Fierce battles were underway Tuesday, December 22, between Afghan forces and the Taliban in southern Helmand province where the insurgents have almost completely captured a strategic district as Britain announced it was deploying advisers to the restive area, the Assiciated Press reports.
The development came a day after a Taliban suicide bomber killed six U.S. troops near a Kabul base — the deadliest attack on Americans in the country since August.
A British Ministry of Defense statement late Monday said "a small number of U.K. personnel" have been deployed to Helmand "in an advisory role." The U.K. has 450 troops in Afghanistan as part of NATO's training mission.
The Afghans were also sending reinforcements to Helmand on Tuesday, officials said. Afghanistan's Chief Executive Abdullah Abdullah said the security of Helmand was a "top priority," according to his deputy spokesman Javid Faisal. The Taliban have been getting closer to taking full control of the Sangin district for days, with most government buildings now in Taliban hands.
An official in Helmand said that only an Afghan army base remained in government hands, and it was surrounded by Taliban fighters. Speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media about the operation, the official said Afghan commandoes and special forces will try to "rescue those soldiers who are stuck in the base."
