page_title: Afghan National Army
section_title: Operations
hierarchical_section_title: Afghan National Army / History / Operations
caption_attribution_description: English: Afghan national army 209th Corps soldiers prepare for upcoming joint operations against insurgents in Baghlan province. (Photo ID: 277950)
context_page_description: The Afghan National Army is the land warfare branch of the Afghan Armed Forces. It is under the Ministry of Defense in Kabul and is largely trained by US-led NATO forces. The ANA is divided into seven corps, with the 201st in Kabul followed by the 203rd in Gardez, 205th in Kandahar, 207th in Herat, 209th in Mazar-i-Sharif, the 215th in Lashkar Gah, and the 217th in the north. The current Chief of General Staff of the ANA is Lieutenant General Yasin Zia.
  The Afghan National Army traces its roots to the early 18th century when the Hotak dynasty was established in Kandahar followed by Ahmad Shah Durrani's rise to power. It was reorganized in 1880 during Emir Abdur Rahman Khan's reign. Afghanistan remained neutral during the First and Second World Wars. From the 1960s to the early 1990s, the Afghan Army was equipped by the Soviet Union.
  By 2014, most of Afghanistan came under government control with NATO playing a supporting role. The majority of training of the ANA is undertaken in the Afghan National Security University. In 2019, the ANA had approximately 180,000 soldiers out of an authorized strength of 195,000.
context_section_description: Following the crash of Kam Air Flight 904 in 2005, ISAF made numerous unsuccessful helicopter rescue attempts. ANA soldiers also searched for the plane. The Ministry of Defense ordered the ANA's Central Corps to assemble a team to attempt a rescue of victims presumed to be alive. The crash site was at an altitude of 11,000 feet (3,400 m) on the peak of the Chaperi Mountain, 20 miles (32 km) east of Kabul.
  In March 2007, the ANA captured a senior Taliban leader known as Mullah Mahmood near Kandahar. Mahmood was suspected of organizing suicide attacks in Kandahar province. More than forty-nine Taliban fighters were killed in one of the independent operations carried out by the Afghan National Security Forces. In a March 2007 rescue operation, the Afghan forces deployed their Mi-8 helicopters and evacuated flood victims in the Ghorban district of Parwan province. Afghan soldiers safely evacuated 383 families to safer places. In the same month, an Afghan-Pakistani border skirmish was reported near the Durand Line border but resulted in no casualties.
  The ANA began small independent operations which were expanded to large-scale operations in spring 2009. From 2009 to mid-2013, there have been hundreds of NATO-led Afghan operations against militant groups across Afghanistan, some of which were small while others were major.
  On October 9, 2018 a spokesman for Afghan police in Kabul said in an attack in the northern province of Jawazin by Taliban 12 Afghan soldiers were killed and 10 others wounded.
  Operation Achilles
  The ANA, alongside ISAF, successfully engaged Taliban extremist strongholds. This operation was launched on March 6, 2007, to stabilize northern Helmand Province. This would enable reconstruction work to start.
  Battle of Musa Qala
  After 10 months in Taliban hands, the town of Musa Qala was retaken by ANA backed by ISAF and coalition support. Taliban insurgents had scattered mostly to the north.
  Operation Panther's Claw
  Operation Panchai Palang, or Operation Panther's Claw, was a UK-led military operation in Helmand Province. Afghan and ISAF contributed a total of 3,000 soldiers for the operation. The alliance targeted Taliban insurgents involved in the drug trade. The battle ran simultaneously with the U.S.-Afghan Operation Strike of the Sword.
  Operation Eagle's Flight
  ANA artillerymen fired multiple D-30 artillery pieces during a night mission at Patrol Base Sorkh Bid during Exercise Eagle's Flight. The ANA's 4th Brigade were a step closer to deploying gun detachments outside Coalition Patrol Bases after a successful live fire artillery shoot during July 2012. Exercise Eagle's Flight showcased the improving capability of the 2nd Battery, or Canon Tolay, as they fired high explosive, smoke and illumination rounds onto a designated target area near Patrol Base Sorkh Bid, northern Kandahar. 3rd Battalion, the Royal Australian Regiment Task Group (3 RAR TG) offensive support mentor Captain Raj Chetty said the ANA has been efficiently protecting the locals for a long time. "The battery was well educated and trained before we arrived, and they are at a stage now that [shows] they are ready to deploy, we are just doing final assessments before they go out there."
  Operation Khanjar (Strike of the Sword)
  Operation Strike of the Sword or Operation Khanjar began when units moved into the Helmand river valley in the early hours of July 2, 2009. About 4,000 Marines from the 2nd Marine Expeditionary Brigade as well as 650 Afghan soldiers were involved, supported by ISAF aircraft. The operation was also the largest airlift offensive since the Vietnam War.
caption: ANA soldiers of the 209th Corps prepare for upcoming joint operations against insurgents in Baghlan province.
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