A US-led offensive in Helmand province aimed to break a Taliban siege on FOB Cafferetta and restore coalition supply lines in the Nawzad valley.
Key Facts
- US Marines involved
- approximately 1,000
- Afghan troops involved
- approximately 150
- Operation start date
- December 4, 2009
- Operation end date
- December 12, 2009
- Duration
- 8 days
- Danish armor attachment
- included
By the Numbers
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
FOB Cafferetta, a USMC and Afghan National Army outpost in the Nawzad valley of Helmand province, had been placed under siege by Taliban forces and was accessible only by air. Taliban control of the area had disrupted critical coalition supply and communications lines, necessitating a military response.
Operation Cobra's Anger launched in the early hours of December 4, 2009, deploying roughly 1,000 US Marines, 150 Afghan troops, and a Danish armor attachment into the Nawzad valley. The operation targeted Taliban supply and communications infrastructure and sought to reopen the coalition supply routes leading to the besieged outpost.
The operation concluded on December 12, 2009, following efforts to disrupt Taliban logistics in the Nawzad valley. It took place in the immediate context of President Barack Obama's announcement, made three days before the offensive began, of a planned surge of 30,000 additional US troops to Afghanistan.
Belligerents & Mobilization Analysis
Side A
3 belligerents
Side B
1 belligerent