Hearts and mind hard to reach in Afghan valley

By Rob Taylor

SAIDON KALACHEH, Afghanistan (Reuters) - Defeating insurgents in Afghanistan's volatile Arghandab Valley would take time, but there were now enough U.S. and Afghan troops to defeat the Taliban, the area's U.S. commander says.

A two-day push to widen security to "friendly" villages around a besieged U.S. combat post in Arghandab went awry this week, with American soldiers drawn into an insurgent fight and arguing with local people about their presence.

Soldiers shot and killed two suspected Taliban who had opened fire on them, although local people said the men were farmers. They accused U.S. troops of reacting to a backfiring tractor, underscoring how difficult the American mission to win support in the Taliban's birthplace will be.

Colonel Arthur Kandarian, who commands the 2nd Brigade of the U.S. 101st Airborne Division, said he was confident Afghan soldiers now joining U.S. troops would eventually convince local people that the Taliban no longer controlled the fertile farmlands of Afghanistan's bread basket.

"I think we are going to be fine. Across the three districts that I'm in charge of, we're just starting to see additional forces in some of these areas. Security of the population takes time," Kandarian told Reuters.

The Arghandab river valley is an important infiltration route used by the Taliban to attack U.S. forces and smuggle weapons and men a few miles east to Kandahar city.

An operation across Kandahar by U.S. and NATO soldiers is being planned, but insurgents in Arghandab are tying up Kandarian's brigade with mines and hit-and-run attacks launched from thick cover in ripening grape and pomegranate plantations.

"NO HEARTS AND MINDS HERE"