War News for Thursday, November 19, 2009

The British MoD is reporting the death of a British ISAF soldier from small arms fire in the Babaji area, Helmand province, Afghanistan on Wednesday, November 18th.

The Washington Post is reporting the deaths of two American soldiers in a bombing in Zabul province, Afghanistan on Thursday, November 19th. Other news reports this as a suicide car bombing.


Veto of Iraq’s Election Law Could Force Vote Delay:

U.S. Demands Clear Results From Afghan Reforms: (What a joke)


Reported security incidents

Baghdad:
#1: Wednesday Gunmen tried to kill Mohammed Aziz Al Shamari, an advisor for the Iraqi government, in Sleikh neighborhood. Al Shamri was injured.

#2: Wednesday A bomb stuck to a car of a governmental employee exploded as the employee drove his car inside a governmental complex. The employee was injured.


Diyala Prv:
#1: One civilian was killed and another one was injured Wednesday by a roadside bomb blast in Jalawlaa, according to a security source. “An improvised explosive device went off Wednesday (Nov. 18) targeting a civilian vehicle in Bunayra village in Jalawlaa, southwest of Khanaqin, killing a civilian and injuring another one.


Amarra:
#1: Police forces on Wednesday defused a roadside bomb south of Amara city, Missan province. “The bomb was planted on the al-Kahlaa – Qalaat Salih highway, 25 km south of Amara,” Lieutenant Colonel Mohammed Khalid al-Maliki told Aswat al-Iraq news agency.


Basra:
#1: An improvised explosive device (IED) on Thursday targeted a U.S. patrol vehicle in downtown Basra, according to a security source. “The blast, which occurred in al-Jumhouriya area near the Civil Defense Department in downtown Basra, did not cause casualties or damage to property,” the source told Aswat al-Iraq news agency.


Camp Anaconda:
#1: A number of mortar shells have fallen on a U.S. base in Salah al –Din, but no casualties have been reported, a local police source said on Thursday. “During an early hour this morning, a number of mortar shells landed on the U.S. Camp Anaconda in Yathrib district, southern Tikrit,” the source told Aswat al-Iraq news agency. There has been no word on casualties, the source pointed out.


Al Anbar Prv:
#1: Wednesday A roadside bomb struck a police patrol, wounding two policemen, in Garma, 30 km (20 miles) northwest of Baghdad, police said.

#2: Wednesday A bomb planted on a bicycle wounded a policeman in Falluja, 50 km (32 miles) west of Baghdad, on Tuesday evening, police said.



Afghanistan: "The Forgotten War"
#1: A suicide bomber killed 19 people Thursday outside a courthouse in northwestern Pakistan, the latest attack in an onslaught by Islamist militants fighting back against an army offensive in the nearby Afghan border region. The bomber, who arrived in a taxi, was being searched by police officers at the gate of the city's lower court when he detonated explosives on his body, government official Sahibzada Anees said.

#2: The bomb explosion occurred hours after missiles fired from a suspected U.S. drone killed three suspected militants in Shana Khuwara village in North Waziristan, another region close to the Afghan border region where al-Qaida and Taliban hold sway. The missiles hit a house owned by a local tribesman just after midnight, said two intelligence officials, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk to the media. Ahmed Noor Wazir, who witnessed the attack, said rescuers pulled three dead bodies and four badly wounded men from the rubble of the house, which was being used by Taliban militants. It was the third suspected drone strike since Pakistan launched the operation in mid-October. The pace of the attacks has slowed since the offensive began, possibly to avoid the perception that the U.S. is aiding the Pakistani army with the operation.

#3: Two civilians were injured by German troops in Kunduz province north of Afghanistan Wednesday. "The troops mistakenly opened fire in Ludin area of Kunduz province this afternoon injuring two persons. One is 15 years old and the other is 25," a spokesman with German troops said.

#4: At least six militants were killed while eight soldiers including two officers injured during ongoing military operation in Pakistan's South Waziristan tribal area in the last 24 hours, an army statement said Thursday.

On Shakai-Kaniguram axis, militants fired with small arms on security forces and five soldiers including an officer were injured. During exchange of fire, six militants were killed, the Inter Services Public Relations said in the daily press release.

On Jandola-Sararogha axis, three soldiers were injured including an officer by improvised explosive devices when security forces were patrolling the area.

#5: A suicide bomber detonated a vest packed with explosives in a crowded market in southern Afghanistan on Thursday, killing 10 civilians and wounding 13, a provincial police chief said. Uruzgan province police chief Juma Gul Himat said the bomber's vest exploded after he was fired on by troops while trying to attack a convoy of Afghan security forces. A media officer for NATO-led forces confirmed that 10 civilians had been reported killed in a suicide bomb strike in the area.


DOD Announces Army Casualty, Dustwun Status: Sgt. Brandon T. Islip

DoD: Staff Sgt. Ryan L. Zorn