The Afghan government laid symbolic claim to the former Taliban stronghold of Marja with a formal flag-raising ceremony Thursday and installation of a new civilian administration.
Both Afghan and Western military officials, though, said the campaign to secure the southern town would go on for weeks.
As the flag-raising ceremony was taking place, scattered clashes continued and coalition forces proceeded with the painstaking work of finding and destroying the many bombs planted by insurgents.
U.S. Marines and British and Afghan troops launched the Marja assault on Feb. 13. With 15,000 troops taking part in combat and support operations spread over a wide area, it has been the largest single Western offensive since the U.S.-led invasion of Afghanistan in 2001, which toppled the Taliban government.
At Thursday's ceremony, hundreds of residents looked on as the red and green national flag was raised. The town's new civilian leader, Haji Zahir, promised to begin restoring basic government services, which Marja has lacked for at least two years.
Brig. Gen. Larry Nicholson, the Marines' commander, attended the ceremony but did not speak. Western military officials said that it was a deliberate gesture, meant to emphasize that the offensive was designed to pave the way for Afghans to govern themselves.
The WSJ has another article that says the raising of the flag is a turning point in the surge campaign.
Afghan officials unfurled the country's green, red and black flag over the new government offices here, further evidence that U.S. and Afghan troops have reached a turning point in the offensive to reclaim this town from the Taliban.
By: Brant
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