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US ups airstrikes to support Afghan forces

Robert BurnsAAP
The US is step[ping up its airstrikes in Afghanistan before it withdraws its troops from the region.
Camera IconThe US is step[ping up its airstrikes in Afghanistan before it withdraws its troops from the region. Credit: AP

The US military has launched more than a dozen airstrikes in the past week in support of Afghan government forces in their fight against the Taliban, a sharp spike over the handful that were done in the previous six weeks, according to US officials.

The Pentagon said on Tuesday that both conventional warplanes and armed drones were used, but did not provide details. A US official, however, gave some specifics and said there has been a significant increase in strikes since July 20, with the number sometimes reaching almost a handful a day.

The strikes, which include several conducted last week, indicate stepped up US support after weeks of battlefield gains by the Taliban as US troops complete their withdrawal.

US officials have said the aircraft have been flown from bases outside of Afghanistan because the US military pulled its combat planes out of the country.

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"A number of strikes have occurred over the last several days from both manned and unmanned strike platforms," Pentagon spokesman Major Robert Lodewick said.

According to officials, the airstrikes have largely been in direct support of Afghan forces under attack by the Taliban, but several also struck military equipment that had been captured by the Taliban. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity to provide greater detail on the attacks.

The airstrikes have been launched in a number of regions in the country, but a key focus has been around Kandahar, a provincial centre that officials worry could fall to the Taliban.

The Taliban now control more than 200 of the 419 district centres and have made progress in cutting off some supply routes. But while they are putting pressure on up to half of the 34 provincial capitals, they have yet to seize control of any.

General Frank McKenzie, the head of US Central Command, who is overseeing the US military withdrawal and making decisions on air support for Afghan troops, said on Sunday that airstrikes had been increasing.

"We're prepared to continue this heightened level of support in the coming weeks if the Taliban continue their attacks," McKenzie said.

McKenzie also said the US was providing "contract logistics support both here in Kabul and over-the-horizon in the region, funding for them, intelligence sharing, and advising and assisting through security consultations at the strategic level."

Central Command said the US troop withdrawal is more than 95 per cent complete. It is to be finished by August 31.

Whether the US will continue to provide airstrikes in support of Afghan government forces after that date is yet to be determined.

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