Officials are reporting that over 80 Taliban fighters have been killed in airstrikes in the past 24 hours. The attacks took place in Kandahar and Faryab Province, and were conducted by both US and Afghan air forces.
The attacks appear to have started after the Taliban attacked security checkpoints on Saturday night in Faryab, and continued through Sunday. Officials reported 53 killed in Faryab, and another 33 killed in Kandahar.
The Taliban reported that they had attacked a US military convoy in Kandahar, claiming to have destroyed an armored vehicle, killing all on board. The US has not commented on this report at all.
Large numbers of casualties in attacks against the Taliban are common in official Afghan reports, but generally have little consequences on the situation on the ground, with Afghan forces continuing to lose ground to the Taliban.
That’s the thing about airstrikes, they’re good at killing people, combatants and civilians alike. And there’s nothing more persuasive for Taliban recruitment into their armed forces than the occupying army callously killing the innocent. It’s a little like putting out a fire with napalm… might work if you do it just right, but there’s also a good chance it will just make things worse.
So close to peace. These negotiations didn’t fall apart because of one dead American soldier who allegedly died at an inopportune moment.
As with Syria, so goes Afghanistan: Grasping defeat from the jaws of peace.