Daily Times

LASHKAR GAH: Elders in Afghanistan’s troubled Helmand province accused the Kabul government and its international backers on Saturday of failing to live up to promises of protection as Taliban militants claim more territory and threaten the provincial capital.

Despite months of reorganisation, a new influx of international advisers, and regular American air strikes, Afghan security forces have slowly lost ground to Taliban offensives in the Helmand province.

“The sons and daughters of those leaders in the capital have not fought, but we have sacrificed our children,” one elder, Mohammed Nabi, told the visitors in Lashkar Gah, the provincial capital.

Residents have responded to pleas from the central government to rally around the national security forces, only to have police and soldiers abandon checkpoints, one provincial council member said.

Some checkpoints have been closed under a plan this year to pull soldiers off static forts, consolidating forces and making them more mobile.

That hasn’t sat well with some locals, distrustful of the security forces after seeing some posts abandoned in the face of Taliban attacks.

The provincial governor, Hayatullah Hayat, said some troops who abandoned their posts have been put on trial.

Witnesses report Taliban flags are visible from some areas in Lashkar Gah, while in one area only a river stands between the insurgents and parts of the city.

General John Nicholson, the top commander of US and NATO coalition troops in Afghanistan, pledged continued support to the Afghan troops, with more advisers arriving in coming months.

“The world is watching what is happening in Helmand,” he said. “We will do everything possible to ensure Lashkar Gah does not fall.”