War In Afghanistan Order Of Battle, 2012
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:''This list covers coalition forces in Afghanistan in 2012. See the article
Participants in Operation Enduring Freedom Following the September 11 attacks in 2001, several countries began military operations against Al-Qaeda and the Taliban during Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) in Afghanistan. After the initial bombing operations, Operation Crescent Wind, O ...
for coalition support for Operation Enduring Freedom from October 2001 to 2003. For coalition forces involved in NATO combat operations in the past, see the articles
Coalition combat operations in Afghanistan in 2006 A coalition is formed when two or more people or groups temporarily work together to achieve a common goal. The term is most frequently used to denote a formation of power in political, military, or economic spaces. Formation According to ''A G ...
,
Coalition combat operations in Afghanistan in 2007 US and NATO International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) War in Afghanistan (2001–present), operations, alongside Afghan National Army forces, continued against the Taliban through 2007. January to July In January and February 2007, Britis ...
, and
Coalition combat operations in Afghanistan in 2008 United States and NATO International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) War in Afghanistan (2001–present), operations, alongside Afghan National Army forces, continued against the Taliban through 2008. On April 27, President Hamid Karzai, Karzai e ...
.'' Below is the disposition and structure of international military forces that were participating in the
War in Afghanistan War in Afghanistan, Afghan war, or Afghan civil war may refer to: *Conquest of Afghanistan by Alexander the Great (330 BC – 327 BC), the conquest of Afghanistan by the Macedonian Empire * Muslim conquests of Afghanistan, a series of campaigns in ...
in November 2012, listing deployed units under the command of the
International Security Assistance Force The International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) was a multinational military mission in Afghanistan from 2001 to 2014. It was established by United Nations Security Council United Nations Security Council Resolution 1386, Resolution 1386 ac ...
(ISAF), which controlled both combat and reconstruction operations (often led by the
Provincial Reconstruction Team A Provincial Reconstruction Team (PRT) was a unit introduced by the United States government, consisting of military officers, diplomats, and reconstruction subject matter experts, working to support reconstruction efforts in unstable states. PRT ...
s). During its existence from 2001 to 2014, despite the photos in this article only showing American soldiers, marines and sailors, the ISAF comprised units from many countries, including: Albania, Armenia,
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, Belgium,
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, Croatia,
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,
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, Finland,
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,
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, Hungary, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Macedonia,
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, Poland, Romania, South Korea,
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, Sweden, Turkey,
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and others. In this article, units are assumed to be from the United States unless otherwise stated. This list is a rough and unofficial listing of units and formations.


International Security Assistance Force

The overall command of the
NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO ; , OTAN), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental organization, intergovernmental Transnationalism, transnational military alliance of 32 Member states of NATO, member s ...
-led
International Security Assistance Force The International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) was a multinational military mission in Afghanistan from 2001 to 2014. It was established by United Nations Security Council United Nations Security Council Resolution 1386, Resolution 1386 ac ...
in 2012 started from
Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe The Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe (SHAPE) is the military headquarters of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization's (NATO) Allied Command Operations (ACO) that commands all NATO operations worldwide. SHAPE is situated in the villag ...
at Casteau, Belgium. The overall command was vested in
Joint Force Command Brunssum Allied Joint Force Command Brunssum (JFCBS) is a NATO command with its headquarters at Brunssum, the Netherlands. It was established in 2004, as part of a reorganisation that reduced the number of NATO Military Command Structure headquarters. H ...
at Brunssum in the Netherlands, then the Commander ISAF (COMISAF). The COMISAF in 2012 was USMC General John R. Allen, at ISAF Headquarters in Kabul. There were three subordinate commands under COMISAF: the Intermediate Joint Command, which controls the tactical battle along the lines of the Multi-National Corps Iraq; the NATO Training Mission-Afghanistan/ Combined Security Transition Command – Afghanistan, which trains the
Afghan National Army The Islamic National Army (, ), also referred to as the Islamic Emirate Army and the Afghan Army, is the army, land force branch of the Afghan Armed Forces. The roots of an army in Afghanistan can be traced back to the early 18th century when th ...
; and Special Operations Forces. The Intermediate Joint Command in turn controlled the regional commands, roughly analogous to divisions. There were six regional commands: Capital (at Kabul), South, Southwest, North, East, and West. Each regional command had a headquarters to provide command and control and logistics support for its area of responsibility, and comprised both combat units and Provincial Reconstruction Teams (PRTs).


Regional Command Capital

* Commander: Brigadier General Rafet Sevinc Sasmaz (Turkey) * Headquarters:
Kabul Kabul is the capital and largest city of Afghanistan. Located in the eastern half of the country, it is also a municipality, forming part of the Kabul Province. The city is divided for administration into #Districts, 22 municipal districts. A ...
*
Area of responsibility Area of responsibility (AOR) is a pre-defined geographic region assigned to Combatant commanders of the Unified Command Plan (UCP), that are used to define an area with specific geographic boundaries where they have the authority to plan and c ...
:
Kabul Province Kabul (Dari/Pashto: ), situated in the east of the country, is one of the thirty-four provinces of Afghanistan. The capital of the province is Kabul city, which is Afghanistan's capital and largest city. The population of the Kabul Province is ...


Combat units


Provincial Reconstruction Teams

Regional Command Capital has no Provincial Reconstruction Teams.


Regional Command South

* Commander: Major General Robert Abrams (USA) * Headquarters: Kandahar Airfield *
Area of responsibility Area of responsibility (AOR) is a pre-defined geographic region assigned to Combatant commanders of the Unified Command Plan (UCP), that are used to define an area with specific geographic boundaries where they have the authority to plan and c ...
:
Kandahar Kandahar is a city in Afghanistan, located in the south of the country on Arghandab River, at an elevation of . It is Afghanistan's second largest city, after Kabul, with a population of about 614,118 in 2015. It is the capital of Kandahar Pro ...
, Orūzgān, and
Zabul Zabul (Pashto/Dari: ) is one of the 34 provinces of Afghanistan, located in the south of the country. It has a population of 249,000. Zabul became an independent province from neighbouring Kandahar in 1963. Historically, it was part of the Zab ...
Provinces.


Combat units


Provincial Reconstruction Teams


Regional Command Southwest

* Commander: Major General Charles M. Gurganus (USMC) * Headquarters:
Camp Leatherneck Camp Leatherneck was a 1,600 acre United States Marine Corps base in Helmand Province, Afghanistan. The site was mostly in Washir District and was conjoined with Camp Bastion, which was the main British military base in Afghanistan and Camp S ...
,
Helmand Helmand (Pashto/Dari: ; ), also known as Hillmand, in ancient times, as Hermand and Hethumand, is one of the 34 provinces of Afghanistan, in the south of the country. It is the largest province by area, covering area. The province contains 18 ...
* Area of Operations:
Helmand Helmand (Pashto/Dari: ; ), also known as Hillmand, in ancient times, as Hermand and Hethumand, is one of the 34 provinces of Afghanistan, in the south of the country. It is the largest province by area, covering area. The province contains 18 ...
and Nimruz Provinces


Combat units


Provincial Reconstruction Teams

* PRT Helmand (Lead nation: United Kingdom)


Regional Command East In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as areas, zones, lands or territories, are portions of the Earth's surface that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and ...

* Commander: Major General Bill Mayville, USA * Headquarters:
Bagram Airfield Bagram Airfield-BAF, also known as Bagram Air Base , is located southeast of Charikar in the Parwan Province of Afghanistan. It is under the Ministry of Defense (Afghanistan), Afghan Ministry of Defense. Sitting on the site of the ancient town ...
*
Area of responsibility Area of responsibility (AOR) is a pre-defined geographic region assigned to Combatant commanders of the Unified Command Plan (UCP), that are used to define an area with specific geographic boundaries where they have the authority to plan and c ...
:
Ghazni Ghazni (, ), historically known as Ghaznayn () or Ghazna (), also transliterated as Ghuznee, and anciently known as Alexandria in Opiana (), is a city in southeastern Afghanistan with a population of around 190,000 people. The city is strategica ...
, Kapisa,
Khost Khōst () is the capital of Khost Province in Afghanistan. It is the largest city in the southeastern part of the country, and also the largest in the region of Loya Paktia. To the south and east of Khost lie Waziristan and Kurram Agency, Kurram i ...
, Kunar, Laghman, Logar,
Nangarhar Nangarhār (Pashto: ; Dari: ), also called Nangrahar or Ningrahar, is one of the 34 provinces of Afghanistan, located in the eastern part of the country and bordering Logar, Kabul, Laghman and Kunar provinces as well as having an internatio ...
,
Nuristan Nuristan, also spelled as Nurestan or Nooristan (Pashto: ; Katë: ), is one of the 34 provinces of Afghanistan, located in the eastern part of the country. It is divided into seven districts and is Afghanistan's least populous province, with a ...
,
Paktika Paktika (Pashto: ) is one of the 34 provinces of Afghanistan, located in the eastern part of the country. Forming part of the larger Loya Paktia region, Paktika has a population of about 789,000 residents, who are mostly ethnic Pashtuns but smal ...
,
Paktia Paktia (Pashto – ''Paktyā'') is one of the 34 provinces of Afghanistan, located in the east of the country. Forming part of the larger Loya Paktia region, Paktia Province is divided into 15 districts and has a population of roughly 623,0 ...
, Panjshir,
Parwan Parwan also spelled Parvan () is one of the 34 provinces of Afghanistan. It is the largest province of the Greater Parwan region and has a population of about 751,000. The province is multi-ethnic and mostly rural society. The province is divid ...
and Wardak Provinces and Surobi District of
Kabul Province Kabul (Dari/Pashto: ), situated in the east of the country, is one of the thirty-four provinces of Afghanistan. The capital of the province is Kabul city, which is Afghanistan's capital and largest city. The population of the Kabul Province is ...


Combat units


Provincial Reconstruction Teams


Regional Command North

* Commander: Major General Erich Pfeffer, Germany * Headquarters:
Mazar-i-Sharif Mazar-i-Sharīf ( ; Dari and ), also known as Mazar-e Sharīf or simply Mazar, is the fifth-largest city in Afghanistan by population, with the estimates varying from 500,000-680,000. It is the capital of Balkh province and is linked by highway ...
*
Area of responsibility Area of responsibility (AOR) is a pre-defined geographic region assigned to Combatant commanders of the Unified Command Plan (UCP), that are used to define an area with specific geographic boundaries where they have the authority to plan and c ...
Badakhshan Badakhshan is a historical region comprising the Wakhan Corridor in northeast Afghanistan, eastern Tajikistan, and Taxkorgan Tajik Autonomous County in China. Badakhshan Province is one of the 34 provinces of Afghanistan. Much of historic ...
,
Baghlan Baghlan (Pashto and Dari: بغلان ''Baġlān'') is a city in northern Afghanistan, in the eponymous Baghlan Province. It is located three miles east of the Kunduz River, 35 miles south of Khanabad, and about 500 metres above sea level in t ...
,
Balkh Balkh is a town in the Balkh Province of Afghanistan. It is located approximately to the northwest of the provincial capital city Mazar-i-Sharif and approximately to the south of the Amu Darya and the Afghanistan–Uzbekistan border. In 2021 ...
,
Faryab Faryab (Dari,Pashto : فاریاب) is one of the thirty-four provinces of Afghanistan, which is located in the north of the country bordering neighboring Turkmenistan. It has a population of about 1,109,223, which is multi-ethnic and mostly a ...
, Jowzjan,
Kunduz Kunduz (; ; ) is a city in northern Afghanistan and the capital of Kunduz Province. The city has an estimated population of about 268,893 as of 2015, making it about the List of cities in Afghanistan, seventh largest city of Afghanistan, and the ...
, Samangan, Sar-e Pul and
Takhar Takhar or Taahkarr (in Serer and Cangin) is a demi-god in the Serer religion worshipped by many Serers (an ethnic group found in Senegal, the Gambia and Mauritania). "Folk-Lore In The old Testament. Studies In Comparative Religion Legend and L ...
Provinces.


Combat units


Provincial Reconstruction Teams


Regional Command West In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as areas, zones, lands or territories, are portions of the Earth's surface that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and ...

* Commander: Brigadier General Dario Mari Ranieri, Italy * Headquarters: Camp Arena,
Herat Herāt (; Dari/Pashto: هرات) is an oasis city and the third-largest city in Afghanistan. In 2020, it had an estimated population of 574,276, and serves as the capital of Herat Province, situated south of the Paropamisus Mountains (''Se ...
*
Area of responsibility Area of responsibility (AOR) is a pre-defined geographic region assigned to Combatant commanders of the Unified Command Plan (UCP), that are used to define an area with specific geographic boundaries where they have the authority to plan and c ...
:
Badghis Bādghīs () is one of the thirty-four provinces of Afghanistan, located in the northwest of the country, on the border with Turkmenistan. It is considered to be one of the country's most underdeveloped provinces, with the highest poverty rate. T ...
, Farah,
Ghor Ghōr, also spelled Ghowr or Ghur (), is one of the thirty-four provinces of Afghanistan. It is located in the western Hindu Kush in central Afghanistan, towards the northwest. The province contains eleven districts, encompassing hundreds of vil ...
, and
Herat Herāt (; Dari/Pashto: هرات) is an oasis city and the third-largest city in Afghanistan. In 2020, it had an estimated population of 574,276, and serves as the capital of Herat Province, situated south of the Paropamisus Mountains (''Se ...
Provinces * Airfields:
Herat International Airport The Khwaja Abdullah Ansari International Airport, also known as Herat International Airport is located about southeast of the city of Herat in western Afghanistan, next to the Kandahar–Herat Highway Highway in the Guzara District of the He ...
,
Shindand Air Base Shindand Air Base is an Afghan air base located in the western part of Afghanistan in the Shindand District of Herat Province, northeast of the city of Shindand. The runway has a concrete surface. An all-weather asphalt road connects it with ...


Combat units


Provincial Reconstruction Teams


U.S.-led coalition

In 2012, the overall command of the U.S.-led coalition effort in Afghanistan—known as Operation Enduring Freedom—Afghanistan—was headquartered at
Bagram Air Base Bagram Airfield-BAF, also known as Bagram Air Base , is located southeast of Charikar in the Parwan Province of Afghanistan. It is under the Afghan Ministry of Defense. Sitting on the site of the ancient town of Bagram at an elevation of a ...
,
Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. It is bordered by Pakistan to the Durand Line, east and south, Iran to the Afghanistan–Iran borde ...
, which reported to
United States Central Command The United States Central Command (USCENTCOM or CENTCOM) is one of the eleven unified combatant commands of the United States Department of Defense, U.S. Department of Defense. It was established in 1983, taking over the previous responsibilit ...
. OEF-Afghanistan's two major commands in 2012 were Combined Joint Task Force 101, and the Combined Security Transition Command – Afghanistan (CSTC-A). After the Stage IV transition of authority to ISAF, the status of the 10th Combat Aviation Brigade/Task Force Falcon, which handles all the helicopter combat aviation duties in Afghanistan, was uncertain, along with the exact status of Combined Task Force Sword, the engineer task force, and the Combined Joint Special Operations Task Force. It was unclear exactly what units are assigned to OEF-Afghanistan, but the operation in 2012 was in charge of counter-terrorist operations, including pursuing al-Qaeda along Afghanistan's inhospitable border region with Pakistan. ; Combined Security Transition Command – Afghanistan (CSTC-A) * In 2012, this command was responsible for training the
Afghan National Army The Islamic National Army (, ), also referred to as the Islamic Emirate Army and the Afghan Army, is the army, land force branch of the Afghan Armed Forces. The roots of an army in Afghanistan can be traced back to the early 18th century when th ...
and the
Afghan National Police The Afghan National Police (ANP; ; ), also known as the Afghan Police, is the national police force of the Afghanistan, Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, serving as a single law enforcement agency all across the country. The first police officer i ...
through its headquarters and Combined Joint Task Force (CJTF) Phoenix.
Florida Army National Guard The Florida Army National Guard is Florida's component of the United States Army and the United States National Guard. In the United States, the Army National Guard comprises approximately one half of the federal army's available combat forces ...

Task Force Phoenix
CSTC-A was responsible for mentoring the ministries of defense and interior, while CJTF Phoenix was responsible for mentoring Afghan National Army corps and below and Afghan National Police districts and below. CJTF Phoenix was headquartered by the 33rd Brigade Combat Team, Illinois Army National Guard, which relieved the 27th Brigade Combat Team, New York Army National Guard in late 2008, which relieved the 218th Brigade Combat Team, South Carolina Army National Guard in early 2008. The rest of the task force was made up of National Guard and Reserve personnel from 42 states, U.S. Marine Corps reservists, active duty representatives from the U.S. Air Force, U.S. Navy, and U.S. Marine Corps, and soldiers assigned from France, Germany, Romania, Canada, New Zealand, Mongolia, and the United Kingdom.


References


External links


War in Afghanistan Order of Battle – Institute for the Study of War


– interactive map by ''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
''
Marine Expeditionary Brigade-Afghanistan/Task Force Leatherneck
{{DEFAULTSORT:Afghanistan War Order of Battle War on Terror orders of battle Military history of Afghanistan Military units and formations of the War in Afghanistan (2001–2021) *