Friday attack on base was costliest in Afghanistan War

MEMPHIS TN(IFS) -- How many young soldiers had to die before a "general" decided that maybe having these troops that you are training and turning against you is not the right decision at this time.  How about 40 soldiers ago?  Maybe?  I know its'  easy to armchair  "general-back" after the facts, but training these people is not in our best interest at this time.  

Let them go on patrol by themselves.  

Its obvious that we have been infiltrated by the enemy, as they are wearing our uniforms blowing up our planes, tanks and killing us with our own guns.  Its time to replace the general, he's out of touch with the soldiers on the ground, and somehow he did not get the message until losing $200 Million in equipment and a number of good men on the ground.  Is there any resemblance of Pearl Habor here?- KHS

=====================

By Alissa J. Rubin
The New York Times
© September 17, 2012

KABUL, Afghanistan

An audacious Taliban attack on a heavily fortified base in southern Afghanistan did far more damage than initially reported, destroying or severely damaging eight attack jets in the most destructive single strike on Western materiel in the 11-year war, military officials said Sunday.

While other attacks have caused greater loss of life, the assault late Friday at Camp Bastion in Helmand Province, one of the largest and best-defended posts in Afghanistan, was troubling to NATO because the attackers were able to penetrate the base, killing two Marines and causing well more than $200 million in damage.

"We're saying it's a very sophisticated attack," a military official in Afghanistan said. "We've lost aircraft in battle, but nothing like this."

The complex attack, which NATO officials said was conducted by three tightly choreographed teams of militants wearing American Army uniforms, was a reminder that the Taliban remain capable of serious assaults despite the "surge" offensive against them. Now the offensive is over, and nearly 10,000 Marines have left Helmand Province, a critical stronghold for the Taliban, over the past several months.

Together with a rash of attacks by Afghan security forces against NATO troops - including two over the weekend that left at least six coalition service members dead - the Taliban have put new pressure on the American withdrawal plan, which calls for accelerated troop pullouts through 2014 while training Afghan forces to take over.

At the same time, tensions with the government flared Sunday as President Hamid Karzai condemned the deaths of Afghan women in airstrikes and criticized the continued American custody of hundreds of Afghan prisoners.

The military investigation into the attack at Bastion is now trying to uncover whether the insurgents had help from inside the camp and whether they were trained or aided by neighboring countries, such as Pakistan or Iran, which have allowed the Taliban to take refuge in their territory. But military officials and Afghan analysts said the insurgents may well have prepared for their mission in significant measure by studying easily available satellite images on the Internet.