US and ANP Troops Storming Taliban

In the next wave of assaults, the US and the ANP are going after the Taliban.

U.S. soldiers and Afghan police swarmed a dense Taliban stronghold of mud-brick homes on the western shoulder of Kandahar early Saturday, conducting searches and promising aid in a preview of a planned summer campaign to control the insurgent movement's spiritual home.
Operation Kokaran was named for the neighborhood where the Taliban have assassinated government officials and built infiltration routes. The U.S. goal here is to clear out insurgents, build up local governance and bring in reconstruction projects.

Only a few shots were fired Saturday during the most comprehensive military-civilian operation in Kandahar since President Obama ordered 30,000 more troops to Afghanistan in December. It was the first time civilian aid and reconstruction teams have taken part in conceiving and planning a military clearing operation here, according to U.S. officials.

By: Brant