NATO forces in Afghanistan end 2010 with highest death toll since war beganIn 2010, NATO and its partner allies reported a total coalition death toll of at least 709, which is considerably higher than the 521 fatalities in 2009. But it is even more grim when compared to previous years, showing a rapidly increasing death toll as insurgents continue to bring heavy losses to international troops.The darkest month of the war was perhaps in July, with around 90 fatalities in this month alone, making it the deadliest month for U.S. forces since the war began on October 7, 2001 in response to the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks on the United States.
On September 11, 2001, two hijacked airliners crashed into both towers of the World Trade Center in New York. Another airliner crashed into the Pentagon in Washington, D.C., while a fourth crashed in Shanksville, Pennsylvania.
The council of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) eventually declared that the attacks of 9/11, which killed nearly 3,000 people from scores of countries, was considered an attack on all NATO nations. The NATO-backed war in Afghanistan aims to defeat the Taliban and other insurgent groups in the country.
And while ISAF may claim it is making progress in the war, by daily reporting the arrest and deaths of insurgents it deems to be 'key players', opposition to the U.S.-led war remains extremely high.
According to a CNN/Opinion Research Corporation survey released on Thursday, more than six in ten Americans oppose the war in Afghanistan which was launched by former U.S. President George W. Bush. Some 56 percent of those asked also said they believe things are going badly for the United States in Afghanistan.
"The war has not always been unpopular - back in March, when a majority thought that the war was going well, the country was evenly divided. But by September, the number who said that things were going well for the U.S. in Afghanistan had dropped to 44 percent, and opposition to the war had grown to 58 percent," said CNN Polling Director Keating Holland. "Today, with Americans remaining pessimistic about the situation in Afghanistan, they also remain opposed to the war."
Only time will tell if the security situation in Afghanistan, and its neighboring Pakistan, will improve. But figures show that insurgents remain capable to strike coalition troops and inflict heavy casualties, which is unlikely to change anytime soon. Critics fear the toll will be even higher in 2011.
When the war in Afghanistan began in late 2001, a total of 12 U.S. service members were killed. In 2002, this toll rose to 70 before slightly falling to 58 in 2003. Ever since, the toll has been rising rapidly.
Officials reported 60 coalition fatalities in 2004, 131 in 2005, 191 in 2006, 232 in 2007, 295 in 2008, and 521 in 2009 before hitting an all-time record high of 709 in 2010.
"We know that serious challenges lie ahead, but if Afghanistan is permitted to slide backwards, we will again face a threat from violent extremist groups like al Qaeda who will have more space to plot and train," said National Security Advisor General James Jones in late July after WikiLeaks released thousands of secret U.S. documents, revealing previously unknown information about the war in Afghanistan. "That is why we are now focused on breaking the Taliban's momentum and building Afghan capacity so that the Afghan government can begin to assume responsibility for its future. The United States remains committed to a strong, stable, and prosperous Afghanistan."
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