U.S. retreat from Afghan valley marks recognition of blunder

Source: Washington Post

U.S. retreat from Afghan valley marks recognition of blunder
American forces withdraw from Afghan valley

Over the past week, hundreds of U.S. Army Rangers and Afghan commandos pushed into Afghanistan's Korengal Valley to control the high ground the enemy would need for a big attack on departing troops. Dozens of cargo helicopters hauled off equipment. By the morning of April 14, 2010, after a long, bloody occupation of the valley, the last Americans were gone.

By Greg Jaffe
Washington Post Staff Writer
Thursday, April 15, 2010

KORENGAL VALLEY, AFGHANISTAN -- It was as if the five years of almost ceaseless firefights and ambushes had been a misunderstanding -- a tragic, bloody misunderstanding.

More than 40 U.S. troops have been killed, and scores more wounded, in helicopter crashes, machine-gun attacks and grenade blasts in the Korengal Valley, a jagged sliver just six miles long and a half-mile wide. The Afghan death toll has been far higher, making the Korengal some of the bloodiest ground in all of Afghanistan, according to American and Afghan officials.

In the pre-dawn hours of Wednesday, the U.S. presence here came to an abrupt end.

A day earlier, Capt. Mark Moretti, the 28-year-old commander of American forces in the valley, walked two dozen Korengali elders around his base and told them that the United States was withdrawing. He showed the elders the battle-scarred barracks, a bullet-ridden crane, wheezing generators and a rubber bladder brimming with 6,000 gallons of fuel.

Read more: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/04/14/AR2010041401012.html

they realized in this valley they were fighting for the sake of fighting. There were no Taliban in the valley and the only thing the residents of the valley wanted was for the US to leave them alone. So you're right this is a good metaphor of smarter leadership and better results.

More dead. Yeah, great results. Woohoo!

Maybe our military commanders forgot to read any history books on war.

Actually the Viets defeated the US Marines in exactly the same place that they called Khe San.

...this is a startlingly thoughtful article. K&R.

it's clear there's no vital gains to be made. Much better than to keep expending blood and money and effort just to avoid the appearance of losing or of being weak. Hopefully the same attitude will apply when we leave the country as a whole.

Washington.

He seems to be a smart, common-sense leader.