**A joint Nato and Afghan military operation is succeeding in pushing Taliban fighters from their strongholds in Helmand province, officials say.**On day three of Operation Moshtarak, senior Afghan officers said areas around Marjah and Nad Ali were being cleared of insurgents.
However, US troops in Marjah were being slowed down by snipers and home-made bombs, a BBC correspondent says.
The campaign aims to bring the areas back under Afghan government control.
But the operation suffered a setback on Tuesday when rockets fired by coalition troops killed 12 civilians.
Nato commander Gen Stanley McChrystal said he “deeply regretted this tragic loss of life”.
On Monday, Afghan Brig Gen Sher Mohammad Zazai said coalition troops had largely contained the insurgents.
He said local residents were helping troops to locate explosives left by the Taliban.
“Today there is no major movement of the enemy,” he said.
“We don’t have anything, we didn’t bring anything with us, some friends give us blankets”
Haji Mohammed Jan, after fleeing Marjah
“South of Marjah they are very weak. There has been low resistance. Soon we will have Marjah cleared of enemies.”
Gen Aminullah Patiani told AFP news agency that nearly all the targeted territory in Marjah and Nad Ali was taken.
“All of the areas of Marjah and Nad Ali have been taken by combined forces. They are under our control,” he said.
“The Taliban have left the areas, but the threat from IEDs [improvised explosive devices] remains.”
Marjah resident Haji Mohammed Jan told the BBC that the Taliban had tried to stop people leaving, but he and others had managed to escape.
“We don’t have anything, we didn’t bring anything with us, some friends give us blankets,” he said.
“I also found with difficulties getting hold of grain. All we had we have left behind. We don’t like fighting. We are tired of it.”
The BBC’s Frank Gardner, at Kandahar air base, says a clear difference is emerging between Nad Ali - where British troops are operating, and Marjah to the south where US troops are focused.
While British forces have been able to move quickly to their objectives, US Marines are advancing slowly and painstakingly, being held back by snipers and more home-made bombs than they had expected, he said.
Military intelligence experts believe most Taliban who have chosen to stay and fight are concentrated around Marjah.
In northern Marjah on Monday, an armoured column came under fire from at least three sniper teams, AP news agency reported.
Despite the setbacks, Nato and Afghan commanders insist they now have enough troops to hold the ground taken and will soon be bringing in hundreds of newly trained police to re-establish Afghan government control, our correspondent adds.
Operation Moshtarak, meaning “together” in the Dari language, is the biggest coalition attack since the Taliban fell in 2001.
ANALYSIS
Frank Gardner,
BBC News, KandaharIt’s day three of the joint Nato-Afghan military operation and forces have experienced both successes and setbacks.
After inserting thousands of troops by helicopter into Taliban-held territory, Nato commanders say they are so far achieving their military objectives.
Meanwhile US, British and Afghan forces are having to cope with an unexpectedly high number of improvised explosive devices (IEDs).
For all the hi-tech aerial surveillance, infrared cameras and sophisticated eavesdropping at Nato’s disposal, its forces appear to have underestimated the scale of the problem of these roadside bombs.Situation report: Day three
The operation is also considered the first big test of US President Barack Obama’s new “surge” strategy for Afghanistan.
Nato has stressed that the safety of civilians in the areas targeted is their highest priority.
However, on Sunday a rocket fired in the Marjah area missed its target, hit a building and killed 12 Afghan civilians.
Gen McChrystal immediately suspended all use of the rocket system involved and Afghan President Hamid Karzai ordered an investigation.
At a news conference on Monday, Gen McChrystal said that before the operation had begun, President Karzai had stressed the importance of protecting Afghan civilians.
“This operation has been done with that in mind,” he said.
“While this is an Afghan-led operation, I think it highlights the special partnership which we’ve developed that I’m very proud of. And I would ask the media to watch the bravery of Afghan national security forces and their coalition partners because I’m exceptionally proud of how they are performing.”
Speaking at the same conference, Afghan interior minister Mohammad Hanif Atmar urged Taliban fighters to lay down their arms and take up the government’s offer of reconciliation.
“There is no way you can win there, the Afghan people are determined to win,” he said.
HAVE YOUR SAY
“* The “surge” approach drove most of the insurgents out of Iraq and there is no reason why it shouldn’t work in Afghanistan*”
Alan Trent, London
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The 15,000-strong coalition force includes 4,000 US Marines, a similar number of British troops plus a large Afghan contingent. Soldiers from Canada, Denmark and Estonia are also involved.
Three Nato deaths related to Operation Moshtarak have so far been confirmed.
On Saturday, a British soldier, Lance Sergeant David Greenhalgh of 1st Battalion Grenadier Guards, died in an improvised explosive device (IED) attack, while a US soldier was killed by gunfire in Marjah.
On Sunday, another service member was killed in an IED attack.
At least 20 Taliban fighters were killed and another 11 detained on Saturday, an Afghan commander said.
Another British casualty was announced on Monday, although not connected to Operation Moshtarak. UK officials said the soldier from 2nd Battalion, The Duke of Lancaster’s Regiment died during an night-time patrol near Musa Qaleh in Helmand on Sunday.
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