Kandahar, Afghanistan — British troops were flown into Kandahar yesterday to help regain control of the city following last week’s jailbreak by hundreds of Taliban fighters.

Chinooks carried paratroopers from 3rd Battalion The Parachute Regiment low over roof tops into the city’s football stadium.

The troopers immediately fanned out into the city to overwhelm the insurgent strongholds that have sprung up since Friday.

Ministerial approval was sought for the deployment of British troops into Afghanistan’s southern capital for the first time since Special Forces forced the Taliban out of Kandahar in 2001.

Senior officers described the operation as a “lock down” to push the insurgents out of the neighboring Arghandab district. Thousands of Afghan civilians have fled the area since the militants escaped from a prison in Kandahar after a suicide bomb and gun attack.

Taliban fighters were reported to have blown up bridges and planted mines as they awaited a coalition assault.

Scores of Taliban are also thought to be heading into the city from Pakistan and other areas of Afghanistan after their leadership called for the retaking of the city that was the movement’s spiritual base during its rule between 1996 and 2001.

Some officers have referred to the fight as the Taliban’s “Tet Offensive” in reference to the 1968 Viet Cong operation which undermined American military authority in Vietnam.

Hundreds of Afghan National Army troops have flown into Kandahar air base this week in readiness for an assault. Intelligence sources estimate that at least 400 Taliban are holed up in the city. The men of 3 Para were flown directly from their operation against the Taliban in neighboring Zabul province. They quickly put in place vehicle check points and stopped cars to look for suspected bombers or escaped prisoners.