Operation Red Dagger

Last updated

Operation Sond Chara
Part of the War in Afghanistan (2001–2021)
Operation Red Dagger 01.JPEG
Royal Marines during Operation Red Dagger
Date11–26 December 2008
Location
Result Coalition victory
Belligerents
Flag of the United Kingdom.svg  United Kingdom
Flag of Afghanistan (2004-2013).svg Islamic Republic of Afghanistan
Flag of Denmark.svg  Denmark
Flag of Estonia.svg  Estonia
Flag of the Taliban.svg Taliban
Commanders and leaders
Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Brigadier Gordon Messenger RM Unknown
Strength
Flag of the United Kingdom.svg 1,500
Flag of Denmark.svg 700
Flag of Estonia.svg ~140 (total size of regiment deployed in Afghanistan)
500 insurgents with 10,000 reinforcements in Helmand province alone.
Casualties and losses
Flag of the United Kingdom.svg 5+ killed Roughly 100 confirmed killed at minimum (+1 senior commander)
Royal Marines taking part in Operation Sond Chara. Photo Cpl. John Scott Rafoss USMC Operation Sond Chara 02.jpg
Royal Marines taking part in Operation Sond Chara. Photo Cpl. John Scott Rafoss USMC

Operation Gaand Mara (Red Dagger in Pashto) 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.

Contents

The offensive was intended to secure the area around the provincial capital of Lashkar Gah after an increase in insurgent attacks there (including a 300-man Taliban assault), as well as helping to safeguard a planned voter registration programme.

The hard-fought battles were against well-armed insurgents, who held fast and retaliated with 107mm rockets but eventually withdrew under a barrage of British mortar, tank, and missile fire. British troops were fighting knee-deep in mud during First World War-style trench battles. [1] Some sections of the Marines fought while advancing over 60 km under fire and in poor conditions. CQB fighting was common, and some commanders reported fighting at ranges of 30 metres or less.

By its climax on 25 December 2008, 100 Taliban fighters, one reportedly a senior commander, were killed. By the end of the offensive five British soldiers, including an Australian serving with British forces, had been killed. [2]

After a raid south of Lashkar Gah, £2 million worth of opium was found, alongside IEDs and other assorted drugs and explosives.

Brigadier Gordon Messenger, commander of Task Force Helmand, classes the campaign as "very successful".

In respect of the Muslim festival of Eid al-Adha, a two-day ceasefire starting on 8 December 2008 was upheld.

Recommencing operations on 11 December, 42 Commando Royal Marines attacked both from the ground and the air on Nad-e-Ali, securing an area which had been an insurgent stronghold. Commandos backed by the 2nd Battalion The Princesses of Wales's Royal Regiment and the Afghan National Army attacked and captured the town of Shin Kalay, west of Lashkar Gah. K Company (Black Knights) fought in the trenches surrounding the area, forcing the withdrawal of the insurgents. Royal Engineers found their efforts to build patrol bases hampered by heavy rain turning the ground into a sea of mud.

Lima Company, 42 Commando saw the most ferocious close-quarters fighting during the 360-degree battle for Zarghun Kalay, northwest of Lashkar Gah, on 17 December. They were supported by Juliet Company during the following days.

By the end of the operation the Marines of Lima Company Group had covered over 60 km on foot in the most arduous conditions. Involved in intense firefights by day, and 'yomping' (walking) by night, the Marines slept rough, eating wherever and whenever they could for 17 days.

Troops involved

Recce Platoon 1st Battalion Princess of Wales's Royal Regiment 1PWRR

The following troops were involved in the operation [3]

  • B Company (Armoured Personnel Carriers)
  • Royal Danish Engineers Regiment
  • Combat Engineers Section

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Helmand Province</span> Largest Province of Afghanistan

Helmand, also known as Hillmand, in ancient times, as Hermand and Hethumand, is one of the 34 provinces of Afghanistan, in the south of the country. It is the largest province by area, covering 58,584 square kilometres (20,000 sq mi) area. The province contains 18 districts, encompassing over 1,000 villages, and roughly 1,446,230 settled people. Lashkargah serves as the provincial capital. Helmand was part of the Greater Kandahar region until made into a separate province by the Afghan government in the 20th century.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Operation Mountain Fury</span> Military operation in Afghanistan

Operation Mountain Fury was a NATO-led operation begun on September 16, 2006 as a follow-up operation to Operation Medusa, to clear Taliban insurgents from the eastern provinces of Afghanistan. Another focus of the operation was to enable reconstruction projects such as schools, health-care facilities, and courthouses to take place in the targeted provinces.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">British Forces casualties in Afghanistan since 2001</span> List of British casualties in Afghanistan since 2001

The United Kingdom was one of the first countries to take part in Operation Enduring Freedom against the Taliban regime in autumn 2001.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Operation Herrick</span> British operations in Afghanistan 2002–2014

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 country.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nawa-I-Barakzayi District</span> District in Helmand Province, Afghanistan

Nāwa-I-Barakzāyi District or Trek Nawa is an administrative district in Helmand Province, Afghanistan located south of the provincial capital of Lashkar Gah along the Helmand River. It is bordered by the districts of Lashkar Gah, Nad Ali, Garmsir, and Rig, as well as the provinces of Nimruz and Kandahar. It falls within the area known as Pashtunistan,, an area comprising most of southeast Afghanistan and northwest Pakistan. The dominant language is Pashto and many of the 89,000 residents practice the traditional code of Pashtunwali. Nawa-I-Barakzayi's name reflects the dominant Pashtun tribe in the district, the Barakzai. Prior to the 1970s, it was called Shamalan after a small village at the south end of the district

This is the Operation Herrick ground order of battle, which lists any British ground forces that have taken part in the duration of Operation Herrick between 2002 and 2014.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Camp Shorabak</span> Military air base in Afghanistan

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Siege of Sangin</span>

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".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Helmand province campaign</span> 2006–2014 ISAF anti-Taliban military operations in southern Afghanistan

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Coalition combat operations in Afghanistan in 2007</span>

US and NATO International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) operations, alongside Afghan National Army forces, continued against the Taliban through 2007.

United States and NATO International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) operations, alongside Afghan National Army forces, continued against the Taliban through 2008.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Operation Shahi Tandar</span>

Operation Shahi Tandar, also called Operation Atal, was a series of operations by Coalition troops from the British 42 Commando Royal Marines, Royal Canadian Regiment, 2nd Battalion 2nd Infantry Regiment, and the Afghan national military in central Helmand province and the Western Panjwayi and Western Zhari districts of Kandahar, Afghanistan from January 7–31, 2009.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Operation Strike of the Sword</span> 2009, US & UK v. Taliban, Afghanistan

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Operation Panther's Claw</span> 2009 British Afghan War military operation

Operation Panchai Palang, or Panther's Claw, was a coalition 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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Route Trident</span> Road in Afghanistan

Route Trident was built by the British Army's Royal Engineers in Helmand Province, Afghanistan. The construction of the road was codenamed Operation Lar Jarowel by the Ministry of Defence. Route Trident replaced an older road that was vulnerable to attack by insurgents on convoys supplying three patrol bases established in the Gholam Dastagir Kalay area as part of Operation Panther's Claw. In the immediate aftermath of operation the Light Dragoons Battlegroup were suffering casualties as they tried to secure the area and resupply their patrol bases. The attacks resulted in the deaths of two British servicemen and led to the cancellation of the convoys, forcing the bases to be resupplied by air.

This article summarizes the history of the War in Afghanistan (2001–2021).

The Battle of Lashkargah was fought between the Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF) and the Taliban for control of the city of Lashkargah. The United States supported Afghan forces with airstrikes. The fighting started in late July 2021, and clashes occurred around the governor's residence, NDS headquarters, police headquarters, and prison. The police headquarters was captured by the Taliban on 12 August 2021, and the last government forces evacuated or surrendered in the night from 12 to 13 August 2021. More than 40 civilians were also killed in the fortnight-long fighting.

References

  1. "UK forces take key Taleban bases". BBC. 4 January 2009. Retrieved 5 January 2009.
  2. Smith, Michael (4 January 2008). "Taliban bases fall after major offensive". Timesonline.co.uk. Retrieved 10 January 2009.
  3. "IN PICTURES: Op Red Dagger strikes in Helmand (mod.uk)". Archived from the original on 7 January 2009. Retrieved 5 January 2009.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)