War News for Wednesday, May 11, 2011

The French Defense Ministry is reporting the death of a French ISAF soldier from an IED blast in the Tagad valley, Kapisa province, Afghanistan on Tuesday, May 10th. No other casualties resulted from the attack. Here's the ISAF release. Some news reports a French navy corporal died.

NATO is reporting the death of a second ISAF soldier from an IED blast in an undisclosed location in eastern Afghanistan on Tuesday, May 10th.


Murky Identities and Ties Hinder NATO’s Hunt for Afghan Insurgents, Report Says


Reported security incidents

Baghdad:
#1: update Three persons have been injured in an explosive charge blast, targeted against a motorcade of Baghdad Province’s Council Member, Yassin Mustapha on Tuesday, a security source said. “An explosive charge blew off in western Baghdad’s Amiriya district against the motorcade of Member of Baghdad Province’s Council, Yassin Mustapha, who escaped the attempt, whilst one of his guards and two civilians were injured,” the security source told Aswat al-Iraq news agency.

#2: Five Iraqi civilians have been injured in an explosive charge blast in eastern Baghdad’s al-Sadr city on Wednesday, a security source said. “An explosive charge, planted on the roadside in east Baghdad’s al-Sadr city, blew off on Wednesday morning, wounding 5 civilians, who were driven to a nearby hospital for treatment,” the security source told Aswat al-Iraq news agency.


Tikrit:
#1: Two policemen have been killed and another seriously injured in an explosive charge blast against their patrol in Tikrit, the center of Salahal-Din Province on Tuesday, a security source said. “An explosive charge blew off on Tuesday night against a local police patrol in central Tikrit, killing Two of its policemen and seriously wounding a third One, along with causing serious damage to the patrol’s car,” the security source told Aswat al-Iraq news agency.


Mosul:
#1: A police officer of eastern Mosul’s police center has been injured in an explosive charge blast, a Ninewa security source said on Tuesday. “Colonel Zaid al-Umary, an officer in eastern Mosul’s al-Dawasa Police Center, has been injured in explosive charge blast in his car on Tuesday night,” the security source told Aswat al-Iraq news agency. He said Colonel Umary was injured and his car seriously damaged, while on leave,” adding no further details.


Al Zab:
#1: A checkpoint of Iraq’s al-Sahwa (Awakening) Force in Kirkuk Province has come under a rocket attack on Tuesday, a source of the Joint Coordination Center in the Province said. “A group of unknown gunmen have launched RPG-7 rockets on a checkpoint, belonging to the Zab township’s al-Sahwa (Awakening) Force, 85 km to the southwest of Kirkuk,” the source said. The source added that the raid did not cause any human or material losses.



Afghanistan: "The Forgotten War"
#1: About 100 Taliban fighters on motorcycles attacked a northern Afghan village working to join the government-sponsored local police program against the insurgency, killing a villager and 17 militants. The Tuesday evening attack sparked a gunfight that raged intensely for two hours and then continued with sporadic shooting until just before dawn on Wednesday, said Abdul Aziz Ghyrat on Wednesday, the police chief for Jawzjan province. "They targeted Abduraman village. The people there planned to join the local police and the Taliban had heard about this plan," Ghyrat said. The villagers in Abduraman fought to fend off the attack themselves until reinforcements arrived in the form of Afghan police, army and NATO air support, Ghyrat said. At the end of the fighting, one villager and 17 militants were dead, he said. Among the dead militants was a local Taliban commander who had led bombings and attacks in the region, he added.

#2: Unidentified gunmen in southwestern Pakistan have destroyed two NATO tankers carrying fuel for US-led foreign troops in war-torn Afghanistan. The assailants opened fire at two NATO oil tankers and then set them on fire in Balochistan province of Pakistan on Wednesday morning, a Press TV correspondent reported. The NATO tankers were going to Karachi from Quetta when militants attacked and completely destroyed them near Ghanja Dori area of Mastung town.

#3: At least 5 people have been killed in a U.S. drone missile attack in South Waziristan, intelligence officials said on Tuesday. The missiles struck a vehicle around Tuesday noon in Bghtar, a village near Angor Ada, a bordering area with Afghanistan, the officials said. According to official, U.S. drone aircraft fired two missiles at a vehicle, killing at least 5people and injuring seven others. Identities of deceased were not known immediately.

#4: Gunmen kidnapped three Turkish nationals who were working on a construction project in Logar province, south of the capital Kabul, on Monday, provincial police chief Rogh Lewanai said.

#5: Afghan and coalition troops killed 17 insurgents during an operation in the Qushtapa district of northern Jawzjan province, said Abdul Lateef, a senior Afghan army official.

#6: A helicopter made emergency landing in Nuristan province on Wednesday, wounding four persons, provincial police chief Shams Rahman Zahid said. "The incident happened at 11:00 a.m. local time in nearby provincial capital Parun and four people aboard sustained injuries, "Zahid told Xinhua. All those injured are Afghans, he said. However, he did not provide more details.


DoD: Sgt. Ken K. Hermogino