UK Ministry of Defence, British Warrior Armoured Fighting Vehicles working alongside the Afghan National Security Force have been taking part in a major offensive aimed at driving out the Taliban from key areas of Helmand province.
Operation PALK WAHEL, or 'Sledgehammer Hit', which is currently ongoing in the Upper Gereshk Valley region, is the first major operation for soldiers from the 2nd Battalion the Royal Gurkha Rifles since their recent arrival in Afghanistan as well as the first major deployment of Warrior Armoured Fighting Vehicles crewed by 1st Battalion the Scots Guards.
Both units joined other British Forces from the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) and their Afghan National Security Force counterparts in a 2,500-strong Task Force level offensive to drive out the Taliban from several key strongholds in the Upper Gereshk Valley.
ISAF's key objective is to create enduring security conditions and extend the Taliban-free areas. Enlarging the area controlled by Afghanistan's democratically elected Government to the Upper Gereshk Valley will allow vital reconstruction and development projects to take place.
The operation is being conducted in support of the Afghan Government and with the full approval of the local authorities.
Task Force Helmand spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Richard Eaton said:
“This next phase of Operation Palk is designed to protect areas within Helmand province where we have previously made gains against the Taliban and to push them further out. The first phases of the operation have been conducted over the last few weeks all across the Province, from Garmsir and Now Zad to the Upper Gereshk and Upper Sangin Valleys.
“This operation is another important step in ensuring that we continue the progress we have made recently in providing the enduring security conditions required to enable the Afghan Government to remove Taliban influence from communities in the Upper Gereshk Valley.
“It is crucial that the Taliban are prevented from intimidating and terrorising the local people so that they can go about their daily lives in peace. The presence of the Taliban in Helmand denies the local people the security and stability they so desperately want and hampers reconstruction and development projects that are so important to improving their quality of life.”
Of the 2,500 ISAF and ANSF personnel taking part in Operation PALK WAHEL, some 2,000 have been drawn from British Forces. They include 2nd Battalion The Mercian Regiment (Worcesters and Foresters), 2nd Battalion the Royal Gurkha Rifles, B Squadron The Light Dragoons, 1st Battalion The Grenadier Guards – who are providing operational mentoring to Afghan National Army troops from 3rd Kandak 3rd Brigade 205 Corps Afghan National Army – The Right Flank, 1st Battalion the Scots Guards, 12 Mechanized Brigade Reconnaissance Force, 36 Regiment Royal Engineers, 19th Regiment Royal Artillery, the Armoured Support Group, Royal Marines, and the Joint Force EOD group, as well as troops from Estonia, the Czech Republic, Denmark and the US.
ISAF helicopters and other aircraft are also providing support.
The Scots Guards' Warrior Infantry Fighting Vehicles have the speed, mobility, firepower and armour to support infantry in the assault. Weighing some 25 tons, they carry a turret-mounted 30 mm Rarden cannon that will defeat light-armoured vehicles out to 1,500 m.
During the initial stages of the operation a bridge head was secured and a crossing built over the Helmand River. This provided ISAF forces with superior manoeuvrability enabling them to penetrate Taliban-held areas.
Subsequent phases of the operation have seen activity across the Upper Gereshk and Sangin Valleys, as well as Garmsir and Now Zad.
In previous months, Task Force Helmand has carried out a number of operations in the province: Operation LEG TUFAAN, or “Small Storm”, removed Taliban from Aduzan in the Upper Gereshk Valley. The aim of Operation GHARTSE GAR, or “Mountain Stag”, was to take control of Jusyalay, between Sangin and Putay and Operation CHAKUSH, or “Hammer”, took place in the area between Heyderabad and Mirmandab, north east of Gereshk.
