US Afghanistan forces see more Iraq-like attacks

By Will Dunham

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. forces are tracking a worrisome
rise in Afghanistan of tactics used by insurgents in Iraq, but
have no conclusive evidence that those methods have been
brought by rebels coming from Iraq, a senior U.S. commander
said on Wednesday.

With about 23,000 troops, the United States currently has
its largest force in Afghanistan since its military involvement
there began in October 2001, Pentagon figures showed.

“We are winning, but the war is not yet won,” Army Lt. Gen.
Karl Eikenberry, the top U.S. commander in Afghanistan, told a
Pentagon briefing. American troops are still fighting Taliban
and al Qaeda forces 4-1/2 years into the war.

Eikenberry said there has been an increase in violence in
southern Afghanistan compared to a year ago, Taliban influence
in some areas is growing, and narco-trafficking and corruption
threaten the long-term viability of the U.S.-backed government.

U.S. forces are watching very carefully for linkages
between the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, amid the increase in
the types of attacks more commonly seen in Iraq, he said.

“The enemy has changed its tactics over the past year,”
Eikenberry said. “We’ve seen that the enemy has shifted to
increasing use of improvised explosive devices. There’s been an
increase in suicide bombings.”

“With regard to the tactics, techniques and procedures, we
have not seen conclusive evidence that there has been any
migration from Iraq to Afghanistan of foreign fighters that are
bringing with them skills or capabilities,” Eikenberry added.

Eikenberry noted a steady increase in the sophistication of
the Afghan IEDs — the type of roadside bombs that cause most
U.S. casualties in Iraq. That’s not proof of a direct Iraq
connection, he argued, saying some techniques can be gleaned,
for example, from the Internet.

TROOP LEVELS

Eikenberry declined to forecast U.S. troop levels over the
rest of the year or say how long he expected American forces to
remain in Afghanistan in significant numbers. The U.S. military
had disclosed plans in December, when the force numbered
19,000, to cut its contingent to about 16,500 this spring, but
the force remains larger.

Factors Eikenberry said will affect his recommendations on
future troop levels include training of Afghan security forces
and changes in the NATO role. The 9,000-strong NATO-led
International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) is due to expand
into perilous southern Afghanistan in coming months.

U.S.-led forces overthrew Afghanistan’s Taliban leaders in
late 2001 after the Taliban refused to hand over Osama bin
Laden, architect of the September 11 attacks on the United
States. He remains a fugitive.

Taliban forces have stepped up their campaign against
foreign troops and the government in recent months with
roadside and suicide bombings, attacks and assassinations.

Eikenberry cited an increase in violence in southern
Afghanistan compared to last year, and a rise in recent months
in the number of Taliban fighters in parts of Kandahar, Helmand
and Uruzgan provinces.

Afghanistan is the world’s largest producer of opium, the
raw material for heroin. The narcotics trade accounts for about
a third of its economy and has corrupted many government
officials and members of the security forces.

Eikenberry said U.S. forces viewed fighting drugs as a “law
enforcement operation,” not a military one, and American troops
provide only support for counter-narcotics efforts such as
intelligence and transportation.