Richard WarnickAfghanistan: May Was the Most Violent Month Since 2001
The official story is that this year’s Taliban spring offensive was blunted because Coalition forces seized the initiative. The 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit was sent in to Kandahar Province to chase bad guys, and the enemy disappeared without a fight (as insurgents often do), retreating back to Pakistan.
That’s the official story.
John McCreary, a former senior intelligence analyst for the Joint Chiefs of Staff, says the real strategic picture in Afghanistan is less optimistic.
According to McCreary, May saw more violence than any other month since the 2001 U.S. intervention that toppled the Taliban and forced Osama bin Laden and his followers to flee into Pakistan. He says there were 214 violent incidents in more than 100 of the country’s 398 districts last month. That was up from April’s count of 199 violent incidents in 86 districts.
Writes McCreary: “Despite official efforts to spotlight improvement, the spring offensive this year is far worse than last year’s spring offensive. The security situation has deteriorated again. At no prior time has the Taliban managed to stage attacks in over 100 of the 398 districts.”
“If Taliban fighters are heading to Pakistan, they are going back to base to rest and to get more ammunition and supplies,” he concludes.