British soldiers in Lashkar Gah, AfghanistanFrom AFP:
LONDON (AFP) — British, Afghan and coalition forces captured four key Taliban strongholds in southern Afghanistan during a massive operation that saw them fight at close quarters, knee-deep in mud, it emerged Sunday.
The Ministry of Defence released details of the operation, which was fought over 18 days around the town of Nad-e-Ali in Helmand province and left five members of the British forces and around 100 Taliban fighters dead.
More than 1,500 troops were involved, making it one of the largest operations mounted by the Royal Marines since the US-led invasion of Iraq in 2003. It culminated in a battle on December 25, Christmas Day.
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