Battle of Musa Qala

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Battle of Musa Qala
Part of the War in Afghanistan (2001–present)

Musa Qala
Date 7 December 2007 – 12 December 2007
Location Musa Qala, Helmand province, Afghanistan
Result Coalition victory; Taliban retreat.
Belligerents
International Security Assistance Force:

Flag of Afghanistan Afghan National Army

 Flag of Afghanistan Taliban insurgents
Commanders
Flag of the United Kingdom Brig Andrew Mackay,
Flag of Afghanistan Mahayadin Ghori		 Flag of Afghanistan Various
Strength
4,500 ISAF and Afghan National Army forces.[1] 2,000 (Taliban claim).[1]
300 (ISAF claim).[2]
Casualties and losses
2 soldiers killed,
minimum 9 soldiers wounded
(UK: 1 killed, 2 wounded[3];
US: 1 killed[4], 7 wounded[5]).		 Uncertain:
Less than 100 total (ISAF claim).[6]
Hundreds killed, wounded and detained (Afghan Defence Ministry claim).[7]
2–40 civilians killed [8][9].
v • d • e
Mazar-I-Sharif – Herat – Qala-i-Jangi – Tora Bora – Anaconda – Jacana – Red Wing – Lashkagar – Mountain Thrust – Helmand – Kaika – Sangin – Panjwaii – Medusa – Mountain Fury – Falcon Summit – Achilles – Hoover – Chora – Firebase Anaconda – Harekate Yolo – Musa Qala – Karez – Gora Prai – Sarposa Prison – Arghandab – Wanat – Hammer – Uzbin – Eagle's Summit

The Battle of Musa Qala (also Qaleh or Qal'eh)[10] was a military clash in Helmand Province, southern Afghanistan, launched by the Afghan National Army and the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) against the Taliban on 7 December 2007.[1] After three days of intense fighting, the Taliban retreated into the mountains on 10 December.[11] Musa Qala was officially reported captured on 12 December, with Afghan Army troops pushing into the town centre.[12]

The operation was codenamed snakepit (Pashto: Mar Kardad).[1] Senior ISAF officers, including US general Dan K. McNeill, the overall ISAF commander, agreed to the assault on 17 November 2007.[13] It followed more than nine months of Taliban occupation of the town, the largest the insurgents controlled at the time of the battle. ISAF forces had previously occupied the town, until a controversial withdrawal in late 2006.

It was the first battle in the war in Afghanistan in which Afghan army units were the principal fighting force. Statements from the British Ministry of Defence (MOD) emphasised that the operation was Afghan-led,[14] although the ability of Afghan units to function without NATO control was questioned during the battle.[3] Military engagement over Musa Qala is part of a wider conflict between coalition forces and the Taliban in Helmand. Both before and after the battle, related fighting was reported across a larger area, particularly in Sangin district to the south of Musa Qala.

Contents

[edit] Background

Musa Qala is a town of around 15,000 to 20,000 people,[15][16] with another 25,000 in the surrounding area.[16] ISAF forces were first deployed in the town in mid-June 2006, as part of the "platoon house" strategy. This consisted in protecting the district centres of Northern Helmand with small detachments of British ISAF troops, at the request of the provincial governor Mohammed Daoud. This move met with an unexpectedly fierce resistance from the Taliban and local tribesmen, who used conventional, rather than asymmetric tactics, to drive the coalition from their positions.[17] The isolated British garrison found itself under siege and constant attack for long periods, and their replacements could only be brought in after a full battle group operation, codenamed Snakebite, broke through Taliban lines in early August.[18]

The fighting ended in October 2006 when, in a controversial move, control was ceded to local tribal elders.[19] The deal was intended to see neither British nor Taliban forces in the town in an effort to reduce conflict and civilian casualties. At the time, a British officer commented: "There is an obvious danger that the Taliban could make the deal and then renege on it."[20] The Taliban did renege on the agreement, quickly over-running the town with 200 to 300 troops in February 2007. The Taliban seizure followed a US airstrike that incensed militants; a Taliban commander's brother and 20 followers were killed in the attack. A confluence of tribal politics, religion, and money from the drug trade helped ensure th