Small Wars Journal

U.S. Officials Push Back Against Report on Losses in Afghanistan

Thu, 02/01/2018 - 2:40pm

U.S. Officials Push Back Against Report on Losses in Afghanistan by Kyle Rempfer - Military Times

NATO’s Resolute Support mission in Afghanistan remains undeterred by Taliban activity as it heads into 2018, officials said.

A recent report by the BBC stating that the insurgent group threatens 70 percent of Afghanistan “overstates their influence,” Navy Capt. Tom Gresback, director of public affairs for Resolute Support, told Military Times.

“What really matters is not the number of districts held, but population controlled. [Resolute Support] assesses that around 12 [percent] of the population is actually under full Taliban control, even if the number of districts and ground held is greater than this,” Gresback said.

He also noted that in 2017, the Taliban failed to deliver on their stated aims to retake provincial and district centers. Instead, the group is “restricted to terrorizing the countryside,” he added.

In between the optimism and dire predictions, are reports out of Afghan provinces that boil the 16-year-old war down to a stalemate.

Farah province, for one, has been plagued by protests amid deteriorating security and overrun government checkpoints…

Read on.