A top US commander has warned of tough months ahead for Kandahar in southern Afghanistan as the US-led forces are gearing up for a major offensive against the Taliban, Press TV reported.
The Head of US Central Command General David Petraeus said Friday that the operation in Kandahar "is not going to be a conventional offensive" once the thousands of US, NATO and Afghan forces enter into battle with the enemy.
US-led forces have been trying for years to rout Taliban from Afghanistan, especially its stronghold in the south, but have so far failed to do so. Petraeus is now touring areas in and around Kandahar, in an unannounced visit, to bolster support for the new offensive.
"As we learned in Iraq, and as we have relearned in Afghanistan, when you fight to take away the momentum and the sanctuaries and safe havens of the enemy, the enemy fights back. And that can be a difficult and tough fight," he added.
US forces have been planning for a major offensive this summer to drive out Taliban from southern Afghanistan. They are also warning Kandahar residents to get ready for a violent summer ahead.
The US-led troops are being stationed on the outskirts of Kandahar for what has been described as the biggest military offensive in the nearly nine-year-old occupation of Afghanistan, hoping to turn the tide against a strengthening Taliban militancy.
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