Long before it became 'Obama's War,' the long-running conflict in Afghanistan was launched by President George W. Bush in retaliation for the 9/11 attacks on the United States. Only a few months later, Operation Anaconda sent American-led coalition forces into their most intensely brutal confrontation with Al Qaeda and their Taliban hosts in the Shar-i Kot Valley near the Pakistan border. The result was an unexpected set piece of conventional fighting in what has become an era of guerrilla warfare. Drawing upon previously unavailable or neglected sources, Lester Grau and Dodge Billingsley give us the most complete and accurate account of this thirteen-day firefight waged in mountainous terrain nearly two miles above sea level. They describe how allied troops fought a fierce and well-entrenched enemy to a standstill, close to an old Soviet battlefield, and then drove them completely out of Afghanistan. Grau and Billingsley's account also highlights problems encountered in Anaconda and the lessons we should learn from their in-depth study. The Army and Air Force operated under conflicting views regarding the appropriate application of Close Air Support, and airpower both crippled and aided the overall effort. In addition, severe shortages of transport, attack helicopters, and artillery hampered the effort, while the acquisition and timely sharing of intelligence barely occurred at all and coalition relations frayed under the intense pressures of combat.

Includes maps of: Disposition of Forces; Anti-Taliban Forces; First Infiltrations; Early Battles; Various Positions and Locations of battle in Afghanistan; Enemy Defenses; Objective Remington; Enemy Concentration and Supply Routes; Operation Harpoon. "Includes a DVD documentay featuring interviews with soldiers who fought.

Afghanistan and the Soviet invasion -- Enter the Taliban -- 9/11 and the takedown of the Taliban regime -- Moving into Afghanistan -- Into the Valley -- Anaconda: 2 March 2002 -- Anaconda: Days two and three -- Anaconda and Harpoon: Days four through fourteen -- Implications of Operations Anaconda and Harpoon.