Operation Sledgehammer brings smack down on Taliban

By Sgt. Melissa Stewart, Task Force Spartan Public AffairsMarch 12, 2012

Operation Sledgehammer
(Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL

KANDAHAR AIRFIELD, Afghanistan (March 10, 2012) -- Operation Sledgehammer was the main effort of Regional Command-South and the main endeavor for all of Afghanistan, the week of Feb. 22 to Feb. 27. Sledgehammer is the largest operation ever held in RC-South, and nearly were 1,700 Soldiers actively involved.

"The units come from two separate regional commands and included elements of five battalion (headquarters), an aviation brigade, and supporting effort from our sister brigade to the South," said Maj. Michael Denis, 3rd Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division, Combined Task Force, or CTF Spartan, chief of current operations.

CTF Spartan will continue to run mission until the transfer of authority to 4th Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division in March, but Sledgehammer is the last major operation for the deployment.

"We have conducted this operation to set the conditions for a seamless transition between units as we conduct a relief in place with our sister brigade and to diminish the capability of the insurgents as they prepare for the beginning of the fighting season," Davis said.

Historically, insurgents will fight the hardest during the spring and summer months and retreat to their homes or across the borders into Pakistan for the winter. Soldiers in 4th IBCT, 82nd Division are scheduled to assume command of the Zharay and Maiwand Districts at the beginning of the fighting season.

A major goal of this operation is to strike the insurgents before they have returned to the districts in full force to diminish the threat to the new brigade. International Security Assistance Forces, or ISAF, and their Afghan National Security Force, known as ANSF, counterparts have a specific target in the cross hairs, Maiwand district.

"The focus is on the area between the villages of Hutal and Demaiwand in the Talkakhay Plain," Davis said. "Operations against this area will disrupt the insurgents' ability to organize and conduct attacks against ISAF and ANSF in the future and allow for continued capacity building of the Afghan government."

For eleven months, the diligent efforts of CTF Spartan Soldiers have led to noteworthy progress in every aspect for the Zharay and Maiwand districts.

"This operation complements our campaign in a number of ways," Davis said. "First, we continue our efforts towards defeating the insurgency on the security front. Second, we are strengthening the ability of our Afghan counterparts with partnered operations such as these, many of which with ANSF in the lead," he continued. "This in turn builds the confidence of the Afghan people towards [their] government as well as the security forces that protect them. Finally, it will allow us to continue the strong non-lethal effort we are conducting as security continues to improve."

Attacking the insurgents before they have completely prepared for the fighting season will set the incoming brigade up for success. But, aside from preparing the battlefield for Soldiers in 4th IBCT, 82nd Airborne Division, Operation Sledgehammer focused on clearing the Maiwand district of illegal crops.

MAIN EFFORT ON THE GROUND

Soldiers in 3rd Squadron, 71st Cavalry Regiment, "Titans," were the main effort on the ground for Operation Sledgehammer. The Titans have been dominating the Maiwand district since they took responsibility for the area in December 2011.

"We're the brigade's decisive operation for clearing central Maiwand. We've got a succession of missions," said Lt. Col. Mike Kirkpatrick, commander of 3-71 Cavalry. "This operation will provide time and space for 4th Brigade, 82nd (Airborne Division), to come in, gain a foothold and begin their operations."

The Titans, along with their ANSF partners divided into troops and attacked the mission in Maiwand head-on.

"We have a number of operations. We have one troop in a ground role, one troop in an air assault role then we also have ANA operating independently in the Hutal bazzar, and the ANCOP operating basically independently at the Flying J Vehicle Inspection Station, and the ANA operating independently on Highway 1," Kirkpatrick said.

For the past year, the focus has been on securing the volatile Zharay district. But now, after eleven months, Zharay has been stabilized and the local population has regained a sense of security and normalcy. Now, nearing the end of the deployment, CTF Spartan made their final push through Maiwand. The main issue in the district is "threat finance," meaning the Taliban forces local villagers to farm illegal poppy to fund the insurgency. Many villagers do not want to grow the illegal crops, but are too afraid to say no to the insurgents.

"I think the brigade has been able to make a lot of security gains in Zharay, which has allowed us to focus our operations on Maiwand," Kirkpatrick said. "Maiwand is a large district within the province and there is a significant poppy growth here, which leads to threat finance. So, now that we are in the poppy growing season, it's time to focus operations in Maiwand and interdict that threat finance."

With Sledgehammer, the Titans and their fellow units participating in the operation had the chance to eradicate illegal crops, push any remaining insurgents from the villages, and to spread the message that the Government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan is a trustworthy government in place to help and protect the population.

At a shura held in the village of Karezak, Feb. 24, Gov. Salih Mohammed, the district governor of Maiwand, took the opportunity to speak to the local villagers about turning away from poppy and supporting the Afghan government.

"DG Mohammed is the most 'deployed' district governor. He goes out and visits every place we go to on operations," said Kirkpatrick of the shura held Feb. 24th in Maiwand. "It provides him a platform to project his influence from the district center out to areas that normally wouldn't see him. So, this is very important for him to get out here and speak the peace about the government."

The fact that the deputy governor of Maiwand takes the time to meet with the people of the district shows the local villagers that the Afghan government is a legitimate institution and can be trusted.

"He is willing to show his face. The Taliban government comes in at night. They don't show their face to the people. So, it is important for the people to see the face of the real government out here."

The involvement of the Afghan government and the ANSF was critical to the success of Operation Sledgehammer. Without the face of Afghan leaders side-by-side with the Titans and other ISAF involved in Sledgehammer, the local villagers would not have realized the legitimacy of the mission and their government.

RESULTS OF SLEDGEHAMMER

Operation Sledgehammer yielded significant gains in the Maiwand district on many different levels. First of all, the involvement of the district government in the operation demonstrated to the villagers that they can trust their leaders. The main reason Afghans still support the Taliban is due to fear or financial reasons. Showing them that the government cares and will provide protection and assistance will draw the people away from illegal activities.

On Feb. 23, Operation Sledgehammer began with the Titans moving into Maiwand and clearing the area. During the first day ISAF and ANSF involved in the operation found a total of three improvised explosive devices, known as IEDs, were involved in three firefights, and conducted a shura with local villagers.

The next day, more ISAF and ANSF units moved into Maiwand clearing as they moved, which resulted in seven IED finds and a cache with sixteen pressure plates, home made explosives and IED materials. This cache was just the first of five caches to be discovered and confiscated over the five-day operation. ISAF found and cleared 53 pressure plates and 29 IEDs, as well as two hundred pound of home made explosives over the duration of Sledgehammer.

During the five day operation over 5,400 vehicles traveling along Highway 1 were searched, which is the main thoroughfare in the district. Most of the searches were conducted independently by the ANSF.

As a result of firefights, eight insurgents were killed and one insurgent was wounded, and seven Taliban radio towers were destroyed. These are significant gains that will greatly improve the security of the Maiwand district, and give Soldiers in 4th IBCT, 82nd Division an advantage in the spring fighting season.

Even more substantial than the dent that has been put in the insurgents' arsenal and manpower is the fact that no ISAF or ANSF personnel were significantly wounded during the five-day push through Maiwand.

From this point, Soldiers in 4th IBCT, 82nd Airborne Division will continue to deploy and begin their fight against the insurgents in the area, while Soldiers in TF Spartan will return to their families and friends.

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