US soldiers descended on a mountain ridge Sunday, quickly setting up fortified posts and mortar positions overlooking a key Taliban transport route as the coalition pressed a major offensive that has killed dozens of suspected militants.

It was the first time in several years that soldiers from the US-led military force have ventured into Baghran Valley in the northern part of Helmand province.

US soldiers from the 2nd Brigade, 87th Infantry Regiment, 10th Mountain Division, shield themselves from the dust as a CH-47 Chinook helicopter takes off, in Helmand province, southern Afghanistan, Sunday, June 18, 2006. [AP]

Troops from the 2nd Battalion, 87th Infantry Regiment, 10th Mountain Division poured out of CH-47 Chinook helicopters in the early morning and scouted the mountain for militants.

The position will allow US forces to block the movement of Taliban fighters and supplies, said one of the officers, Lt. Col. Chris Toner.

More than 10,000 coalition soldiers are spread out over four southern provinces - Helmand, Uruzgan, Kandahar and Zabul - in Operation Mountain Thrust, a blitz aimed at quelling a surge of Taliban attacks. It is the largest offensive since the 2001 ouster of the Taliban regime.

"We are the focus of Mountain Thrust right now," said Capt. Jared Wilson. "This is the decisive part of the operation because if we do not get on the mountain, we will not be able to accomplish this mission."

Before boarding the helicopters, Wilson warned his troops about the dangers of the operation.

"I want you to understand the seriousness of what you are about to do. We are landing fully loaded CH-47s on the top of a mountain. This is a highly dangerous mission. On the top of those dangers, we're going to an area where no one has been for years," he said.

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