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It was a task of epic proportions, inspiring comparisons with Commando magazine, Mad Max, the battle of Arnhem in 1944 and the relief of the siege of Mafeking in 1900.
The mission was to take 220 tonnes of turbine and other equipment, worth millions of pounds, across 100 miles of some of the most hostile and heavily mined territory in Afghanistan.
Elements of the convoy taking part in Operation OQAB TSUKA, including Mastiff and Viking armoured vehicles. (Photo Sgt Anthony Boocock, RLC)
Nato commanders, facing an escalating Taleban insurgency in eastern and southeastern Afghanistan, initially argued that it could not be done until the spring poppy harvest, a traditional low point in the Taleban’s capabilities. But they came under pressure from Washington, which was anxious to secure visible progress before the presidential election to protect funding, according to sources in Kabul.
OPERATION EAGLE’S SUMMIT
It was 2.30am when the convoy finally reached Camp Zeebrugge, crawling through the moonless night like a herd of prehistoric beasts, headlights peering into the dust ahead, brakes squealing at the stars above.
As attack helicopters circled overhead, and mortar rounds thumped in the distance, the first of the juggernauts came into sight – a 36-wheel, 34-tonne tank transporter carrying a container plastered in Koranic verses.
Then came another. And another. And more and more until the entire road through the camp was blocked by a procession of lorries, mine-clear-ers, bulldozers and armoured personnel carriers that stretched at times for more than 2½ miles.
This was the moment when British troops completed one of their most complex and daring operations since the Second World War: outfoxing the Taleban to deliver a giant new turbine to the Kajaki Dam in the southern Afghan province of Helmand.
Afghan dam triumph as 1,600 British troops carry out most daring raid ‘since Second World War’
but look at what is buried downthread in the article:
British commanders said that they tried to persuade elders of one village near the dam, a known Taleban stronghold, to let them pass by offering them $25,000, but local militants would not let them accept the money.
Ah! Those nasty local militants! Won’t let the village elders take a bribe! Spin it how you like, though, you are admitting the local people are not on your own side. Hearts and minds un-won, for sure.
Engineers hope to repair the dam’s second 16 MW turbine in the next three or four months, and to install the third Chinese-made one, which has a capacity of 18.6 MW, by June or July next year.
Look at the time frames here. The iron law for guerrillas is to chose your battles, and not let the enemy chose for you. The Brits expect the caravan to be attacked, and have armed it to the teeth? Give it a pass and wait till they are less alert.
. . . However, others say that it could be at least two years before residents receive power from the dam as new transmission lines will have to be laid.
The time line is even longer than we thought. Not that a competent guerrilla would wait out the whole 2+ years, but their is plenty of time to choose the right moment to plan their attack.
Is this the closest NATO can come to a victorious operation? Looking past the forced enthusiasm, this is a rather bleak picture.