.

earlier related report
 Obama wants new push to train Afghan army, police after vote
 US President Barack Obama said Saturday he wants a new push to train Afghanistan's army and police after the country's August elections, in an interview with Britain's Sky News television.

Obama said the international community would have to start focusing its attention on developing Afghanistan's capabilities so that Afghans could take greater responsibility for controlling their own security.

He was speaking during his visit to Ghana, his first trip as president to sub-Saharan Africa.

"The most important thing we can do is to combine our military efforts with effective diplomacy and development so that Afghans feel a greater stake and have a greater capacity to secure their country," he said.

"Post-election... I think we need to start directing our attention to how do we create an Afghan army, an Afghan police, how do we work with the Pakistanis effectively, so that they are the ones who are really at the forefront at controlling their own countries.

"All of us are going to have to do an evaluation after the Afghan election to see what more we can do.

"It may not be on the military side, it might be on the development side providing Afghan farmers alternatives to poppy crops, making sure that we are effectively training a judiciary system and a rule of law in Afghanistan that people trust."

He added: "We've got a core mission that we have to accomplish.

"We knew that this summer was going to be tough fighting, that there was an interest in the Taliban exerting control. They have, I think, been pushed back but we still have a long way to go. We've got to get through elections.

"We've got a serious fight on our hands and we've got to deal with it smartly but we've got to deal with it effectively."

Obama also paid tribute to Britain's military efforts in Afghanistan as British military deaths there surpassed the number it lost in the Iraq campaign.

British fatalities rose to 184 on Friday as eight soldiers were killed in a 24-hour period. Britain is spearheading Operation Panther's Claw, an assault on Taliban rebels in the troubled southern Helmand Province.

"My heart goes out to those British soldiers. Great Britain has played an extraordinary role in this coalition, understanding that we cannot allow either Afghanistan or Pakistan to be a safe haven for Al-Qaeda, those who with impunity blow up train stations in London or buildings in New York."

He said Britain's contribution in Afghanistan was "critical" and Prime Minister Gordon Brown and his predecessor Tony Blair were committed to the campaign because "the likelihood of a terrorist attack in London is at least as high, if not higher than it is in the United States."

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THE STANS
Zardari's reported admission surprises
 Islamabad, Pakistan (UPI) Jul 10, 2009
Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari reportedly admitted this week that his country created extremists groups to achieve short-term tactical objectives. The statement made Tuesday before a group of retired bureaucrats in Islamabad comes only days after Zardari's June 22 op-ed piece in The Washington Post saying: "If the Taliban and al-Qaida are allowed to triumph in our region, their ... read more






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