Poppy harvest results in reduction of violence in Helmand

General Messenger said that the reduction in violence can be assigned:

"Primarily to the fact that the poppy harvest is in full swing and a great deal of young men are involved in harvesting."

He said that this is usual for this time of year and that the expectation is that the level of activity will rise again once the harvest is over in around two to three weeks.

This has allowed, General Messenger continued, for progress to continue apace, with government outreach programmes gaining momentum. He added:

"The people are seeing governance and government representation more than ever before."

General Messenger said that the insurgents are finding this period important because they are feeling 'resource constrained'. He added:

"The revenue that we know they gain from the narcotic trade is as important as ever to them because they feel under pressure by what's going on."

The fact that there has been a changeover of brigades recently in Helmand is no reason why the Taliban's level of activity should have decreased, General Messenger said, as patrols have been going on just as before.  

The handover of control of Task Force Helmand to 4th Mechanized Brigade from 11 Light Brigade took place on 10 April 2010 and General Messenger said that most of the handovers at Battle Group level have now happened, with the exception of the 1st Battalion Coldstream Guards who will soon hand over to 1st Battalion The Royal Gurkha Rifles.

General Messenger said that operations on the ground were not affected at all by the recent disruption to the use of airspace over Europe resulting from the volcano eruption in Iceland and casualty care was equally unaffected.

He said that the airbridge between the UK and Afghanistan was suspended but was rapidly re-established the day after the airspace was reopened.

This did cause a delay to the Relief in Place (RIP), i.e. the changing over of troops from the incoming and outgoing brigades, which General Messenger said is being 'eaten away at now' and the delay should be less than a week.

No fatality repatriations were required over the period when UK airspace was closed, but around 100 people across the world have had to have their rest and recuperation period suspended until the RIP is back on schedule.

Speaking about the various areas in Helmand province where British troops are operating, General Messenger said that in Sangin a new District Governor and Chief of Police have been installed with improvements in coordination of governance and the establishment of a justice shura having taken place.

An uplift in the numbers of police in Sangin has also led to the opening of a new police checkpoint.

In Nad 'Ali, where the recent Operation MOSHTARAK took place, General Messenger said things are going very well, with the number of incidents low and that the low level predates the beginning of the poppy harvest, he added.

He said there is still violence and attacks on patrols but the numbers have reduced and the incidents are causing less disruption to everyday life.

In Marjah, where American forces conducted Operation MOSHTARAK, General Messenger said that the level of security is at a lower level than in Nad 'Ali and Babaji, with a greater number of incidents involving intimidation remaining a challenge and a key factor in the thinking of the commanders.

He said that there are some positives in Marjah, with tip-offs from locals about insurgent activity increasing and schools opening up.

The General pointed out that whereas there has only been an ISAF presence in Marjah since the start of Operation MOSHTARAK, there has been a longer ISAF presence in Nad 'Ali and Babaji with Operations SOND CHARA and PANCHAI PALANG having preceded MOSHTARAK in those areas.

General Messenger said that what we are seeing in Nad 'Ali, Babaji and Marjah is an indication that the business of building confidence and allegiance with the locals is something that takes time.

In Babaji, there was a recent bomb attack on Afghans using the local market, carried out, General Messenger said, as a warning to the people. He said though that interestingly the local elders have aligned themselves more with ISAF as a result of the attack with a greater level of anti-Taliban feeling in that area.

On the point of intimidation, the General spoke about the continued use of children by the Taliban, such as getting them to run at ISAF patrols with sticks in order to provoke a disproportionate response which could be exploited by the Taliban.

He spoke specifically about a child suicide bomber aged between 12 and 14 attacking a 40 Commando patrol in Sangin this week, which led to two injuries and the death of the boy.

The General also spoke about the importance of and improvements to freedom of movement both between provinces and within Helmand itself, with increasing traffic being seen on the key roads. He said that Helmand's Governor Mangal was recently driven from Lashkar Gah to Marjah, illustrating the improvements that have been made.

Regarding future activity, General Messenger said that there is no current intention to move UK forces to Kandahar or ongoing planning to do so.

He said that the focus on Kandahar is being called 'Cooperation in Kandahar' but it is not being viewed as a military operation; there is no start and end date or set-piece military manoeuvre and no wholesale clearance operations in Kandahar City. He added:

"It's about getting the politics right, the governance right, and the rule of law right, and that's where all the planning is being directed."

He added that in the neighbouring provinces where much of the insurgent activity is launched from there will be a deepening of the security effort, while in the centre there will be activity which quietly improves the writ of the Government of Afghanistan.