Taliban Insurgents Are Starting To Test Afghan Forces

Credit: Alyson Hurt/NPR

Taliban Raid Tests Coalition's Surge Gains -- Wall Street Journal

KABUL—A large number of Taliban insurgents, aided by foreign fighters, have tried to overrun the district of Sangin in Afghanistan's southern Helmand province, triggering a two-day battle that seemed to be abating by Tuesday night, Afghan officials said.

At least four Afghan policemen and several insurgents were killed in the clashes, some of the most serious combat since the Taliban launched their annual spring offensive last month.

Sangin, known for its opium production, has long been a Taliban redoubt. Helmand, including Sangin, was the focus of President Barack Obama's troop surge, with tens of thousands of U.S. Marines flooding the province in 2010-11.

In a separate attack on Tuesday, a roadside bombing killed seven Afghan policemen in the western province of Herat, a local government spokesman said.

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My Comment: I expect more Taliban raids from now to the eventual withdrawal of ISAF troops .... and when most of these troops are gone .... these same Taliban raids are going to escalate into major military operations and and holding of territory.