In Tagab, in northeast Afghanistan, there are 56 French soldiers advising the Afghan National Army (ANA), fighting shoulder to shoulder with Afghans to repel insurgents in the Kapisa valley, near the Pakistan border.

"Afghans are brave. They have a very instinctive way of fighting," said a lieutenant-colonel of the 1st Marine Infantry Parachute Regiment, whose name cannot be disclosed.

The officer heads the French Operational Mentor and Liaison Team (OMLT) and mentors the commander of the Afghan regiment.

But he says there is a downside to the Afghan's readiness to fight.

"For them it is: 'I must show my superiority, very fast,'" he said. "'So I respond, I fire like a madman.'"

The OMLT advises the Afghan army on all aspects of the military, from staff management, logistics and planning to communication techniques and firefights, and accompanies them on operations in the valleys of Tagab, Alasai and Bedraou.

It is a complex mission and the Afghan army is not only young, but also 80 to 90 percent illiterate.

However, the French officer said: "Overall, they are pretty responsive. They are from here, they see things we don't see."

In Tagab, the French oversee 250 to 300 Afghan soldiers, divided into groups of about 70 soldiers in each combat outpost -- advanced fighting positions in the valleys which are frequently the scene of violent clashes with insurgents.

The head of the OMLT estimated there are "60 full-time and 140 casual" insurgents active in the area.

"Little by little the population is coming over to our side, because they see we're stronger than the rebels. We take care of the children, we are beginning to help the women," he said.

Afghan soldiers, he added, "have absolutely no fear of death".

"For them, if there is one person killed and one wounded, the priority is the dead body, because it must be buried within 24 hours (according to Muslim belief)," he said.

"I am working with (French) helicopter pilots to ensure they evacuate the dead along with the wounded."

His Afghan counterpart, portly 50-year-old Lieutenant-Colonel Hussein, underlined the effectiveness of the system.

"Six months ago, the ANA did not have the ability to enter the 'green zone'," he said, referring to the agricultural area which provides refuge for the Taliban. "Now, we can."

The ANA is equipped at great expense by the United States, with uniforms, M16 assault rifles and armoured vehicles.

"The coalition has equipment that we lack -- heavy weapons, night vision capabilities. But our men are brave. They could conduct operations alone if they had modern equipment," said the Afghan officer.

Some 65 OMLTs, six of them French, advise the ANA across the country. The leader of the Tagab team sees them as "the ideal accompaniment" to the withdrawal of international troops in Afghanistan, planned for the end of 2014.

"We will not stop holding their hands immediately. Equipment, helicopters, artillery, will remain. This is the answer to gradually leaving the area," said the French officer.

"However, when we do go, I think they will fully take charge. It's a question of their survival."

del.icio.us	Digg	Reddit
YahooMyWeb	Google	Facebook

Memory Foam Mattress Review

SPACE MEDIA NETWORK PROMOTIONS Solar Energy Solutions Tempur-Pedic Mattress Comparison ... Newsletters :: SpaceDaily :: SpaceWar :: TerraDaily :: Energy Daily XML Feeds :: Space News :: Earth News :: War News :: Solar Energy News