Taliban victory

Map Image © New York Times, 2008
Not good:

American forces have abandoned the outpost in northeastern Afghanistan where nine American soldiers were killed Sunday in a heavy attack by insurgents, NATO officials said Wednesday. The withdrawal handed a propaganda victory to the Taliban, and insurgents were quick to move into the village of Wanat beside the abandoned outpost, Afghan officials said. Insurgents nearly overran the barely built outpost in a dawn raid on Sunday, the most deadly assault for United States forces in Afghanistan since 2005.

...

Only 45 American soldiers and 25 Afghans had occupied the Wanat outpost for a few days before the attack. Far outnumbered by militants, the force was nearly overrun and fought a four-hour battle before the Taliban were repelled. In addition to the nine American deaths, 15 American soldiers were wounded. Four Afghan soldiers were wounded.

Notice what has happened here. Over half of a large platoon of US soldiers are casualties in an action where a company-sized Taliban unit overran their position, then executed a tactical withdrawal while meeting no further resistance from NATO forces. The position has been abandoned as indefensible, leaving the Taliban firmly in  military control of the area.This follows a previously noted pattern in Pakistan, where remote outposts in place since the British Raj are being abandoned following successful overrun attacks by company to brigade sized Taliban units.

Nothing like this has ever happened in the American wars in Iraq. It would be considered a catastrophe if it ever did. But in Afghanistan, the news of a rapidly deteriorating military position in Afghanistan lives where the real scoop always lives in US newspapers these days, safely tucked away between pages 15 and 19 of the A section where only the wonks will find it.