Siege of Sangin

Sangin, a town of 30,000 inhabitants in Helmand province, is situated in a "green zone", a fertile agricultural area. By 2006, it was well known for opium poppy production and Taliban activity. Control of the city was strategically important to the Taliban because it would allow the transportation of poppy from the north to go south to Maiwand and Pakistan and enable them to cut off Afghan central government garrisons. The situation in Sangin was fragile due to the presence of two competing Pashtun tribes. The Alikozai tribe who held the district governorship and wielded political power, were at odds with the Ishakzai tribe, who had sympathies for the Taliban. This volatile situation made Sangin a prime target for internal divisions that could be exploited by the Taliban. The Taliban would be assisted in various ways by the local Ishakzai when they attacked and captured the city in mid-June 2006. When the Taliban seized control of Sangin, they violently targeted the family of the district governor, Alikozai Dad Mohammed, killing 33 members, including his influential brother, who had previously held the same office. One resident described the account: "The fight started after Amir Dad Mohammed Khan’s brother was killed. The situation worsened with more than fifty supporters of Amir Dad Mohammed killed in one day. The district office was seized, forcing the [new] District Governor to leave. Soon after there was general fighting and bombings." Several incidents involving coalition troops had already occurred in that sector: on 13 June 2006 a U.S. convoy was ambushed north of Sangin, on the road to Musa Qala. A Company, 3rd Battalion, Parachute Regiment, were called into the town to protect the convoy, but they withdrew after only 24 hours of presence. In late June, under pressure from President Hamid Karzai, the decision was taken to deploy British troops in Sangin to enforce the authority of the Afghan central government. This represented an important change from the "inkspot strategy" that had been carried out previously around Lashkar Gah. With the Taliban now in full control of Sangin, the British deployed to recapture the city. == Siege ==

A Company was called in to secure Sangin on 21 June 2006 after the Taliban had killed five civilians on 18 June, accusing them of working for the government, and a further 27 shortly afterwards when the relatives went to collect the bodies. They were supported by 700 ISAF coalition troops, including American, Canadian, Afghan and Estonian forces. In a subsequent cordon and search operation, the town was sealed off and Taliban compounds were searched and cleared. Ten Taliban were confirmed killed during the clearing operation, and the others were driven out. The operation weakened the Taliban's hold on the city, but did not break it, and the DC soon came under attack again. Continued fighting On 20 August, a 20-man group of paratroopers was clearing a compound when they were ambushed by the Taliban. A section led by Corporal Bryan Budd counterattacked and Budd himself killed two enemy fighters, but the section was forced to withdraw under heavy fire, with two men injured. It was only later that the platoon commander realized that Budd was missing, but rescuing him proved impossible due to heavy fire from the Taliban. The company commander, Major Jamie Loden, organised a relief force cobbled together from various units, including elements of the Royal Engineers and two Royal Military Policemen who happened to be in Sangin. Supported by the fire of two Apache helicopters, the British finally rescued Budd an hour after he had been hit, but it was too late to save him, and he died of his injuries. For his bravery during this action, Corporal Budd was posthumously awarded the Victoria Cross, the highest distinction in the British armed forces. The paratroopers were later replaced by 3 Commando Brigade, initially with Kilo Company 42 Commando Royal Marines, then C Company 2nd Battalion The Light Infantry (later 3 Rifles). After a relatively quiet tenure, Lima Company 42 Commando took up the mantle for a brief time before handing over the effort to C Company 2nd Battalion, Royal Regiment of Fusiliers. A severe spike in violence took place with the 29th Commando Regiment Royal Artillery's Fire Support Teams, (then providing fire support to the infantry) sustaining three killed in action in less than a week. Mike Company's short but bloody tenure saw them relieved in March 2007 by C Company Group, 2nd Battalion, Royal Regiment of Fusiliers. In their first twenty days in Sangin, the fusiliers were attacked 79 times. On 5 April, coalition troops occupied Sangin, meeting only light resistance, as by this time the town had been mostly vacated by the Taliban, and abandoned by most of its inhabitants. ==See also==