Operation Panther's Claw

British forces in Helmand Soon after the Taliban insurgency took root in Afghanistan large tracts of Helmand Province came under Taliban control. Of all of Afghanistan's provinces, Helmand "has been the most difficult" for coalition forces, according to BBC News foreign correspondent Ian Pannell, and holds the largest Taliban presence. Operation Zafar, launched on 27 April, lasted one week and involved more than 200 troops of the Afghan National Army (ANA) and Afghan National Police, The operation succeeded in clearing the Taliban from several villages around Basharan in central Helmand, killing "many Taliban insurgents" according to the Ministry of Defence (MoD) at a cost of only "handful" of ANA and British casualties. Zafar 2, launched on 19 May, and lasting four days, saw British troops deployed to secure an area so that a checkpoint—to be manned by Afghan forces—could be built on a key route into the provincial capital Lashkar Gah. On 29 May, soldiers from the Royal Regiment of Fusiliers engaged and drove out Taliban fighters near the village of Yatimchay, south of Musa Qala. Lt Col Nick Richardson, spokesman for Task Force Helmand, credited the arrival of additional American forces in Helmand with increasing the operational capability of International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) forces in the province and helping to open the way for Panther's Claw. ==The Operation==

Airborne assault Panther's Claw was launched around midnight on 19 June 2009 with the stated aim of securing control of various canal and river crossings and establishing a lasting ISAF presence In what the Ministry of Defence described as "one of the largest air operations in modern times", according to BBC News, more than 350 troops from The Black Watch, 3rd Battalion, Royal Regiment of Scotland (3 SCOTS),(2 Rifles) transported by twelve Chinook helicopters, deployed into Babaji, north of the provincial capital Lashkar Gah, in Helmand Province. Third wave In the third phase of Panther's Claw, more than 700 British soldiers from the Light Dragoons and 2nd Battalion, Mercian Regiment (Worcesters and Foresters) supported by soldiers of the Danish Battle Group, {{cite news {{cite news launched a ground offensive, backed by fire support, against Taliban-held areas north of Lashkar Gah. {{cite news The assault was timed to coincide with Operation Khanjar, or Strike of the Sword, launched on 2 July, by American forces against Taliban strongholds in the Helmand River valley. The BBC reported that British troops had by 3 July, "taken some key towns", but that their progress was impeded by insufficient resources. By 4 July, British forces had encountered "little resistance" {{cite news —in contrast to American and Afghan forces to the south participating in Khanjar who were engaged in "fierce" fighting against the Taliban. {{cite news As of 5 July, around 3,000 Task Force Helmand troops from the United Kingdom, Denmark, Estonia, and Afghan government forces were involved in Panther's Claw, with the British MoD reporting close quarters combat with Taliban fighters. {{cite news On 5 July, Danish Daily Politiken reported that between 55-65 soldiers or nearly half the corps, of the Danish Special Forces unit Jægerkorpset had been deployed in the operation, with the primary objective to aid regulars of the Danish Army secure 13 bridges over a major irrigation canal in the area. It's one of the largest known deployments of Danish special forces on foreign soil, and the largest since 2002. {{cite news Second stage After declaring the first stage of the operation a success on 27 July 2009, UK forces commenced the second stage, which focused on holding ground won from the Taliban in previous weeks. ==Casualties==

• 19 June: On the first day of the operation, one British soldier, Sean Birchall, a major from the 1st Battalion Welsh Guards, was killed in an explosion near Lashkar Gah. • 23 June: Lt Col Richardson of Task Force Helmand reported that British forces killed several Taliban fighters during operations in the vicinity of Babaji. • 16 July: A member of 2nd Battalion, The Rifles, was killed in an explosion near Gereshk. ==See also==