FoxNews (stop snickering) has a nice rundown of lessons learned that are paying off in Afghanistan.
Who says you can’t teach an old, well, older dog new tricks? The U.S. military seems to have mastered a few, or at least learned a few lessons from previous encounters in Afghanistan and Iraq. So, too, have the Taliban, but so far, it seems to be doing them little good.
In five days of fighting, the Marines are avoiding earlier mistakes and making impressive advances. The consensus among some of my military friends and sources is that the Marjah offensive has been meticulously planned, starting with the decision to broadcast the news that the U.S. military was coming.
“That scared a lot of rats out of the nest,” said Tim Connors, a security consultant and a Civil Affairs officer in the Army Reserve who teaches soldiers and civilians how to negotiate in Afghanistan. Connors sat down with me earlier today to discuss the offensive that he has followed closely. Giving the Taliban advance notice of the campaign was risky, in that it gave the enemy time to implant IED’s to greet American forces, he said. But it also made direct combat in this urban area less likely, and hence, has resulted in fewer unintended casualties. That was a key lesson of the battle for Fallujah in Iraq.
“We’re now seeing pictures of Marines with metal detectors,” said Connors. And while Taliban snipers are targeting them, American casualties have been relatively low. Moreover, he added, many Afghans are helping the Marines find IED's -- a very good sign, indeed.
They are...
1. Telling the enemy you're coming - as noted above, it clears up some of the MOUT/FISH ops
2. Get out in front of the story - which we should've learned, oh, 40 YEARS AGO!
3. Understand the local culture - always takes time, but is always important
4. Cooperate with the local forces and let them take the lead when they can
So which lesson do you think is most important to the current operations/surge in Afghanistan?
By: Brant
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