International Security Assistance Force

The International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) was a NATO-led security mission in Afghanistan, established by the United Nations Security Council in December 2001 by Resolution 1386, as envisaged by the Bonn Agreement. Its main purpose was to train the Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF) and assist Afghanistan in rebuilding key government institutions, but was also engaged in the Afghanistan War.
ISAF was initially charged with securing Kabul and the surrounding areas from the Taliban, al-Qaeda and factional warlords, to allow for the establishment of the Afghan Transitional Administration headed by Hamid Karzai. In October 2003, the UN Security Council authorized the expansion of the ISAF mission throughout Afghanistan, and ISAF subsequently expanded the mission in four main stages over the whole of the country. From 2006 to 2011, ISAF had become increasingly involved in more intensive combat operations in southern and eastern Afghanistan.
== Jurisdiction ==
For almost two years, the ISAF mandate did not go beyond the boundaries of Kabul. According to General Norbert Van Heyst, such a deployment would require at least an extra ten thousand soldiers. The responsibility for security throughout the whole of Afghanistan was to be given to the newly reconstituted Afghan National Army. However, on 13 October 2003, the Security Council voted unanimously to expand the ISAF mission beyond Kabul with Resolution 1510. Shortly thereafter, Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chrétien said that Canadian soldiers (nearly half of the entire force at that time) would not deploy outside Kabul.
On 24 October 2003, the German Bundestag voted to send German troops to the region of Kunduz. Approximately 230 additional soldiers were deployed to that region, marking the first time that ISAF soldiers operated outside of Kabul. After the 2005 Afghan parliamentary election, the Canadian base Camp Julien in Kabul closed, and the remaining Canadian were assets moved to Kandahar as part of Operation Enduring Freedom in preparation for a significant deployment in January 2006. On 31 July 2006, the NATO‑led International Security Assistance Force assumed command of the south of the country, ISAF Stage 3, and by 5 October also of the east of Afghanistan, ISAF Stage 4.
ISAF was mandated by UN Security Council Resolutions 1386, 1413, 1444, 1510, 1563, 1623, 1659, 1707, 1776, and 1917 (2010). The last of these extended the mandate of ISAF to 23 March 2011. The mandates given by the different governments to their forces varied from country to country. Some governments wished to take a full part in counter-insurgency operations; some were in Afghanistan for NATO alliance reasons; some were in the country partially because they wished to maintain their relationship with the United States, and possibly, some were there for domestic political reasons. This meant that ISAF suffered from a lack of united aims.
== History ==
=== Stage One ===
* On 11 August 2003, NATO took command of ISAF. ISAF consisted of 5,000 troops from more than 30 countries. About 90% of the force were contributed by NATO nations. 1,950 were Canadian, by far the largest single contingent. About 2,000 German troops were involved. Romania had about 400 troops at the time.
* The first ISAF rotation under the command of NATO was led by Lieutenant General Goetz Gliemeroth, Germany, with Canadian Army Major General Andrew Leslie as his deputy. Canada had been originally slated to take over command of ISAF on 11 August.
* 13 October 2003: Resolution 1510 passed by the UN opened the way to a wider role for ISAF to support the Government of Afghanistan beyond Kabul.
* In December 2003, the North Atlantic Council authorised the Supreme Allied Commander, General James Jones, to initiate the expansion of ISAF by taking over command of the German-led PRT in Kunduz. The other eight PRTs operating in Afghanistan in 2003 remained under the command of Operation Enduring Freedom, the continuing U.S.‑led military operation in Afghanistan. On 31 December 2003, the military component of the Kunduz PRT was placed under ISAF command as a pilot project and first step in the expansion of the mission. Six months later, on 28 June 2004, at the Summit meeting of the NATO Heads of State and Government in Istanbul, NATO announced that it would establish four other provincial reconstruction teams in the north of the country: in Mazar-i-Sharif, Meymana, Feyzabad and Baghlan. After the completion of Stage 1 the ISAF's area of operations then covered some 3,600 square kilometres in the north and the mission was able to influence security in nine Northern provinces of the country.
* As late as November 2003, the entire ISAF force had three helicopters.
* On 9 February 2004 Lieutenant General Rick Hillier of Canada took command, with Major General Werner Korte of Germany as deputy. During this timeframe, Canada was the largest contributor to the ISAF force, contributing 2,000 troops.
* In May 2004, Turkey sent three helicopters and 56 flight and maintenance personnel to work in ISAF.
* In July 2004, Portugal sent 24 soldiers and one C‑130 Hercules cargo plane to assist ISAF.
On 7 August 2004: General Jean-Louis Py, commander of Eurocorps took command of ISAF. Eurocorps contributors deploying to Afghanistan included France, Germany, Spain, Belgium and Luxembourg. Canada reduced its forces to about 800 personnel.
* In September 2004, a Spanish battalion (about 800 personnel) arrived to provide the ISAF Quick Reaction Force, and an Italian Army battalion (up to 1,000 troops) arrived to provide the in‑theatre Operational Reserve Force. With a force of 100, Georgia became the first Commonwealth of Independent States country to send an operational force to Afghanistan.
* Stage 1 (North) was completed at October 2004 under the Regional Command of Germany.
=== Stage Two ===
* In February 2005: General Ethem Erdagi of Turkey took command.
* On 10 February 2005, NATO announced that ISAF would be further expanded, into the west of Afghanistan. This process began on 31 May 2006, when ISAF took on command of two additional Provincial Reconstruction Teams, in the provinces of Herat and Farah and of a Forward Support Base (a logistic base) in Herat. At the beginning of September, two further ISAF-led PRTs in the west became operational, one in Chaghcharan, capital of Ghor province, and one in Qala-e-Naw, capital of Baghdis province, completing ISAF's expansion into the west. The extended ISAF mission led a total of nine PRTs, in the north and the west, providing security assistance in 50% of Afghanistan's territory.
* As the area of responsibility was increased, ISAF also took command of an increasing number of PRTs, with the aim of improving security and facilitating reconstruction outside the capital. The first nine PRTs (and lead nations) were based at Baghlan (Netherlands, then Hungary at October 2006), Chaghcharan (Lithuania), Farah (U.S.), Fayzabad (Germany), Herat (Italy), Kunduz (Germany), Mazar-i-Sharif (UK, then Denmark/Sweden, then Sweden/Finland), Maymana (UK, then Norway), Qala‑e Naw (Spain).
* In May 2005 ISAF Stage 2 took place, doubling the size of the territory ISAF was responsible for. The new area was the former US Regional Command West consisting of Badghis, Farah, Ghor, and Herat Provinces.
* 5 August 2005: Italian General Mauro del Vecchio assumed command of ISAF. During 2005 Italy commanded four multinational military operations: in Afghanistan, Bosnia, Kosovo and Albania.
* September 2005: ISAF Stage 2 was completed under the Regional Command of Italy. In September 2005, the Alliance also temporarily deployed 2,000 additional troops to Afghanistan to support 18 September provincial and parliamentary elections.
* On 27 January 2006, it was announced in the British Parliament that ISAF would replace U.S. Operation Enduring Freedom troops in Helmand Province. The British 16th Air Assault Brigade became the core of the force in Helmand Province.
* In February 2006, the Netherlands decided to expand the troop contribution with an extra 1,400 soldiers.
* On 22 May 2006, a British Army WAH-64 Apache gunship fired a Hellfire missile to destroy a French armored vehicle that had been disabled during a firefight with Taliban forces in North Helmand province the previous day, as it was decided that attempting to recover the vehicle would have been too dangerous. This was the first time UK Apaches had opened fire in a hostile theatre and was, after a fashion, the WAH-64's first "combat kill".
=== Stage Three ===
* On 8 December 2005, meeting at NATO Headquarters in Brussels, the Allied Foreign Ministers endorsed a plan that paved the way for an expanded ISAF role and presence in Afghanistan. The first element of this plan was the expansion of ISAF to the south in 2006, also known as Stage 3. At the completion of this stage the ISAF assumed command of the southern region of Afghanistan from U.S.‑led Coalition forces, expanding its area of operations to cover an additional six provinces – Day Kundi, Helmand, Kandahar, Nimroz, Uruzgan and Zabul – and taking on command of four additional PRTs. The expanded ISAF led a total of 13 PRTs in the north, west and south, covering some three-quarters of Afghanistan's territory. The number of ISAF forces in the country also increased significantly, from about 10,000 prior to the expansion to about 20,000 after.
* 4 May 2006: United Kingdom General David Richards assumed command of the ISAF IX force in Afghanistan. The mission was led by the Allied Rapid Reaction Corps.
* 31 July 2006, Stage 3 was completed: The NATO-led International Security Assistance Force also assumed command in six provinces of the south. Regional Command South was established at Kandahar. Led by Canada, 8,000 soldiers were, by that time, positioned there.
* With the Taliban regrouping, especially in its birthplace of Kandahar province bordering Pakistan, NATO launched its biggest offensive against the guerrillas at the weekend of 2 and 3 September 2006 (Operation Medusa). NATO stated that it had killed more than 250 Taliban fighters, but the Taliban said NATO casualty estimates were exaggerated.
* On 7 September 2006, a British soldier was killed and six wounded when their patrol strayed into an unmarked minefield in Helmand, the major drug-growing province west of Kandahar.
* On 28 September 2006, the North Atlantic Council gave final authorization for the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (NATO-ISAF) to expand its area of operations to 14 additional provinces in the east of Afghanistan, boosting NATO's presence and role in the country. With this further expansion, NATO-ISAF assisted the Government of Afghanistan in providing security throughout the whole of the country. The expansion saw the NATO-ISAF controlling 32,000 troops from 37 countries, although the alliance was, by this stage, already struggling to find extra troops to hold off a spiralling Taliban-led insurgency in the volatile south.
=== Stage Four ===
* On 5 October 2006, ISAF implemented the final stage of its expansion, by taking on command of the international military forces in eastern Afghanistan from the U.S.‑led Coalition. In addition to expanding the Alliance's area of operations, the revised operational plan also paved the way for a greater ISAF role in the country. This includes the deployment of ISAF Operational Mentoring and Liaison Teams (OMLTs) to Afghan National Army units at various levels of command.
* 10,000 more coalition troops moved under NATO command. 31,000 ISAF troops were now in Afghanistan. 8,000 U.S. troops continued training and counterterrorism separately.
* 21 October 2006: The Canadian government grew increasingly frustrated over the unwillingness of mainly European NATO members to deploy troops to help fight mounting Taliban resistance in the south.
=== Post-Stage Four ===
* November 2006: A study by the Joint Co-ordinating and Monitoring Board, made up of the Afghan government, its key foreign backers and the UN, suggested that more than 3,700 people died from January to November 2006. The majority of the dead appeared to be insurgents, but it was estimated that 1,000 civilians had also been killed that year, along with members of the Afghan National Army, ISAF, and U.S. Operation Enduring Freedom forces.
* 28–29 November 2006: NATO summit at Riga, Latvia. Combat curbs were the most contentious issue at the two-day summit in Latvia, following tension over the reluctance of France, Germany, Spain, and Italy to send their troops to southern Afghanistan. Countries agreeing to ease the restrictions on deployment against the Taliban insurgency included the Netherlands, Romania and smaller nations such as Slovenia and Luxembourg. France, Germany, Spain, and Italy said they would send help to trouble zones outside their areas, but only in emergencies. The summit also saw several countries offer additional troops and training teams. France agreed to send more helicopters and aircraft. NATO commanders said they believed they could move an extra 2,500 troops around the country after some smaller members relaxed their mission conditions.
* 15 December 2006: ISAF starts a new offensive, Operation Baaz Tsuka (Falcon's Summit), against the Taliban in the Panjaway Valley in Kandahar province.
* 4 February: U.S. General Dan K. McNeill replaced British General David Richards as commander of ISAF. He was expected to place a heavier emphasis on fighting than peace deals, analysts said at the time. Meanwhile, observers and commanders were expecting a new Taliban "spring offensive", and NATO commanders were asking for more troops.
* 6 March 2007: NATO-ISAF launched Operation Achilles, an offensive to bring security to northern Helmand and set the conditions for meaningful development that would fundamentally improve the quality of life for Afghans in the area. The operation eventually involved more than 4,500 NATO troops and nearly 1,000 Afghan soldiers in Helmand province, according to the alliance. It focused on improving security in areas where Taliban extremists, narco-traffickers and other elements were trying to destabilize the Government of Afghanistan, and empowering village elders. The overarching purpose was to assist the government in improving its ability to begin reconstruction and economic development in the area. Strategically, the goal was also to enable the government to begin the Kajaki hydro-energy project.
* On 2 June 2008, General David D. McKiernan, U.S. Army, assumed command of ISAF.
* As of January 2009 its troops numbered around 55,100. There were troops from 26 NATO, 10 partner and 2 non-NATO / non-partner countries.
* 6–7 February 2009: UK forces mounted Operation Diesel raid in Helmand province.
* 27 April and 19 May 2009: ISAF launched Operations Zafar and Zafar 2 in the Helmand Province. Operation Zafar lasted one week and Operation Zafar 2 lasted four days. Both operations were preparing for Operation Panther's Claw.
* 29 May 2009: ISAF launched Operation Mar Lewe around the village of Yatimchay, 6 kilometres south of Musa Qaleh, Helmand Province. Operation Mar Lewe lasted three-days. "Mar Lewe" is Pashto for "snake wolf".
* 19 June 2009: ISAF launched Operation Panther's Claw to secure control of various canal and river crossings in Helmand Province and to establish a lasting ISAF presence in an area described by Lt. Col. Richardson as "one of the main Taliban strongholds" ahead of the 2009 Afghan presidential election.
* 2 July 2009: ISAF launched Operation Strike of the Sword or Operation Khanjar in Helmand Province. This operation was the largest U.S. Marine offensive since the battle of Fallujah, Iraq – Operation Phantom Fury in 2004.
* 23 June 2010: Lieutenant General Sir Nick Parker, British Army, former deputy commander of ISAF, assumed interim command after the resignation of General McChrystal.
* 4 July 2010: General David Petraeus, U.S. Army, assumed command of NATO forces; Petraeus was formally approved by the US Senate to replace McChrystal on 30 June 2010.
=== Withdrawal ===
Three NATO states announced withdrawal plans from 2010. Canada in 2011, Poland in 2012, and the United Kingdom in 2010. Between July 1, 2014, and August, Regional Command Capital and Regional Command West were redesignated Train Advise and Assist Command Capital (TAAC Capital) and TAAC West. The United States ended combat operations in Afghanistan in December 2014. Sizable advisory forces will remain to train and mentor Afghan National Security Forces, and NATO will continue operating under the Resolute Support Mission. ISAF Joint Command, in its final deployment provided by Headquarters XVIII Airborne Corps, ceased operations ahead of the end of the NATO combat mission on December 8, 2014