WASHINGTON, April 6 (UPI) -- NATO forces have expanded their spring offensive in southern Afghanistan, the top U.S. general confirmed Thursday.
Code named "Operation Achilles," the first part of the operation kicked off the first week of March and is meant to secure the around the Kajaki dam in northern Helmand province.
Gen. Peter Pace, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, however said a new phase of the operation has been started, but would not specify its scope or details.
"The NATO commander on the ground, Gen. McNeill, United States Army, has begun his operations. I do not want to get into the specifics of the operations, but it will unfold very clearly here in the next couple days what he has begun," Pace said.
Taliban extremists and insurgents in Afghanistan traditionally conduct spring offensives; NATO is taking the offensive now.
Pace said the Operationa Achilles will last "several months at various levels of intensity as various pockets of enemy are identified and taken under action."
Operation Achilles began March 6, with the intention of clearing the dam area to allow its rehabilitation. It provides both power and water for local communities and farms.
The phase of the operation begun in March involves more than 4,500 NATO troops and 1,000 Afghan forces. They are targeting Taliban extremists, nacro-traffickers and other elements trying to destabilize the area, according to NATO.
