US airstrikes return to 2012 troop surge level

The U.S. air war in Afghanistan has returned to a level of intensity not seen since American forces were still fanned out across the country and fighting Taliban militants in daily skirmishes in 2012, according to recently released military data.

As of June 30, U.S. and coalition aircraft had dropped or expended 1,634 munitions in Afghanistan so far this year, according to U.S. Air Force numbers. By comparison, in 2015 and 2016, that figure was 298 and 545 respectively.

The majority of this year’s strikes have been used to go after the Taliban, said Navy Capt. Bill Salvin, a spokesman for the U.S.led mission in Afghanistan.

The surge in U.S.-led air attacks comes as the Pentagon weighs whether to send thousands more troops into Afghanistan in a bid to reverse three years of steady gains by the Taliban. While Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis pledged to deliver a strategy to Congress this month, some lawmakers see any increase in support to what has become America’s longest running war as futile.

Salvin attributed the increase in airstrikes to gains made by Afghan Security Forces.

“As they’re more successful, more strikes are needed,” Salvin said.

On Monday, a U.S. Marine unit in Helmand province — often known as the birthplace of the Taliban — said it had helped the Afghan Army retake a district center south of the provincial capital of Lashkar Gah and that the operation had been supported with “numerous” U.S. airstrikes.