As you might know, Germany is a part of the ISAF (International Security Assistant Force) and since 2001 German Truppen (troops) are positioned in Afghanistan. Meanwhile approximately 4.000 soldiers are there trying to sustain Frieden (peace). They are operating mostly in the north of Afghanistan.

What began as a mission to bring peace (Operation Enduring Freedom) and reconstruct the whole system is getting more and more gefährlich (dangerous).

In the last few weeks there have been two major Gefechte (combats) where seven German soldiers lost their lives.

The first one was close to Kunduz which is in the north of Afghanistan. A German patrol was being attacked by Taliban fighters from different directions. So this was a typical Hinterhalt (ambush) situation. Three of the Soldaten (soldiers) died, at least five were heavily injured.

The second one took place near the city of Baghlan where the soldiers were attacked with bazookas. The result: Four dead and five injured.

So as the combats are getting more and the Taliban Widerstand (resistance) seems to be better organized and more aggressive, the backing of the German mission in Afghanistan by the people is getting fraglich (doubtful). Politicians and people claim the Rückzug (retreat). At the same time 60 new tanks are ordered and delivered to the troops in Afghanistan. There are a lot of discussions und even the minister of defense Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg is using the word “war” for the first time. He originally said, that “though it might not be liked by everybody, on the basic of the facts of what is happening in parts of Afghanistan, you can colloquially talk about Krieg (war)!”

As you can imagine, the killings and the reactions on them are a big deal in the media and I guess that this topic will gain more and more Einfluss (influence).

For me personally, the mission in Afghanistan hasn´t been very present in the last years. I thought that German troops were educating Afghanistan policemen (which by the way was a complete farce) and trying to secure the people over there.

But with the killings of the last Wochen (weeks) I started to read more about the whole topic and I found out, that the situation has always been more difficult. And nowadays the Neo-Taliban are gaining more and more power. So I ask myself about the Sinn und Zweck (spirit and purpose) of the whole mission. Is it really meaningful trying to bring peace and democracy to a region which might be not ready for it? At the same time I think about innocent Kinder (children) and families trying to live under these circumstances of war, which is in fact not possible (at least in a human way), and my mind is changing again. So for me it´s really hard to develop a steady opinion.

What do you think?