Marjah - another Fallujah?

Is the fight in Marjah going to be another “Fallujah-style” operation? The answer is yes, and no.

Will Operation Moshtarak be as important to the overall effort in Afghanistan as Operation al Fajr was to the outcome in Iraq? Absolutely! The clearing of Fallujah in the fall of 2004 was the beginning of the end for the Sunni/al Qaeda insurgency in Iraq. Half of all the poppy production in the world is in Central Helmand Province. Success in Operation Moshtarak will deprive the Taliban of millions of dollars in resources and could cause a reversal of the Taliban’s dominance throughout southern Afghanistan.

Will our soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines, along with our British allies and the young men of the fledgling Afghan National Army, be putting themselves at risk to protect civilians? Yes. Young soldiers and Marines entered homes in Fallujah never knowing if they would find suicidal insurgents with machine guns blazing or a cowering Iraqi family. Every room had to be checked and soldiers and Marines risked their lives every time they entered a room. The young men of the allied forces in Helmand will risk their lives again. They will not fire until fired upon and this will give the enemy the first shot. But, it will also save many civilian lives. Each young soldier and Marine will walk a thin line between life and death. He will be forced to make split second life-changing decisions time, and time again.

Will the battles be anything alike? No. Fallujah was an urban fortress. Thousands of insurgent fighters were dug in to the tangled urban environment. The fighting was up-lose, sometimes hand-to-hand. Helmand Province is a muddy rural battlefield, crisscrossed with irrigation canals. The canals are too wide to walk across; movement is limited to a small number of bridges. And, the enemy has laid IEDs on the approaches and leading away from these few choke points. Additionally, they have set up ambushes to attack the Marines at the canal crossings.

If the Marines aren't deliberate and cerebral in their approach, they will be pinned down out in the open as they try to disarm bombs or recover their wounded comrades. Operation Moshtarak is going to be nasty if the enemy decides to stay and fight. The terrain gives them complete "home court advantage.” They know the terrain and how to fight from it. They will bound and move and even try to flank our forces.

A huge difference between Fallujah and Marjah is that there are very few key buildings in the rural environment. The countryside is dotted with small one, and two, story buildings. The centers of commerce in Central Helmand are three huge bazaars (and many small ones). The Marines are going to find huge amounts of poppy seeds, pre-cursor chemicals, and implements of narcotic drug production in these bazaars.

Will the outcome in Marjah parallel the successes of Operation al Fajr in Fallujah? Militarily, we will defeat any Taliban forces we encounter. Hopefully, we can limit the impact on the people who live in the area and bring security to their lives. Hopefully, once secure, we can help them work toward a more prosperous future and give them hope that their children will have a better life.

Read New Dawn to learn more about the 2004 fight to free Fallujah.