Arghandab will not fall to Taliban: US ambassador

0 Comments | AFP, June, 2008

WASHINGTON (AFP) — The Taliban can "raise a lot of dust" but Arghandab will not fall to them because they cannot hold ground for lack of Afghan popular support, the US ambassador to Kabul predicted here Wednesday.

"We're coming off of two difficult events in Kandahar province -- the break-in to the prison and the Arghandab fighting," Ambassador William Wood told reporters during a visit to Washington.

"I would like to point out that six months ago, there was also fighting in Arghandab and there was lots of headlines then that said Arghandab is about to fall, and that wasn't right then and it's not going to be right now," he said.

Afghan and NATO troops backed by helicopter gunships killed 35 Taliban rebels Wednesday in a huge "clean-up" operation to drive...