Musa Qala

In late September 2006, a secret truce was allegedly made with the Taliban under which British troops would quietly move out of Musa Qala in return for the Taliban not attacking the region. The truce had the sanction of Mohammad Daud, the governor of Helmand province, and most tribal elders, who felt they could now exercise control over the Taliban themselves. It was also seen as a move to help integrate the local Pashtun tribes on the side of the US-allied government. Others however, saw the move as a cop-out; Lieutenant-General David Richards, the NATO commander in Afghanistan at the time, said that this move turned these four centers into "magnets" for the Taliban insurgents.[9]

Initially, the local leaders were happy with the settlement, which gave them the upper hand over the Taliban. In the long run, however, attempts to win over the population appear to have failed, especially under the NATO strategy of air bombing which killed more than 4,600 Afghan noncombatants from 2001 to 2006, according to a study from University of New Hampshire.[10] The result has been the steady growth of anti-American sentiment in the region, focused on the US-backed regime of President Hamid Karzai. Karzai himself deplored the attacks, apparently breaking down in tears, saying that "the cruelty is too much. [The coalition forces] are killing our children."[10]

In February 2007, a Taliban force of about 100 or possibly 200 strong under Mullah Abdul Ghafoor captured the town, overran the district centre and raised their trademark white flag. All tribal leaders who had arranged the truce with the British forces were jailed.[11] Some sources report the Taliban force numbered "several hundred".[12]

The situation created a crisis for the ISAF forces in Afghanistan, on the same day that the British commanding officer General David Richards handed over charge of the ISAF team to an American, General Dan K. McNeill; MacNeil suggested that "surgical and deliberate" force would be used to evict the fighters from Musa Qala. On 4 February US forces claimed that an air strike near Musa Qala had killed a senior Taliban leader, possibly Mullah Abdul Ghafoor, while travelling in a truck.[13]

McNeill, the new ISAF commander, felt that "come spring, an ISAF offensive not a Taliban offensive will set the conditions to defeat the insurgents again."[14]

Eurasianet reports: "The attack laid waste to an agreement there, brokered last fall by Richards and local tribal elders, under which NATO troops agreed to withdraw from the town in return for a commitment by local Afghan leaders to oppose the Taliban."[12]

Eurasianet reports that Richards, the outgoing ISAF commander, is an expert at negotiation.[12] It reports that McNeill, the new ISAF commander, opposes the kind of local agreements that Richards favored, and speculated that the aerial bombardment that was reported to have killed Mullah Abdul Ghafour was a sign of McNeill's more aggressive, less conciliatory approach.

"Officials in several European countries have quietly expressed concern about placing an American general in charge of the NATO force. Richards tried to create a less harsh, more economic-development-oriented identity for NATO in Afghanistan, as compared to the ‘‘kicking-down-doors’’ image that US forces have. Many local analysts expect NATO forces to embrace a more aggressive stance under McNeill, who is believed to oppose the type of local peace arrangements that Richards promoted. The danger at this point is that an overly aggressive NATO force in Afghanistan could alienate Afghans, and thus cause the Taliban’s support base to grow."

The district was the scene of heavy fighting in late July 2007 after ISAF forces attacked several rebel hideouts in Helmand Province. Coalition officials said that up to 160 Taliban fighters were killed between 22 July and 26 July in gun battles and air strikes, adding that, rather than avoiding battle, the Taliban were trying to defend the area. No civilian casualties were reported by ISAF, although a self-described resident claimed by phone that 16 civilians were killed in an air strike.

In October 2007, Reuters reported that ISAF troops and Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF) had killed 80 Taliban insurgents in a six-hour battle there. As with the July engagement, the Taliban concentrated their forces and fought to defend the region rather than using typical "shoot and scoot" tactics.[15]