Taliban fighters try to storm base in Helmand province housing US Marines and Afghan forces Sections Pay & Benefits Flashpoints Pentagon & Congress Off Duty Education and Transition Military Honor Veterans Subscribe Now(Opens in new window) Subscribe Now(Opens in new window) News Your Marine Corps Air Force Times(Opens in new window) Army Times(Opens in new window) Navy Times(Opens in new window) Pentagon & Congress Defense News(Opens in new window) Flashpoints Pay & Benefits Benefits Guide(Opens in new window) Military Pay Center Military Retirement Military Benefits VA Loan Center(Opens in new window) Mil Money Discount Depot Off Duty GearScout(Opens in new window) Military Culture Military Fitness Military Movies & Video Games Military Sports Deadly Skills Military Rider Spouses Education and Transition Transition Guide(Opens in new window) Pay It Forward(Opens in new window) Veterans Black Military History(Opens in new window) Congressional Veterans Caucus(Opens in new window) Military Appreciation Month(Opens in new window) Vietnam Vets & Rolling Thunder(Opens in new window) Military History Military Honor Honor the Fallen(Opens in new window) Hall of Valor(Opens in new window) Black Military History(Opens in new window) Congressional Veterans Caucus(Opens in new window) Vietnam Vets & Rolling Thunder(Opens in new window) Service Members of the Year(Opens in new window) Create an Obituary(Opens in new window) Opinion Editorials Commentary Medals & Misfires Special Projects Installation Guide(Opens in new window) Battle Bracket CFC Givers Guide Task Force Violent Videos Photo Galleries Frontline - Photos Newsletters(Opens in new window) Early Bird Brief Military Native IHG Long-Term Care Partners Navy Federal Regis VARIDESK World of Warships Digital Edition(Opens in new window) Home HQ Your Marine Corps Taliban fighters try to storm base in Helmand province housing US Marines and Afghan forces By Shawn Snow Mar 1, 2019 A Marine fires a tracer round from an M240L machine gun during a night live-fire range at Camp Shorabak, Afghanistan, June 25 2017. (Sgt. Lucas Hopkins/Marine Corps) Early Friday morning Taliban fighters attempted to storm a major Afghan military base in southern Afghanistan that houses Afghan forces and U.S. Marine advisers, according to military officials. U.S. forces assisted Afghan troops in beating back the Taliban assault with air support, according to Resolute Support. There were no reported U.S. or coalition casualties, but the Washington Post reported that the death toll for Afghan security forces could be as high as 20. “This morning an ANDSF base [Afghan National Defense and Security Forces], Camp Shorabak in Helmand, was attacked by the Taliban,” said Army Lt. Ubon Mendie, a spokesman for Resolute Support. “The separate adjoining U.S. base has its own security perimeter, which never came under serious threat.” RELATED With Reapers in the sky, Helmand becomes a testing ground for the Corps' future fight A small group of Marines with Task Force Southwest now have MQ-9 Reaper support organic to the unit. By Shawn Snow “The Afghan flag still flies over Camp Shorabak; the Taliban attackers are dead,” Mendie said in an emailed statement to Marine Corps Times. Camp Shorabak, located in the volatile Helmand province, is home to the Afghan army’s 215th Corps and includes an adjoining American garrison of a couple hundred Marine advisers with Task Force Southwest. The attack comes as the Taliban and U.S. negotiators in Qatar continue to push toward a deal to end the 17-year conflict. On Wednesday, Zalmay Khalilzad, the U.S. Special Representative for Afghanistan Reconciliation and lead envoy for the talks with the Taliban, took to Twitter to announce that discussions with the Taliban would continue Saturday, following several days of productive discussions in Doha, Qatar. The New York Times reported that the Pentagon is floating a peace proposal that could see the withdrawal of all U.S. troops from Afghanistan over a three to five-year period. The plan would have American forces largely relegated to counterterrorism missions while European and NATO allies carry the responsibility for training and advising Afghan forces, according to the Times. The U.S. is seeking assurances from the Taliban that it will not allow terrorist groups to use Afghan soil to attack America — a draft framework agreed to by the Taliban in January, according to BBC News. The attack against the large Afghan army base in southern Afghanistan is not the first time the Taliban have attempted to assault the sprawling military base. Afghan National Army (ANA) 215th Corps soldiers assist one another with adjusting their weapons during a live-fire range at Camp Shorabak, Afghanistan, May 14, 2018. (Sgt. Luke Hoogendam/Marine Corps) In 2012, 15 Taliban militants breached Camp Bastion, which at the time housed thousands of British troops as well as U.S Marines. The base included the adjoining Camp Leatherneck and the Afghan base known as Shorabak. Taliban fighters managed to destroy six Marine Harrier jets during the attacks and killed Lt. Col. Christopher Raible, the former commander of Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 211. Raible was posthumously awarded the Silver Star for leading a counter attack. A Marine F-35B with the 13th Marine Expeditionary Unit bore Raible’s name as it carried out the first ever F-35 combat strikes in Afghanistan in September 2018. While Task Force Southwest has aided Afghan forces in regaining territory and Helmand and expanding the security bubble around the province’s capital of Lashkar Gah, much of Helmand is still under Taliban control. Taliban fighters are known to operate near the Shorabak military base. During the past several years the base has taken mortar and indirect fire. In late fall 2018, Marine Corps Times was told that Task Force Southwest’s security had been strengthened with the Land-based Phalanx Weapons System, which can shoot down indirect fire or mortars. About Shawn Snow Shawn Snow is the senior reporter for Marine Corps Times and a Marine Corps veteran. Share: Tags: shorabakhelmandafghanistantask force southwestlashkar gahcamp bastioncamp leathernecktaliban assault southern basetaliban assault afghan army base In Other News Sailor busted for using a duffel bag dummy passenger in carpool lane In which a PO3 attains legendary status. It’s time for equitable reproductive rights for women veterans The VA recently said it will start providing abortions in certain circumstances, even in states where it's illegal or restricted. Here’s how DoD is helping commissary shoppers save more money More details emerge on how DoD is upping the overall commissary savings to 25%. US, China lead list of top defense spenders in 2021 The top five spenders accounted for 62 percent of the world’s total military expenditures. 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