In Afghan South, U.S. Faces Frustrated Residents

[unhappycamper]

Some villages in the Zhare district, above, are nearly deserted.


In Afghan South, U.S. Faces Frustrated Residents
By CARLOTTA GALL
Published: October 16, 2010

KANDAHAR, Afghanistan — As American troops mount a critical operation this weekend in the campaign to regain control in Kandahar, they face not only the Taliban but also a frustrated and disillusioned population whose land has been devastated by five years of fighting.

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Press officers for Canadian forces, who have led operations in Kandahar Province for the past four years, and the Afghan district administration said they could not confirm the destruction. But a provincial councilor, landowners and farmers from the area said at least half the hamlet was demolished. A year later the Canadians dismantled the post and left, but the village remains deserted, the villagers said.

The experience has left a bad taste for many villagers. “Fighting brings no result for us because when they are fighting, we get caught under their feet,” said Ghulam Haidin, a butcher who fled the hamlet of Garaj for a second time recently.

The case of Lora, and two neighboring hamlets, Garaj and Ghilzan, which were also destroyed, would seem to be a lesson in the mistakes that NATO forces have made in southern Afghanistan, and what should not be repeated.

The influx of an extra 50,000 American troops since 2009 has allowed NATO to develop a counterinsurgency strategy that improves security and focuses more on protecting the civilian population, and so avoid such large-scale damage to villages.