# U.S. Marines on the Ground Near Kandahar

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/u-s-marines-on-the-ground-near-kandahar/95209>\
**Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\
**Created:** [November 26, 2001, 1:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/u-s-marines-on-the-ground-near-kandahar/95209 "2001-11-26T01:34:19Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![MEBuckner](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mebuckner/32/2896_2.png) [@MEBuckner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MEBuckner)\
**Post date:** [November 26, 2001, 1:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/u-s-marines-on-the-ground-near-kandahar/95209/1 "2001-11-26T01:34:19Z")

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Today’s [_New York Times_](http://www.nytimes.com) is reporting that [U.S. Marines have landed and established a base 12 miles from Kandahar](http://www.nytimes.com/2001/11/25/international/25WIRE-SOLDIERS.html). (Article requires free registration to read.) This reportedly involves a force of at least several hundred ground troops maybe will increase to at least a thousand troops, with armored vehicles and (apparently) helicopters and possibly Harrier jets based in Afghanistan. This strikes me as a pretty major development; I don’t think anyone has started a thread about this, and [CNN](http://www.cnn.com) and the [_Washington Post_](http://www.washingtonpost.com) don’t seem to have picked it up–if they have, they aren’t pushing it.

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**Author:** ![Biggirl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biggirl/32/3294_2.png) [@Biggirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biggirl)\
**Post date:** [November 26, 2001, 2:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/u-s-marines-on-the-ground-near-kandahar/95209/2 "2001-11-26T02:10:31Z")

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I’ve noticed a marked difference in the stories on CNN and the ones in my local paper. [American soldiers under fire](http://www.nydailynews.com/2001-11-21/News_and_Views/Beyond_the_City/a-132799.asp?last6days=1) make page 2 in the Daily News. I don’t think I’ve seen any stories on CNN about American soldiers on the ground in and around Afghanistan.

Well, not exactly. I read a “Special Forces are rumored to be in and around Kabul” type story very early on on CNN. Am I missing stuff?

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**Author:** ![MEBuckner](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mebuckner/32/2896_2.png) [@MEBuckner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MEBuckner)\
**Post date:** [November 26, 2001, 2:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/u-s-marines-on-the-ground-near-kandahar/95209/3 "2001-11-26T02:15:45Z")

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Looks like CNN just posted something on this: [Report: U.S. troops on ground near Kandahar](http://www.cnn.com/2001/US/11/25/gen.war.against.terror/index.html)

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**Author:** ![London\_Calling](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@London\_Calling](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/London_Calling)\
**Post date:** [November 26, 2001, 2:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/u-s-marines-on-the-ground-near-kandahar/95209/4 "2001-11-26T02:20:12Z")

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The BBC reports are starting to firm up from an initial “…reports are suggesting…” to various more certain forms.

So, it seems the Marines are landing by helicopter– maybe 1,000 by later this morning Afghan time. Also, seems highly unlikely they’d be committed at this stage (and while the NA are still twitchy about foreign troops) without some seriously credible intelligence regarding the whereabouts of you know who.

One imagines the plan is to flush OBL out into the open or to locate him – lets hope they’re on the right track.