In September 2008, I was seated in the back of a hot, noisy Chinook helicopter flying into Helmand Province in Afghanistan. I was to take over as head of planning for the military and civilian operations for the entire province. I never envisaged that more than 400 fighters had bypassed the outer bases of our “safe space” and were ready to attack. The military aim in Helmand at that time was to create a protected zone in which Afghan Government and international aid organization staff could work. The intention was to win the support of locals and subsequently assist the…