Content deleted Content added
m →Chronology: HTTP→HTTPS for ProQuest newspaper archive, per BRFA 8 using AWB |
Rescuing 1 sources and tagging 0 as dead. #IABot (v1.4.2) |
||
Line 33:
On October 7, 2001, at 6:30 pm [[UTC+04:30|local time]], the first wave of attack against the Taliban was launched. A group of [[United States Air Force]] (USAF) [[bomber]]s consisting of five [[Rockwell B-1 Lancer|B-1s]] and ten [[Boeing B-52 Stratofortress|B-52s]] took off from [[Diego Garcia]] in the Indian Ocean. They were complemented by twenty-five [[United States Navy]] (USN) [[Grumman F-14 Tomcat|F-14s]] and [[McDonnell Douglas F/A-18 Hornet|F/A-18s]] [[Ground-attack aircraft|strike aircraft]] from the [[aircraft carrier]]s {{USS|Carl Vinson|CVN-70|6}} and {{USS|Enterprise|CVN-65|6}} in the North Arabian Sea.<ref>{{harvnb|Lambeth|2005|pp=78–79.}}</ref> The [[Royal Air Force]] (RAF) and USAF provided [[Lockheed L-1011 TriStar|L-1011s]], [[Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker|KC-135]] and [[McDonnell Douglas KC-10 Extender|KC-10s]] to supply en route [[aerial refueling]]s to the USN aircraft.<ref name=Lambeth_p80>{{harvnb|Lambeth|2005|p=80.}}</ref> Flown in from [[Whiteman Air Force Base]], [[Missouri]], two [[Northrop Grumman B-2 Spirit|B-2 Spirits]] also participated in the attack, as did the [[Northrop Grumman EA-6B Prowler|EA-6B Prowler]] [[electronic warfare aircraft]].<ref>{{harvnb|Lambeth|2005|pp=79–80.}}</ref>
At 9:00 pm, USN, USAF, and [[Royal Navy]] (RN) forces launched several salvos totaling fifty [[Tomahawk (missile)|Tomahawk]] [[cruise missile]]s against Taliban military and communications facilities and suspected terrorist training camps.<ref name=Lambeth_p80/> The timing was chosen to coincide with the arrival of the strike aircraft, which dropped a variety of bombs including [[Mark 82 bomb|Mk 82]]s, [[Joint Direct Attack Munition|JDAMs]], [[Harpoon (missile)|AGM-84s]], [[AGM-154 Joint Standoff Weapon|AGM-154]]s and [[laser-guided bomb]]s.<ref name=Lambeth_p80/> According to in-country sources reporting to [[CNN]], targets within Kandahar included Taliban strongholds, as well as the houses of [[Arab people|Arab]] foreigners who worked with the Taliban regime. One of the primary targets for the airstrike in Kandahar was [[Mohammed Omar|Mullah Omar]].<ref name="CNNOct7">{{cite news|url=http://archives.cnn.com/2001/US/10/07/ret.attack.pentagon/|accessdate=January 16, 2011|work=CNN|date=October 7, 2001|title=Defense officials: Air operation to last "several days"|deadurl=yes|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20070308164900/http://archives.cnn.com/2001/US/10/07/ret.attack.pentagon/|archivedate=March 8, 2007|df=mdy-all}}</ref> The attacking aircraft were met with sporadic fire from Taliban [[Anti-aircraft warfare|anti-aircraft artillery]] batteries and [[surface-to-air missile]]s.<ref>{{harvnb|Lambeth|2005|p=84.}}</ref> The U.S. considered the attacks, conducted against the cities of [[Kabul]], [[Jalalabad]] and [[Herat]], to be successful as the goal of neutralizing the Taliban's air defense was met.<ref>{{harvnb|Lambeth|2005|pp=55, 82, 85.}}</ref>
To court and provide relief for the Afghan people, food and supplies were dropped into the region. Two [[Boeing C-17 Globemaster III|C-17]] [[Cargo aircraft|transports]] delivered 37,500 daily rations by airdrop to [[refugee]]s inside Afghanistan on the first day of the attack. Relief efforts faced setback, however, from Taliban interference. [[World Food Programme]] storehouses in Kandahar were raided and surrendered to Taliban soldiers, who "seized about 7,000 tons of food."<ref name=Kaufman>{{cite news|last=Kaufman|first=Marc|title=Taliban Seizes Relief Food, Two Main U.N. Warehouses; Groups Call for Bombing Pause to Deliver Aid|url=https://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/washingtonpost/access/84764918.html?dids=84764918:84764918&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&type=current&date=Oct+18,+2001&author=Marc+Kaufman&pub=The+Washington+Post&desc=Taliban+Seizes+Relief+Food,+Two+Main+U.N.+Warehouses;+Groups+Call+for+Bombing+Pause+to+Deliver+Aid&pqatl=google|accessdate=February 11, 2011|newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]|date=October 18, 2001}}</ref> Hoping to avoid a backlash by civilians, the USAF deployed an [[EC-130E]] propeller aircraft to broadcast a message that the Taliban and its allies were the only targets of the attacks, not civilians.<ref name=Sisk>{{cite news|last=Sisk |first=Richard |title=U.S. drops bombs, food Relief supplies mixed with attacks in new kind of war |url=http://www.nydailynews.com/archives/news/2001/10/08/2001-10-08_u_s__drops_bombs__food_relie.html |accessdate=February 11, 2011 |newspaper=[[Daily News (New York)|Daily News]] |date=October 8, 2001 }}{{dead link|date=October 2016 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref>
| |||