Afghanistan – U.S. Marines Try to Retake Afghan Valley From Taliban (New York Times)

U.S. Marines Try to Retake Afghan Valley From Taliban (New York Times)
Almost 4,000 U.S. Marines moved to clear insurgents from the hotly contested Helmand River valley before the nation s Aug. 20 presidential election.

Marines Enter Afghan Opium Region to Strike Taliban (Update2) (Bloomberg)
As Marines advanced in the south, the U.S. military said one of its soldiers in eastern Afghanistan was missing. Agence France-Presse cited a Taliban spokesman as saying the guerrillas had captured an American soldier.

Marine offensive intended to show that Taliban can be beat (McClatchy Newspapers via Yahoo! News)
KABUL, Afghanistan The massive Marine assault launched Thursday in southern Afghanistan’s Helmand province is intended to recapture an area that’s been under Taliban control for the past five years a step officials think is critical to showing Afghan civilians that coalition forces can protect them from Islamist militants.

Illegal groups disarm in Afghanistan (UPI)
CHARIKAR, Afghanistan, July 2 (UPI) — Six illegal armed groups surrendered their weapons to U.N.-supported authorities as part of a weapons-for-development program in Afghanistan.

Marines on new mission to retake Afghan valley from Taliban (Asia News Network)
Thousands of US Marines and hundreds of Afghan troops poured into Taliban -infested villages of southern Afghanistan with armor and helicopters Thursday in the first major operation under President Barack Obama’s strategy to stabilise the country.

U.S. Marines Push Deeper Into Taliban Stronghold in Afghanistan (Bloomberg)
July 3 (Bloomberg) — U.S. troops pushed deeper into a major Taliban stronghold in southern Afghanistan in a bid to root out insurgents and stabilize the region, as one Marine was killed on the operation s first day.

Marines Enter Afghan Opium Region to Strike Taliban (Update3) (Bloomberg)
July 2 (Bloomberg) — Thousands of U.S. Marines drove into a major Taliban opium-growing region in Afghanistan, opening a phase of President Barack Obama s strategy to stem gains by insurgents in that country.

Marines Push Into Afghanistan Opium Region in Strike on Taliban (Bloomberg)
Almost 4,000 U.S. and 650 Afghan forces encountered little initial resistance as they spread through the Helmand River valley using helicopters and armored vehicles, said Captain Bill Pelletier, a Marine spokesman in southern Afghanistan.

Marines Enter Afghan Opium Region to Strike Taliban (Bloomberg via Yahoo! News)
July 2 (Bloomberg) — Thousands of U.S. Marines drove into a major Taliban opium-growing region, opening a phase of President Barack Obama s strategy to secure Afghanistan.

US military deaths in Afghanistan region at 642 (AP via Yahoo! Singapore News)
As of Thursday, July 2, 2009, at least 642 members of the U.S. military had died in Afghanistan, Pakistan and Uzbekistan as a result of the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan in late 2001, according to the Defense Department.

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