The International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) was a multinational military mission in Afghanistan from 2001 to 2014. It was established by United Nations Security Council Resolution 1386 pursuant to the Bonn Agreement, which outlined the establishment of a permanent Afghan government following the U.S. invasion in October 2001. ISAF's primary goal was to train the Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF) and assist Afghanistan in rebuilding key government institutions; it gradually took part in the broader war in Afghanistan against the Taliban insurgency.
Operation Herrick was the codename under which all British operations in the War in Afghanistan were conducted from 2002 to the end of combat operations in 2014. It consisted of the British contribution to the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF), and support to the American-led Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF), within the South Asian country.
Musa Qala is a town and the district centre of Musa Qala District in Helmand Province, Afghanistan. It is located at 32.4433°N 64.7444°E and at an altitude of 1,043 m in the valley of Musa Qala River in the central western part of the district. Its population has been reported in the British press to be both 2,000 and 20,000. It is in a desolate area, populated by native Pashtun tribes.
Operation Achilles was a NATO operation, part of the War in Afghanistan. Its objective was to clear Helmand province of the Taliban. The operation began on March 6, 2007. The offensive is the largest NATO-based operation in Afghanistan to date. NATO officials reported that, contrary to previous operations, Taliban fighters were avoiding direct confrontation in favor of guerilla tactics.
In January 2006, NATO's focus in southern Afghanistan was to form Provincial Reconstruction Teams with the British leading in Helmand Province and the Netherlands, Australia and Canada leading similar deployments in Orūzgān Province and Kandahar Province respectively. The United States, with 2,200 troops, stayed in control of Zabul Province. Local Taliban figures voiced opposition to the incoming force and pledged to resist it.
Operation Lastay Kulang or Pickaxe Handle was a British-led NATO offensive in the southern Helmand province of Afghanistan. Lastay Kulang began on May 30 and ended on June 14, 2007, with 2000 ISAF and Afghan National Army troops taking part. The mission was a direct follow-up of Operation Achilles that ended on the same day.
Camp Shorabak is a former British Army airbase, located northwest of the city of Lashkargah in Helmand Province, Afghanistan. The camp was situated in a remote desert area, far from population centres.
The siege of Sangin was a military engagement which occurred between June 2006 and April 2007, between Taliban insurgents and the British Army during the war in Afghanistan. During the engagement, the district centre of Sangin District in Helmand Province was occupied by British forces and was completely surrounded by Taliban fighters. At one point fighting became intensive, causing General David J. Richards, the then-NATO commander in Afghanistan, to declare that Helmand province had seen the fiercest fighting involving British troops since the Korean War. The siege became emblematic of the difficulty of the mission being carried out by British soldiers in Afghanistan, who nicknamed it "Sangingrad".
The Helmand province campaign was a series of military operations conducted by the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) forces against Taliban insurgents and other local groups in the Helmand Province of Afghanistan. Their objective was to control a province that was known to be a Taliban stronghold, and a center of opium production. None of the ISAF's intended strategic and political objectives were achieved in the long term.
The Battle of Musa Qala was a British-led military action in Helmand Province, southern Afghanistan, launched by the Afghan National Army and the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) against the Taliban on 7 December 2007. After three days of intense fighting, the Taliban retreated into the mountains on 10 December. Musa Qala was officially reported captured on 12 December, with Afghan Army troops pushing into the town centre.
US and NATO International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) operations, alongside Afghan National Army forces, continued against the Taliban through 2007.
Operation Eagle's Summit was a military operation conducted by ISAF and Afghan National Army troops, with the objective of transporting a 220-tonne turbine to the Kajaki Dam in Helmand Province through territory controlled by Taliban insurgents. Ending in success for the coalition, it involved many British troops, and was said to have been one of the largest logistical operations carried out by the British Army since World War II. The operation took its name from the eagle pictured on the insignia of the 16th Air Assault Brigade.
United States and NATO International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) operations, alongside Afghan National Army forces, continued against the Taliban through 2008.
Operation Sond Chara was a campaign in the War in Afghanistan with aims and objectives centred on four Taliban strongholds near the town of Nad-e-Ali in Helmand Province, Afghanistan. The operation was named after the commando patch worn by members of 3 Commando Brigade Royal Marines. 1,500 British troops were involved, supported by Danish, Estonian and Afghan forces in the pre-Christmas offensive, commencing on 7 December 2008 with a night attack on Taliban defences in a village south of the operational area.
Operation Strike of the Sword or Operation Khanjar was a US-led offensive in Helmand province in southern Afghanistan. About 4,000 Marines from the 2nd Marine Expeditionary Brigade as well as 650 Afghan troops were involved, supported by NATO planes. The operation began when units moved into the Helmand River valley in the early hours of July 2, 2009. This operation was the largest Marine offensive since the Battle of Fallujah in 2004. The operation was also the biggest offensive airlift by the Marines since the Vietnam War.
Operation Panchai Palang, or Panther's Claw, was a British-led military operation of the War in Afghanistan in Helmand Province in southern Afghanistan. It aimed to secure various canal and river crossings to establish a permanent International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) presence in the area. The commander of the operation declared the first stage a success on 27 July 2009.
The Battle of Nawzad (2006–2014) was a battle between ISAF (coalition) forces and Taliban insurgents in Nawzad at the center of Nawzad district in the northern half of Helmand Province, southern Afghanistan.
Operation Moshtarak, also known as the Battle of Marjah, was an International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) pacification offensive in the town of Marjah, Helmand Province, Afghanistan. It involved a combined total of 15,000 Afghan, American, British, Canadian, Danish, and Estonian troops, constituting the largest joint operation of the War in Afghanistan up to that point. The purpose of the operation was to remove the Taliban from Marja, thus eliminating the last Taliban stronghold in central Helmand Province. The main target of the offensive was the town of Marjah, which had been controlled for years by the Taliban as well as drug traffickers.
Forward Operating Base Budwan, or more simply, FOB Budwan, was a military base located near Gereshk, in the Helmand province of Afghanistan. It was occupied by International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) forces from the United Kingdom and Denmark as part of Task Force Helmand during Operation Herrick.
Operation Toral was the codename for the British presence within Afghanistan post-2014 as part of NATO's Resolute Support Mission. UK forces had two major tasks: training and mentoring Afghan Forces, and providing force protection for NATO advisors via the Kabul Security Force/Kabul Protection Unit.
United Kingdom 
Estonia 
Denmark 
United States 
Islamic Republic of Afghanistan 
International Security Assistance Force 
Taliban 
