Friday Focus: Afghanistan

Following a fierce gunfight Friday, Feb. 19, U.S. Marines seized a compound in Marjah, Afghanistan, that is believed to be a Taliban headquarters. Personnel from Lima Company, 3rd Battalion, 6th Marines found photos of fighters posing with their weapons, dozens of Taliban-issued ID cards, and graduation diplomas from a training camp in Pakistan in the compound. Insurgents had been using this field office, which is located just south of Marjah's center, before they abandoned it at the end of a day-long battle with U.S. Marines. The goal was to break resistance in Marjah-- a Taliban stronghold in Afghanistan's southern Helmand province. The Marjah offensive began February 13, and Thursday, Feb. 18 was the deadliest day, with six coalition troops killed. The death toll for the entire operation thus far stands at 12 NATO troops and one Afghan soldier. There have been an estimated 120 Taliban casualties.

ANALYSIS: Afghanistan will undoubtedly prove to be President Barack Obama's greatest foreign policy test. Marjah, a town with an estimated population of 80,000 that is located 360 miles (610 kilometers) southwest of Kabul, has been under Taliban control for years. Therefore, successful breakage of this Taliban stronghold could quite possibly lead to an expedited end to the Afghan War altogether. If coalition forces can achieve this goal, then President Obama can begin withdrawing troops from the Middle East in a timely and safe manner.

BOTTOM LINE: We need to be successful in Afghanistan. None of us wants this war to continue indefinitely, but once again, President Obama has unfortunately been backed into a corner as a result of the Bush administration's failure to combat terrorist cells in Afghanistan and Pakistan and its tunnel-visioned and woefully misguided focus on Iraq. The current commander-in-chief not only has a clear strategy ending our involvement in Iraq, but he also has a plan for success in Afghanistan. This is the first of many steps along the long, difficult path toward Middle East peace. Most importantly, Obama's plan-- if given a chance-- will ensure that Iraq and Afghanistan do not become Vietnam's II and III. Those casualty figures (on all sides) represent real people, and our president realizes that. I personally believe that Obama will have us out of the Middle East by the end of his first term in office.