Taliban takes over Afghan valley

The Taliban is claiming victory in eastern Afghanistan’s Korengal Valley following the withdrawal of US forces from the remote outpost.

US officials, however, say the withdrawal in Kunar province was “a repositioning of forces” following a decision by General Stanley McChrystal, head of US and Nato forces in Afghanistan, to concentrate resources on urban areas.
Korengal Valley, dubbed the Valley of Death by US forces, was frequently the scene of heavy fighting. At least 42 US troops were killed there over the past five years.
Days after the US withdrawal, Al Jazeera visited the valley and found the Taliban had control of the area and access to every part of the camp.
Local Afghans were also coming to visit the area, now strewn with litter and debris.
One local man said he believed stability would return to the area, now that foreign forces are gone.
“We don’t want Americans, we don’t want Germans or any other foreigner. We don’t want foreigners, we want peace. We want Taliban and Islam – we don’t want anything else.”

Taliban plans

Taliban fighters told Al Jazeera they intended to make use of the US camp and launch attacks to capture more territory in the region.
They also claimed that they had captured tonnes of fuel and ammunition left behind by US forces.
“There is a lot of ammunition left behind – mortars, rockets, and missiles. This, God willing, we will [use] against them,” Anwar, a local Taliban commander, told Al Jazeera’s Qais Azimy.
Al Jazeera contacted the presidential palace in Kabul, as well as the headquarters of Nato’s International Security Assistance Force  (Isaf) and the Pentagon, but none of them would comment on the Taliban takeover.
Mark Perry, an author based in Washington, DC and specialising in US military analysis, said the withdrawal of American forces from Korengal was not necessarily either a victory or defeat, but was in keeping with past strategy.
“This is a pretty small battle,” he said.
“It’s true that we left, but we weren’t going to stay there anyway.”
He said the US military is pursuing a strategy to try to cripple the Taliban and al-Qaeda where possible, and create “a breathing space for the government in Afghanistan to become politically rooted in the society”.

Source: Al Jazeera