Posted on 07/16/2009 9:49:01 PM PDT by MestaMachine
July is shaping up as the deadliest month of the Afghan war for U.S.-led international forces, with the number killed already matching the highest full-month toll of the nearly eight-year conflict, according to figures compiled by The Associated Press.
As of Wednesday, at least 46 international troops, including 24 Americans, had been killed in Afghanistan this month, according to statements by the U.S. military and the NATO command. That matches the tolls for the two previous deadliest months — June and August of 2008.
The rate of deaths in July — about three a day — is approaching some of the highest levels of the Iraq war.
snip
In Washington, Pentagon spokesman Geoff Morrell acknowledged that the U.S. has lost troops "at an alarming rate this month."
He told reporters that July has been "an extraordinarily difficult month for all of us who are so heavily invested in trying to better the situation in Afghanistan."
U.S. commanders have been expecting higher casualties since President Barack Obama ordered 21,000 additional U.S. troops to Afghanistan this year to curb a resurgent Taliban that threatens not only the U.S.-backed Kabul government but also Afghanistan's nuclear-armed neighbor, Pakistan.
There are about 57,000 U.S. troops currently in Afghanistan, and the number is expected to rise to at least 68,000 by the end of 2009.
With the increase in troops heading for Afghanistan, the U.S. has stepped up the tempo of combat operations. About 4,000 U.S. Marines this month launched their biggest offensive since 2001 to break the Taliban stranglehold on the southern province of Helmand, the center of the country's opium poppy cultivation and a major insurgent smuggling route from Pakistan.
The Afghan government provided only about 650 soldiers and police to join the ongoing Marine offensive in Helmand.
(Excerpt) Read more at news.yahoo.com ...
“In Washington, Pentagon spokesman Geoff Morrell acknowledged that the U.S. has lost troops ‘at an alarming rate this month.’”
Time for all Troops scheduled for deployment to challenge this SOB.
The destruction to our country here at home this July is pretty despicable as well. We have our own home-grown terrorists pretending to be politicians. They’re equally as destructive as any Al Qaeda agent, IMO. Both want to destroy the USA and her people.
I forbid all 4 of my sons from joining the military. No mission, no success.
The month of July is very, very special to bedlam. So is hussein obama.
Obama has the right policy considering Afghanistan.
“There are about 57,000 U.S. troops currently in Afghanistan, and the number is expected to rise to at least 68,000 by the end of 2009.”
It’s deliberate. Anyone who has read any of my previous posts has seen me rant about this to the point of distraction. This “mission” is a sham, a deception on the American people, and an assault on the Military.
Col. Ralph peters has sounded off loudly about this. NO ONE is listening.
Oh, wait, it's Their Guy in office now, so apparently War is Now the Answer.
You Kos and DU lurkers satisfied with this, or are you a bunch of phonies?
Huh?
Let's hear a straight answer from you.
It's been over six months since your hated Chimpy Bush left office, how much longer can you blame him?
Huh?
There is nothing legitimate about this mission. Our troops are fighting this with their hands tied behind their backs.
Wasn't it the same in Iraq? For example, the first Battle of Fallujah back in '04.
Undoubtedly the new ROE’s are to blame.
I pray you have no family in the “dirty politicians” harms way.
We’ve had a near record month of killings in the DC area, with the Secret Service and Capital Police killing one assailant the other day, as well as criminals performing multiple killings on a regular basis now.
My son was safer in Iraq than on the streets of DC. At least in Iraq, he was armed, armored and could shoot back. In DC, he is unarmed until on duty (ridiculous). Federal police officers are not allowed to carry their work weapons until they are on the job, nor are they allowed to carry their personal licensed, concealed weapons at any time in DC or Maryland.
Now you now why Democrats suck.
And of course not a peep from the media.
Now its ok for us to kill people overseas and lose American lives in the process.
I haven’t heard one Republican go on tv and proclaim “Obama’s surge is failing.” or “The war is lost”.
Nothing like that.
Despite the fact we have wusses on the R side, they’re not haters of the military...so there IS a difference between the parties.
Republicans care about America’s success.
Democrats want to see us fail.
Prayers for the families and friends of all our falling soldiers
Well, the international coalition is on the offensive, and that means more contact with the Taliban. Neccesarily that means more fighting and more fighting means more casualties.
Almost. And it was almost for the same reason, but it was NOT deliberate. Our losses in Iraq were the fault of a misguided judgement by GW Bush to put the State department in charge instead of the Military.
Colin Powell is a pacifist and did everything he could to undermine the Military in Iraq and to undermine Bush PERIOD!
Guess who is “advising” obama.
Having said that, this man is doing this for show so he can pretend to be fighting the war on terror. The rules of engagement are ridiculous. Miranda rights for terrorists. Don’t fire if there is a civilian within 10 miles. How do you know who is or isn’t a civilian?
The Afghan government is beyond corrupt. The people are far more isolated and tribal.
There is NO reason for our Troops to be battling for control of the poppy fields. If anyone was serious about stopping the growing of poppies, airstrikes to destroy the fields would be happening until they were GONE. We would not be sending good Marines in harm’s way under the pretense that we are trying to build an infrastucture for people who DO NOT WANT IT and will revert at the first possible minute.
And if we were serious about destroying Al Qaeda, the zone between Pakistan and Afghanistan would be a damn ditch where anything that moved would be dead within seconds.
Instead, we are propping up the radicals in Pakistan, controlling a corrupt government in Afghanistan, and OUR Troops are the front line.
NATO could give a damn.
Hamid Karzai agrees 99% of the time with the Taliban and against us and the ONLY thing of value in Afghanistan is drugs.
I know there are new ROEs in effect in Iraq. They are deadly to our troops, and appear to be the work of a PR committee of frightened liberals.
If they have the same in Afghanistan, then they absolutely will lead to more US deaths than should be.
You simply don’t give away free shots at your people. It is stupid...no...it’s criminal.
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