Musa Qala District

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Musa Qala is a district in the north of Helmand Province, Afghanistan.^[1] Its population, which is 100% Pashtun, was 50,300 in 2005. The district centre is the village of Musa Qala; there are 19 other large villages and 200 smaller settlements, mostly along the Musa Qala River.

In a drive to stamp out resurgent Taliban forces, NATO extended its presence to this region in mid-2006. Musa Qala, along with the rest of Helmand, was to be under the responsibility of British forces.

The village of Musa Qala was the scene of fierce fighting between British Pathfinder Platoon troops and Taliban fighters during the summer of 2006. The British had set up a stronghold in the local governor's office and faced daily waves of determined attacks. The British garrison was later relieved by a Danish infantry team who faced renewed Taliban attacks, culminating in better trained Taliban fighters equipped with rockets and mortars. After a month of these attacks the fighting died down and the Danish forces handed control of the base back to British forces. On 17 October, after a 35-day lull in violence, the British left the village, handing over control to the local elders' council.

[edit] Occupation of Musa Qala, February 2007

A unit of several hundred Taliban soldiers occupied Musa Qala on February 2, 2007.^[2] Eurasianet reports: "The attack laid waste to an agreement there, brokered last fall by Richards and local tribal elders, under which NATO troops agreed to withdraw from the town in return for a commitment by local Afghan leaders to oppose the Taliban."

British General David J. Richards, an expert at negotiation, was the outgoing NATO commander. Eurasianet reports that the new NATO commander, American General Dan McNeill, opposes the kind of local agreements that Richards favored, and speculated that the aerial bombardment that was reported to have killed Mullah Abdul Ghafour, on February 4, 2007, was a sign of McNeill's more aggressive, less conciliatory approach.

[edit] References

1. ^ UNHCR District Profile, dated 2002-12-31, accessed 2006-08-01 (PDF).
2. ^ Ahmed Rashid. "Taliban takeover of town could mark start of military offensive", Eurasianet, February 5, 2007. Retrieved on February 5. 

[edit] External links

• Map of Musa Qala district (PDF)

v • d • e Districts of Helmand Baghran • Dishu • Garmsir • Gerishk • Kajaki • Khanashin • Lashkar Gah • Musa Qala • Nad Ali • Nawa-I-Barakzayi • Nawzad • Sangin • Washir