Defense Secretary Warns Iran

U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta issued a warning to Iran and others not to miscalculate over the U.S. withdrawal from Iraq.For Iran and anybody else who has any other ideas,let me make clear that the United States maintains 40,000 troops in that region;23,000 in Kuwait,and numbers of others in countries throughout that region,Mr.Panetta stated while on an Asian trip last week.
Almost all U.S. forces will be withdrawn out of Iraq by 31 December on orders by President Obama.The only exceptions will be a small cadre of U.S. Marines who guard the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad-the largest U.S. Embassy in the world-as well as a small number to help with arms transactions with Iraq.
As well as maintaining those U.S. troops currently stationed in the Persian Gulf region outside of Iraq,the Pentagon is reportedly considering transferring some of the soldiers now in Iraq to neighboring Kuwait,The New York Times ascertained.The U.S. Navy may also keep more warships in the region.A Pentagon spokesman said they're going through a range of options and no decisions have been made.
The vacuum created by U.S. withdrawal from Iraq is a growing concern for America's Sunni Muslim Persian Gulf allies,who are wary of more Iranian Shiite Muslim influence in the region.

Afghan War Progress:Militants Low On Funds

Taliban militants trying to unseat the Afghan government and reinstate their radical Islamist reign are finding their funding drying up,the result of the predominant U.S. Marine and other coalition forces being active in Helmand and neighboring Kandahar Provinces.From threatening poppy growers to processing and smuggling heroin,the militants' fund-raising habits are being disrupted,forcing them to resort to unearthing stashes of old weapons and ammunition.
Mullah Omar,the Taliban leader in hiding since U.S. forces and the Afghan Northern Alliance drove him from power in 2001,issued a plea for Muslims to fund the militant cause.He spoke in a greeting on Eid-al-Adha,the major Muslim observance.
Afghan villagers and farmers are bolder in standing up to the militants with the coalition troops around.Soon,the Marines and British troops will be setting up self-defense units of 50 Afghans apiece,formalizing their independent streak.A similar tactic proved successful in Iraq,tapping anti-Al Qaida sentiment there and focusing it on dislodging that Islamic militant group.
Although neither the Taliban nor Al Qaida in Iraq are likely to disappear entirely,they are being marginalized over time,to the point where indigenous security forces can contain them.They are being pushed to outlying villages and the cover of darkness.
The NATO defense alliance plans to completely turn security over to Afghan forces by 2014.NATO emphasizes,however,that this is a goal.If conditions in certain areas do not warrant the transfer of authority,U.S. and allied troops may remain on station there.
Scholars point out that the ultimate challenge is setting up honest governments the locals can rely on,backed by competent indigenous security forces to defend them from the gruff Islamic militants.

Afghan War Update:Marjah Still A Battleground

Although Operation Moshtarak,the move to take back the Marjah region of Afghanistan from Taliban militants,began back in February,the area remains unsettled.This was emphasized on Sunday,when militants launched a three-pronged ambush on U.S. Marines and Afghan forces in Marjah.A vigorous firefight ensued.
At one point,Cobra helicopter gunships were called in for air support.The Cobras pursued militants all the way across the border into Pakistan.The militants fought back with roadside bombs and more ambushes,but were eventually forced to retreat.No U.S. casualties were reported.
In February,Operation Moshtarak was launched by 15,000U.S.,British,Canadian,Danish,Estonian and Afghan troops.Marjah had long been a militant stronghold,a linchpin in the opium trade that funds the enemy.The militants had gone so far as to set up a shadow government there.Retaking Marjah was a formidable challenge;holding it is no less so.As U.S. special representative Richard Holbrooke observed,as a general rule in Afghanistan,things go slower than are expected.

Afghan War In Depth:Night Mission's Fiery End

Nine U.S. commandos were killed early Tuesday when their Blackhawk helicopter went down in Zabul Province,Afghanistan.Taliban militants said they shot it down,but the NATO defense alliance said there was no evidence of enemy fire in the area.Helicopter crashes are distressingly common in the dusty,mountainous country.
There is no room for pilot or maintenance crew error in the harsh conditions.
The special operations troops were reportedly on a night mission,which adds to the danger of flight.Another NATO soldier and a civilian were injured in the crash.Four U.S. Navy SEALs were among the dead;the other five were U.S. Army troops.Several SEALs have been killed on previous missions.The worst helicopter crash of the war occurred in 2005,when 16 Americans died.
Located in Southeast Afghanistan,Zabul is notoriously dry and windy,with farming limited to a few irrigated valleys.It is populated by tribes fiercely loyal to the Taliban militants.Zabul borders Pakistan to the south,and Kandahar Province to the west.
NATO and Afghan forces,including U.S. Marines,are trying to flush the militants out of the greater Kandahar area,which is the militant heartland,while intercepting militants at checkpoints that surround the city and conducting raids to capture or kill their leaders.Some success has been reported,such as increasing commerce and movement,building up the Afghan police,clearing the key Argandhab Valley and returning 85% of it to Afghan control.
On the other hand,the militants have been increasing their presence in the north of the country while NATO concentrates on the more populous south.U.S. Marines involved in the southern operations include the 1st and 2nd Marine Divisions,sustaining many casualties in Helmand Province,which borders Kandahar Province.

Advisor Sees Afghan Progress

Erin M. Simpson,a member of an international counterinsurgency advisory and assistance team who teaches at the Marine Corps University in Quantico,Virginia,says it is too early to tell if President Obama's surge policy has worked in Afghanistan.Less than half the troops have arrived,she points out.Most of those who have are U.S. Marines in Helmand Province.After tough combat in Marjah,there are initial,fragile signs of progress.Marjah has shifted from being totally under Taliban control to an ever-increasing Afghan government presence.There are now 20 Afghan government officials working in Marjah on getting basic services to the people.
The Marines have also moved into the hold and build phase in other Helmand towns,such as Nawa and Garmsir.Many government and tribal leaders have returned to these places as the Marines pacify them.There is a change in momentum now in Helmand,and the challenge is to keep it going.The Afghan government must help farmers plant winter wheat instead of opium,which is used as a funding source by the Taliban militants.
The Taliban can't win militarily,Mr.Simpson maintains.It can only win by displacing the Kabul government.This early stage of the surge is about governance.That must be the focus,in Mr.Simpson's view.
Three U.S. Marines died in Helmand Province from Friday through Monday,10 May.The investigation into the casualties is still underway.

Marjah A Continuing Struggle

Although Marjah in Southern Afghanistan was successfully cleared of militants by U.S. Marines two months ago,political progress has been slow to non-existent.The Afghan government isn't winning the people over with sufficient aid.In consequence,the people haven't bonded with the Marines on patrol,who are seen as backing the government.Tips have not been forthcoming to the Marines.In general,NATO officials have expressed some disappointment with the atmospherics in the area of 80,000 inhabitants.
With the much larger Kandahar operation slated to commence in June,the Marjah situation is causing worries that President Barack Obama's goal of a quick end to the American presence in Afghanistan will not be met,to the consternation of a war-weary American public and U.S. Congress.Kandahar has about a million residents.U.S. special forces and their Afghan allies are already preparing the way for the June offensive,which has been widely telegraphed.Over 70 militants have been rounded up,and lawless areas in the outskirts are being secured.Some 11,200 NATO troops are expected to partner with Afghan forces in the battle for the Taliban militant heartland.
NATO Commander General Stanley McChrystal,U.S. Army,has been pulling forces out of remote areas of little importance to concentrate on the more populous centers,such as Marjah and Kandahar,that hold the key to Afghanistan's future.

Navy Memorial Honors EOD

The U.S. Navy Memorial in Washington,D.C. will be honoring the Navy's Explosive Ordnance Disposal(EOD).EOD counters Weapons of Mass Destruction,Improvised Explosive Devices and other Unexploded Ordnance.They are currently playing a pivotal role in the Afghan War,just as they did in Iraq.An all-weather,all-terrain force,the EOD operates worldwide,and can parachute or dive to any location where they are needed.They are the tip of the combat operations spear.
Beginning in March,an exhibit at the Memorial will highlight the EOD's history,current operations,mission and training.Both a diving suit and high-tech bomb disposal suit will be on display,as well as numerous photographs.The exhibit will run for one year at the Memorial,which is located on Pennsylvania Avenue.
Operation Moshtarak,in which bomb disposal has been so prominent,is taking longer than had been hoped,U.S. officials admit.Islamic militants have broken into squad-size units and attacked U.S. Marines from bunkers and even roofs amid the houses of Marjah,using the town's residents as human shields.It could go on for at least another month,even though significant advances have been made.Concern for collateral damage has slowed the NATO campaign considerably.

British General KIA

Lieutenant General Rupert Thornlow,Commander of the Welsh Guards,was killed in Afghanistan when his vehicle struck an improvised explosive device in Helmand Province.He is the most senior British officer to die in combat in 27 years.The general was participating in operations being carried out by 4,000 U.S. Marines,650 Afghan troops and 9,000 British soldiers in the Helmand River valley.Helmand is the stronghold of the Taliban militants.The Marines and Afghans,supported by 50 aircraft,stormed villages south of the Helmand River,while the British covered the area north of the river.The Marines met sporadic but fierce resistance.
About 20,000 Marines are headed to Helmand,the largest province in Afghanistan and known for its many poppy fields.The British troops were supported by Danish tank fire in their heavily mined area.Fighting in high temperatures,there were British and Danish deaths and injuries.Several U.S. Marines were also killed and wounded.One Marine Brigadier General described it as a hell of a fight.

Anbar Casualties

Iraq remains a hostile environment for U.S. troops,despite their imminent drawdown.Two Marines and a sailor were killed in action in Anbar province at the end of April.They were among the 18 U.S. servicemembers killed in Iraq in April,the bloodiest month of 2009 so far.Thousands of Marines have served in Anbar,which is known for attracting foreign fighters who entered the province from Syria.No change in the drawdown plans has been announced because of the April toll.

More Marines Ship Out

President Obama has just ordered 17,000 more troops to Afghanistan.They include a frontline force of 8,000 U.S. Marines and 4,000 Army,as well as 5,000 support troops.The President hopes this will inspire other NATO countries to send more troops as well.He is visiting Canada this week and will no doubt discuss the matter with Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper.Canadian forces have served with distinction in Afghanistan,despite their limited combat experience since World War II.Meanwhile,Pakistan has reached the latest in a series of agreements with militants in its Northwest frontier.All of the previous ones have been violated.The militants have continued to use the region as a base for attacking NATO and Afghan forces,as well as Pakistan itself.U.S. commanders in Afghanistan had requested 30,000 more troops,on top of the 33,000 who are already there.

Honors:Afghan War Toll

As of Sunday,634 U.S. personnel had died serving in Operation Enduring Freedom.One of them was a Department of Defense civilian.Among the military deaths recently were two Marines.Lance Cpl.Alberto Francesconi of the Bronx,New York was killed in action on 1 January in Helmand Province.He was 21.On 11 January,Lance Cpl.Daniel R. Bennett of Clifton,Virginia also died in Helmand Province,but of non-combat causes at age 23.Both Marines were members of 3rd Battalion,8th Marine Regiment,2nd Marine Division,2nd Marine Expeditionary Force,out of Camp Lejeune,North Carolina.Besides Afghanistan itself,Operation Enduring Freedom is supported from Ethiopia,Jordan,Yemen and at least 12 other countries,where some of the deaths have occurred.