It seems to me that the remaining al-Qeada and/or Taliban fighters briefly engage “friendly” Afghans and/or small groups of Allied troops, get bombed, and move out. (Relax, eb, not claiming that as a fact. "Seems".)

After they move out, because there is no more resistance from some particular area, the Allies declare “victory”.

Then the bad guys surface somewhere else, briefly engage “friendly” Afghans and/or small groups of Allied troops, get bombed, etc.

The impression I get is that it’s a typical guerilla war. Just because the enemy fades away I don’t know how much of a victory it might be. Even in a war of attrition if you’re willing to occupy territory, such as in the US Civil War, you can win. You don't have to hold it all, just deny territory, land, to the enemy. And if you’re not, as in Vietnam, you may not ever “win”. (“Impression”, eb. Take a deep breath and realize that’s an opinion. Now exhale.) ((Geez, I am a butt sometimes!))

Gardez fighting

Certainly without knowing whether or not there are “800 dead”, I’d be curious to know how that figure was derived. I think some of the “fog of war” may be deliberately generated. If indeed there were 800 killed, a few more of those fights and it’ll be over.

Arf