Anonymous Source Watch: Washington Post (Monday, September 14)

In Kandahar, a Taliban on the Rise (A1)
By Rajiv Chandrasekaran

Anonymous Quote #1
“Kandahar is at the top of the list," one senior U.S. military official in Afghanistan said. "We simply do not have enough resources to address the challenges there."

Anonymous Quote #2
We could wind up with the exact opposite effect than we're seeking to achieve," one official said.

But, the official noted: "Unless we get more troops, we don't really have a choice. We can't go into the city with the forces we have now."

50 Taliban Fighters Reported Killed (A8)
Associated Press
By Rahim Faiez

Anonymous Quote #1
The ISAF official said the operation was launched because there were signs that the Taliban kidnappers planned to move the two men and hand them over to higher-level insurgents.

British troops came under heavy fire as soon as their helicopters landed, said the official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to provide details of the operation that had not been made public.

Anonymous Quote #2
The British troops killed about a dozen militants during the operation, the official said.

"People need to understand that it's not like we walked in and tried to save this one guy and leave the other behind," the official said. "It was really heavy fire, and the risk wouldn't have been justified to recover a person they knew was already dead."