War News for Saturday, March 31, 2012

NATO supplies resumption & implications

Afghanistan presses for answers on long-term U.S. military bases

Robert Fisk: Watch us lead the UN donkey up the Khyber

U.S. drones attack militants in Pakistan, Yemen

In Afghanistan, Businesses Plan Their Own Exits


Reported security incidents
#1: Five militants were killed by police in a clash after the Taliban launched an attack on a check point in the eastern Afghan province of Nuristan, the country's Interior Ministry said on Saturday. "Five Taliban militants, including a senior commander of the insurgents namely Mullah Abdul Rahim, were killed after the Afghan National Police (ANP) repelled their attack on a police check point in Kamdish district of Nuristan province Friday night," the ministry said in a statement. Four militants were also injured in the clash while there were no casualties on the ANP, the statement added.

#2: Afghan Interior Ministry following a press release on Saturday announced, at least 9 insurgents were killed and detained and following military operations by Afghan national police during the past 24 hours. At least 25 insurgents were also detained by Afghan police forces during the military operations. The source further added, the operations were conducted jointly with the Afghan national army, Afghan intelligence and international coalition security forces at Kabul, Kunduz, Kandahar, Helmand, Nimroz, Logar, Ghazni, Khost and Paktia provinces of Afghanistan.

#3: A number of armed insurgents ambushed Afghan and NATO-led International Security Assistance Forces in eastern Kapisa province on Thursday. According to a statement released by International Security Assistance Force on Friday, Afghan and coalition security forces were attacked while in the vicinity of a combat outpost in Tagab district, Kapisa province, yesterday. The source further added, insurgents fired multiple mortar rounds targeting the forces. The rounds landed in a nearby compound killing one woman and wounding three children.


DoD: Pfc. Johnathon F. Davis

War News for Friday, March 30, 2012

The DoD is reporting a new death previously unreported by the military. Capt. Francis D. Imlay died in an accident involving a F-15 aircraft near a base in an unreported area somewhere in southwest Asia on Wednesday, March 28th.

The French MoD is reporting the death of an additional French ISAF soldier following an attack from an ANA soldier at a base in Kapisa province, Afghanistan on January 20th. where four additional soldiers died and fifteen were wounded. He died on Tuesday, March 27th in a hospital near Paris.

NATO is reporting the death of an ISAF soldier from an IED blast in an unreported location in southern Afghanistan on Thursday, March 29th.

NATO is reporting the death of an ISAF soldier from an IED blast in an unreported location in southern Afghanistan on Friday, March 30th.

NATO is reporting the death of an ISAF soldier from an insurgent attack in an unreported location in southern Afghanistan on Thursday, March 29th.


Reported security incidents
#1: A suspected U.S. drone fired two missiles at a house in northwest Pakistan early Friday morning, killing four militants in an attack that comes as Pakistani officials have stepped up their calls for the strikes to end, intelligence officials said. Friday's strike targeted a house in Miran Shah, the main town in the North Waziristan tribal area, a key sanctuary for Taliban and al-Qaeda militants, Pakistani intelligence officials said, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk to the media. The four militants killed in the strike and three wounded were from Uzbekistan, said the officials. Their precise identities were unclear. The attack occurred while the group was sleeping, the officials said.

#2: An Afghan police officer shot and killed nine other officers in southeast Afghanistan on Thursday night, authorities said. The incident occurred in Paktika province, a spokesman for the provincial governor said. Two police officers were arrested, and another, believed to be part of the attack, fled, the spokesman said. The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack and said in a statement that the officer who fired the shots was actually a Taliban fighter.

#3: Dozens of Taliban fighters were killed in US air strikes and a firefight in western Afghanistan, which followed an attack by the Taliban rebels on an army patrol, NATO and Afghan officials said Friday. An Afghan military patrol was attacked in Gulistan district in western Farah province on Wednesday, prompting a call for air support, Reuters reported, citing an International Security Assistance Force spokesperson. "Numerous insurgents were killed, and several motorbikes were damaged or destroyed" following two strikes by coalition aircraft, he said. About 30 Taliban militants were killed and another 15 injured in the gunbattle in the remote Afghan province, Abdul Raoof Ahmadi, an Afghan police spokesperson said. Five vehicles of Afghan national army came under attack and three soldiers were charred inside the vehicles while they were crossing Gulistan, Mohammed Yunus Rasouli, the deputy governor for Farah, said.

#4: ‘Geo TV’ quoting official recourses said that security forces conducted clearance operation in Balaras and Khadezai areas of Upper Orakzai Agency where 35 militants were killed. One security man also lost his life while four others got injured during the operation against extremists. Security forces have taken control of Balaras area.

#5: A NATO supply convoy came under heavy attack by Taliban insurgents in western Afghanistan, with 37 dead reported in the firefight and NATO airstrikes that ensued, Afghan officials said Thursday. The victims included seven private security guards with two firms guarding the convoy, according to an official at one of the companies, plus two Afghan National Army soldiers and numerous members of the Taliban. Fayaz Jailani, the regional operations manager for GFI Security, said the convoy came under attack late Wednesday by 70 to 80 insurgents with heavy machine guns and other weapons. The attack took place in the Gulistani district of Farah province, and the convoy was en route from Herat province to a NATO base in Helmand province, Jailani said.

#6: A patrol of Finnish peacekeepers came under attack in northern Afghanistan on Thursday evening, local time. According to the Finnish Defense Forces, the soldiers took fire from insurgents armed with rocket-propelled grenades. The attack took place in the Chimtal district about 30 km west of Mazar-i-Sharif. There were no causalities.


DoD: Sgt. William R. Wilson III

DoD: Sgt. Joseph D’Augustine

DoD: Capt. Francis D. Imlay

MoD: Sergeant Luke Taylor

MoD: Lance Corporal Michael Foley

News: Captain Christophe Schnetterle

News of the Day for Thursday, March 29, 2012

Note: Whisker is off the net this morning so I'm filling in with a quick post. -- C

One ISAF service member reported killed by an IED, another from non-combat injuries. No further details at this time.

Insurgents ambush a NATO supply convoy in western Afghanistan (the exact location is not given). In a three hour firefight, 14 militants, 5 security guards, and an Afghan soldier are reported dead.

Australian soldier is injured in a raid on an "insurgent" drug laboratory. The exact date of the incident is not given, but it is reported today. I put "insurgent" in quotes because I'm not sure what the distinction is between insurgent and non-insurgent drug laboratories. Are there Afghan government drug labs?

U.S. military identifies Sgt. Joseph D'Augustine of Waldwick, N.J., killed in action on Tuesday. D'Augustine was assigned to the 8th Engineer Support Battalion of the 2nd Marine Logistics Group, part of the Second Marine Expeditionary Force at Camp Lejeune.

UK Diplomat Alistair Burt decries the corrupt Afghan government. Note: The article calls him "Foreign Office Secretary." He is a Conservative MP and he is Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. -- C

U.S. adopts measures to protect its troops from the Afghan allies who they are liberating. These include "guardian angels," fellow troops who will watch over them as they sleep; making sure they do not sit with their backs to doors; carrying weapons inside Afghan government facilities; and other unspecified measures.

Human Rights Watch reports that the liberation has yet to reach at least half the population, as hundreds of Afghan women are currently jailed for "moral" crimes such as running away from abusive husbands and being raped.

U.S. investigators have not been given access to the scene of the Panjwai massacre, potentially imperiling any prosecution. (The linked article also has additional details about the story military officials are telling about what happened that night, which is growing ever more bizarre. Supposedly, Bales went out and killed a bunch of people, then came back onto the base, awakened his roommate, and declared that he had been off base murdering Afghans. Then he left the base again and killed some more people. Since talking to his roommate, he is said to have totally clammed up.)

Local officials call for military intervention after Pakistani Taliban reportedly overrun several districts in Nuristan. "Ghulamullah Nuristani, the security chief in Nuristan, says the militants captured the Kamdesh and Bargmatal districts of Nuristan two weeks ago and have torched dozens of homes and threatened to kill local villagers who work for the Afghan government." NATO no longer has any forces in the province.

War News for Wednesday, March 28, 2012

NATO is reporting the death of an ISAF soldier from an IED attack in an undisclosed location in southern Afghanistan on Monday, March 27th.


Reported security incidents
#1: Afghan interior ministry officials following a press release on on Wednesday announced at least 14 armed militants were killed and 9 others were detained following military operations during the past 24 hours. The source further added, the militants were killed and detained during 8 separate military operations conducted by Afghan national police forces across the country. The operations were conducted by Afghan police in conjunction with the Afghan army, Afghan intelligence and NATO-led international coalition security forces at Laghman, Badakshan, Kandahar, Maidan Wardak, Logar, Khost, Paktika, Paktia and Uruzgan provinces of Afghanistan, the statement added. In the meantime, local security officials in northern Faryab province announced at least 7 armed insurgents were killed and 7 others were detained in this province. An Afghan army official said, the militants were killed and detained during an operation conducted by Afghan special forces and foreign troops at Khwaja Sabzposh district last night.

#2: International Security Assistance Force officials following a press release on Tuesday announced, an International Security Assistance Force aircraft made a precautionary landing in southern Afghanistan today. The source further added, initial reports indicate the cause of the incident was a mechanical malfunction and there were no reported casualties. The statement did not disclose further information regarding the exact location of incident.

#3: forces killed six suspected Taliban militants and arrested two others during an operation in Kunduz province 250 km north of capital Kabulon Wednesday, a local official said. "The operation was conducted at around 02:00 a.m. local time today in Khan Abad district. As a result, six suspected militants including group commander namely Mullah Habibullah, were killed and two others detained," said Habibullah Khan,police chief of Khan Abad district.

War News for Tuesday, March 27, 2012

NATO is reporting the death of an ISAF soldier from a shooting incident from an Afghan Policeman in an undisclosed location in eastern Afghanistan on Monday, March 26th.


NYTimes: Support in U.S. for Afghan War Drops Sharply, Poll Finds

George Galloway attacked over soldier comments at Bradford West debate


Reported security incidents
#1: An Australian aid adviser injured in an apparent suicide attack in Afghanistan is being taken care of, Prime Minister Julia Gillard says. The man is an AusAID adviser deployed through the Australian Civilian Corps and was working in Uruzgan with local communities on development projects, foreign minister Bob Carr said in a statement on Tuesday. The ABC named the injured man as 49-year-old Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) worker and former Australian Federal Police officer David Savage. AusAID declined to confirm or deny this, saying only that the man's condition was serious but stable. Ms Gillard said the man involved "in work outside the wire" - which means he was outside of the Tarin Kowt NATO military base in south-central Afghanistan when he was injured. AusAID said the man was leaving a community meeting in the Chora Valley when the attack occurred.

#2: Afghan special forces and NATO troops have killed a senior commander of the al Qaeda-linked Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU) in northwestern Afghanistan, the NATO force said on Tuesday. The IMU - which emerged from the Ferghana Valley that is shared between Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan - has cooperated with al Qaeda elements and the Afghan Taliban to try to establish an Islamic Caliphate. Makhdum Nusrat, the "highest-ranking IMU insurgent operating in the country", was killed on Monday in Faryab province in northwestern Afghanistan along with several other fighters, the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) said.

#3: Afghan interior ministry following a press release on Tuesday announced at least 18 armed militants were killed and injured and 7 others were detained following Afghan police forces military operations. The source further added, the militants were killed, injured and detained in 13 separate military operations conducted by Afghan national police forces during the past 24 hours. The operations were conducted in conjunction with the Afghan national army, Afghan intelligence and coalition security forces at Kabul, Nangarhar, Faryab, Kandahar, Helmand, Nimroz, Zabul, Ghazni and Paktia provinces of Afghanistan, the statement added. At least 14 insurgents were killed, four of them were injured and 7 others were detained by Afghan security forces.

#4: An heavy explosion rocked eastern Nangahar province on Tuesday morning, killing and injuring a number of Afghan civilians and security forces. The incident took palce around 10:00 am local time at Pacheragam district in Kata Kheli area while a number of the counter-narcotics campaign officials were visiting the area. According to the local residents, at least 6 Afghan army soldiers and an Afghan civilian were killed and several others including Afghan security forces were injured. Unconfirmed reports suggest Afghan security forces opened fire following the explosion which killed and injured a number of the Afghan civilians. An Afghan local security official speaking on the condition of anonymity said, an Afghan national army soldier was killed and two others were injured while an Afghan civilian was killed during the explosion.


DoD: Capt. Aaron D. Istre

DoD: Sgt. Daniel J. Brown

War News for Monday, March 26, 2012

The Italian MoD is reporting the death of an Italian ISAF soldier from an indirect weapons attack/mortar attack at FOB ICE in Gulistan, Farah province, Afghanistan on Saturday, March 24th. Five additional soldiers were injured in the attack. Here’s the ISAF release.

NATO is reporting the death of an ISAF soldier from an IED blast in an undisclosed location in southern Afghanistan on Saturday, March 24th. News reports that an ISAF soldier and a number of ANA soldiers died in an EOD incident in Kandahar province.

NATO is reporting the deaths of two ISAF soldiers from a shooting incident from an ANA soldier in an undisclosed location in southern Afghanistan on Monday, March 26th. News reports that they were British soldiers.


Reported security incidents
#1: A suicide bomber targeted a convoy of NATO-led forces in Chora district of Uruzgan province 370 km south of Kabul on Monday injuring four people including three foreign soldiers, police said. "A terrorist strapped suicide vest in his body and blew himself up next to the convoy of NATO-led forces in Chora district killing himself and injuring four others including three foreign soldiers and a civilian," deputy to provincial police Gulab Khan told Xinhua.

#2: A NATO aircraft made a hard landing in southern Afghanistan on Sunday, the military alliance confirmed in a press release on Monday. "An International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) aircraft made a hard landing in southern Afghanistan yesterday," the NATO- led ISAF said in the press release.

#3: Six Afghan soldiers lost their lives as the anti-government militants ambushed a military convoy in western Farah province, 695 km west of Kabul on Sunday, the Defense Ministry said in a statement released here. "Six soldiers with the National Army were martyred as the enemies ambushed their convoy in Balablok district of Farah province today," the statement confirmed. However, it did not say if there were any casualties on the insurgents.

#4: At least 2 insurgents were detained during a joint military operation conducted by Afghan and coalition security forces to capture an insurgent leader with the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan in Shirin Tagab district, Faryab province. According to a statement released by International Security Assistance Force, the leader plans and conducts attacks against coalition troops throughout northern Afghanistan and is also suspected in plotting an attack against a senior Afghan official. During the operation, the combined security force was engaged by multiple insurgents with small-arms fire. The security force returned fire, killing the attacking insurgents.


IT/MoD: Sergeant Michael Silvestri genius

News of the Day for Sunday, March 25, 2012

One U.S. soldier, 6 Afghan soldiers, and a translator are killed by an explosion in Kandahar province. They were approaching the device in order to defuse it when it exploded; it may have been remotely detonated. The incident occurred in Arghandab district, which borders Panjwai. Other reports give the total death toll as 9.)

The U.S. has paid financial compensation to families of the people killed in the massacre in Panjwai. In case you are wondering about the value of a child's life, it is "up to $50,000."

An anonymous U.S. official says that Robert Bales carried out the Panjwai massacre in two stages, returning to his base after one set of murders, then leaving again to kill some more. If true, this raises even more questions about security at the base and the competence of command.

ISAF says three NATO soldiers died on Saturday. One of these may refer to the IED incident described above. Another was from "an insurgent attack in the west," and the third non-combat related. No other details at this time.

Pakistanis protest reopening of NATO supply routes to Afghanistan.

Afghan Ministry of Defense reports one soldier killed, 2 injured in past 24 hours. Interior Ministry says one militant killed, 7 detained, and explosives seized.

Iraq Update

Arab League Secretary General Nabil Al-Araby arrives in Baghdad ahead of the Arab League summit scheduled to begin on Tuesday. This is the first time the League has met in Iraq in 20 years; the League obviously has a full agenda.

VP Tareq al-Hashimi, still in exile in Kurdistan, claims his bodyguard was tortured to death, and demands an investigation.

Prison officials and guards have been detained after a mass jailbreak in Kirkuk on Friday.

Reuters' Suadad al-Salhy reports that al-Qaeda holds sway in Mosul. Excerpt:

Arriving in Mosul from Baghdad, you feel the sinister lurch of going back in time to 2006 or 2007, the days of sectarian slaughter when Iraq's militant gangs stalked the streets and killed tens of thousands of their countrymen.

The familiar signs, long-since vanished from Baghdad, are all still here: the towering concrete blast walls, the dirt obstacles piled in the centre of the roads to slow down racing attackers, the buildings wrecked by the impact of shells.

Razor wire is rampant like a weed, shrapnel crunches under foot and the garbage lies rotting in heaps, because war makes basic civic duties like cleaning the streets seem like lunacy.

War News for Saturday, March 24, 2012

NATO is reporting the death of an ISAF soldier from non-combat related injury in an undisclosed location in eastern Afghanistan on Saturday, March 24th.


Turkey may resume military operation in northern Iraq


Reported security incidents
#1: Afghan authorities say a remote-controlled bomb has killed a former Afghan senator and three other people in the south of the country. Fareed Ayal, who is the spokesman for the provincial police chief, says former senator Khairo Jan, a tribal elder named Sharafuddin and two bodyguards were killed as they were driving in Uruzgan province. Jan is an elder of the Popalzai tribe, the same tribe that Afghan President Hamid Karzai is from. Ayal says the blast occurred about 1:30 p.m. local time Saturday about six kilometers (four miles) south of the provincial capital of Tirin Kot. They were riding in a vehicle that was en route to Jan's village in an area known as Dayak.

#2: In a separate operation at least 2 Taliban militants were killed following a joint military operation by Afghan and coalition security forces at central Baghlan district.

#3: Afghan interior ministry following a press release on Saturday announced at least 6 armed militants were killed and injured following Afghan police operations during the past 24 hours. The source further added, at least 4 insurgents were also detained during the operations. The militants were killed, injured and detained in five seperate military operations conducted by Afghan police in conjunction with the Afghan army, Afghan intelligence and coalition security forces, interior ministry officials said. The operations were conducted at Kabul, Nangarhar, Baghlan, Helmand and Badghis provinces of Afghanistan, killing at least 4 insurgents, injuring 2 others and 4 insurgents were detained.

#4: According to local authorities in northern Baghlan province, an insurgent was killed at Chawk-e-Pashtunistan in central Baghlan district while he was planting a roadside improvised explosvie device. Gen. Asadullah Shirzad provincial security chief for northern Baghlan province said, the incident took place on Friday night while the insurgent was planting a roadside bomb at Chawk-e-Pashtunistan in central Baghlan province. Gen. Shirzad further the insurgent was fragmented into pieces as a result of the explosion and there was no civilian casualties reported.


DoD: Spc. Dennis P. Weichel Jr.

War News for Friday, March 23, 2012

NATO is reporting the death of an ISAF soldier from non-combat related injury in an undisclosed location in eastern Afghanistan on Thursday, March 22nd.


Two major U.S. oil cos interested in TAPI pipeline

General Says Afghans Need Big U.S. Force Beyond 2012


Reported security incidents
#1: Afghan police says a suicide car bomber has blown himself up at a security checkpoint outside a police station, killing two children nearby. Kandahar provincial police chief Gen. Abdul Razaq says the attacker detonated his explosives Thursday afternoon at the checkpoint for a police station in Kandahar, the main city in southern Afghanistan. He says two police and another six civilians were wounded. Razaq says another assailant tried to enter the police station at the same time. He was shot dead by police.

#2: At least three security personnel were killed and six others injured when a check post in Pakistan's southwest district of Zhob was attacked by unknown militants on Friday morning, local media reported. Local Urdu TV channel Geo said that five security personnel also went missing during the attack. The five missing security personnel could have been kidnapped by the militants as they often did in the past. Earlier this year, 15 security personnel kidnapped by militants in a check post attack were later killed.

#3: Earlier on Friday morning, an unknown number of militants launched an attack at the Mir Ali Khalil check post in Zhob, a district located some 260 km northeast of Quetta, capital of Balochistan province in southwest Pakistan. The militants fled the scene after the attack. No casualties on the side of the attackers were reported.

#4: Prior to this, a roadside remote-controlled bomb targeting a security forces' convoy injured two children in Pakistan's northwest district of Charsadda. This was followed by another remote-controlled bomb attack on a paramilitary camp in the Wana area of South Waziristan, reportedly killing one security person and injuring three others.

#5: A Taliban expert bomb maker was killed and another insurgent was injured on Friday in an air strike conducted by NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in northern Afghan province of Baghlan, the ISAF forces said. "Coalition forces killed a Taliban expert bomb maker and wounded another insurgent with a precision air strike in Baghlan-e Jadid district, Baghlan province, today," the ISAF said in a statement issued here. The air strike took place as the two insurgents emplaced two roadside bombs. One was a pressure plate device and the other was remote controlled, the statement said.

#6: According to a statement issued by the Afghan interior ministry, at least 3 armed militants were killed and injured and 10 others were detained across the country during the past 24 hours. The source further added, the militants were killed, injured and detained following joint military operations conducted by Afghan police, Afghan army, Afghan intelligence and international coalition security forces. The operations were conducted at eastern Nangarhar, southern Uruzagn, eastern Ghazni and western Herat provinces of Afghanistan, the officials added.


DoD: Sgt. Jamie D. Jarboe

MoD: Captain Rupert Bowers

War News for Thursday, March 22, 2012

The British MoD is reporting the death of a British ISAF soldier from an IED blast in the Mirmandab region of Nahr-e Saraj district, Helmand province, Afghanistan on Wednesday, March 21st.

Local News LJWorld is reporting the death of an ISAF soldier Sgt. Jamie Jarboe in a hospital in Topeka, Kansas on Wednesday, March 21st. He was left paralyzed from a sniper, small arms fire/gunshot wounds attack in an unknown location in Afghanistan on April, 2011.


Dramatic footage shows U.S. Apache helicopter crashing in Afghanistan

Turkish troops kill seven PKK militants in clash - Five Turkish police killed in clashes a day earlier


Reported security incidents
#1: At least five militants were killed in a clash between security forces and militants in north western tribal region on Wednesday, official sources said. The military operation took place in Jogi, area of Kurram Agency located in the Federally Administered Tribal Area (FATA) of Pakistan along Afghanistan border. The afternoon clashes also left two security personnel and eight militants injured.

#2: Afghan authorities say three civilians were killed and 15 others were wounded when a rocket exploded in a bazaar in the eastern part of the country. Gen. Zirawer Zahid, the police chief in Ghazni province, said insurgents who fired the rocket Wednesday were targeting the police headquarters, but it fell in a market area of Muqur district instead.

#3: According to a statement issued by the Afghan interior ministry, at least 3 armed militants were killed and injured and 10 others were detained across the country during the past 24 hours. The source further added, the militants were killed, injured and detained following joint military operations conducted by Afghan police, Afghan army, Afghan intelligence and international coalition security forces. The operations were conducted at eastern Nangarhar, southern Uruzagn, eastern Ghazni and western Herat provinces of Afghanistan, the officials added.

War News for Tuesday, March 20, 2012

Another slow news day so go enjoy your day -- whisker


Reported Security Incidents:
#1: At least four cops were injured when a blast hit a police vehicle in Pakistan's northwest city of Peshawar on Tuesday night, reported local Urdu TV channel Geo.

#2: According to local authorities in eastern Afghanistan, at least 16 people were killed and injured following a missile attack at eastern Ghazni province. The officials further added, the incident took place on Wednesday morning around 10:00 am local time. Provincial National Directorate for Security chief Syed Amirshah Sadat confirming the report said, the incident took place at Moqor district as a result of missile attack by Taliban militants. He also added, at least 3 Afghan civilians were killed and 13 others were injured folliwng the incident. According to Syed Amirshah Sadat the main target of the missile attack was the provincial police commandment.

War News for Monday, March 19, 2012

Retired general: Afghan killings fallout could see troop return within weeks

Drones at Issue as U.S. Rebuilds Ties to Pakistan


Reported security incidents
#1: Villagers found 14 bullet-ridden bodies in the northwestern Khyber tribal region near the Afghanistan border Sunday, as Pakistani security forces stepped up military offensives against militants. Sunday's discovery was made two days after 12 bodies, also bearing signs of torture and numerous bullet wounds, were discovered in the area. Villagers said the bodies were of people arrested in recent days by the military's Frontier Corps and their faces had been removed by acid to hamper identification. Government officials denied the allegations of both arrests and killings. A security official said fighting against the banned Lashkar-e-Islam had killed 25 gunmen and four soldiers in the past week.

#2: At least eight people were killed and 15 others wounded in clashes between Pakistani troops and militants in the restive north-western tribal belt, officials said on Monday. Four militants and one soldier were killed when militants stormed a security forces check point late Sunday in Miranshah, the main town of lawless North Waziristan tribal district bordering Afghanistan. The military retaliated with an assault early Monday on suspected militant hide outs outside the town, but the attack left three civilians dead and 15 wounded, security officials said. "Militants attacked our check point in Miranshah on Sunday evening and killed one soldier, we retaliated... and shot dead four militants," a senior security official told AFP. On Monday morning "we fired shells and destroyed five shops in Datakhel near Miranshah," from where military convoys had recently come under attack, he said. Two security officials confirmed the civilian deaths in Monday's attack, but the military refused to do so. "Three civilians were killed and 15 were injured when the security forces fired shells at the suspected militant hide outs," one of the officials said on condition of anonymity because he is not authorised to speak to the media.

#3: Afghan defense ministry following a statement on Monday announced at least 7 Afghan national army soldiers were killed and injured in southern Kandahar province. The statement further added, at least 3 Afghan army soldiers were killed and 4 others were injured during the past 24 in this province.

#4: According to local authorities in eastern Nangarhar province, at least 2 people were arrested by NATO-led international coalition security forces following a military operation in this province. The officials further added, the operation was conducted in Chaparhar district of eastern Nangarhar province and the 2 individuals detained are the local residents. In the meantime tribal elders in Chaparhar district emphasize that the detained individuals does not have any connections with any insurgents group and urged for their freedom.

#5: According to local authorities in eastern Khost province, at least 2 militant suspects who were planting roadside bombs were killed and another suspect was injured following an air raid by coalition security forces in this province. The officials further added, the militants were killed and injured at Deri area in central region of eastern Khost province. Provincial Security Chief for eastern Khost province Gen. Mohammad Yaqoob said, the incident took place around 9 pm local time on Saturday night.

#6: According to local authorities in western Herat province, at least 3 Afghan national police forces were injured following a roadside bomb explosion in this province. The officials further added, the incident took place at Oryai area in Shindand district around (Sunday) 11:00 am local time. The main target of the explosion was the convoy of the Afghan national police forces which were crossing the area, the officials said.


DoD: 2nd Lt. Clovis T. Ray

News of the Day for Sunday, March 18, 2012

Two Afghan police killed, one injured, by roadside bomb in Herat.

Spokesman for president Karzai implies that Afghanistan will negotiate for the long-term presence of U.S. military bases in the country, but only after the current strategic partnership agreement is completed. (Note the attempt to spin this as "we aren't talking about permanent bases, while yes, we are.)

Parliament passes a unanimous resolution asking president Karzai to revoke the agreement which makes foreign troops immune from legal proceedings in Afghanistan. Note that this point is historically non-negotiable for the United States. It's why Obama did not, as he wished, keep a residual force in Iraq. Were Afghanistan to revoke legal immunity for U.S. troops, the U.S. would withdraw. Ergo, it will not happen. -- C

Former platoon leader of Robert Bales praises him personally and professionally and finds the allegations against him astonishing. Meanwhile, reporters are digging into his life and trying to find clues in his financial and personal travails.

However, the investigative delegation sent by the Afghan parliament continues to say that the official U.S. account of the Panjwai massacre is false.

British soldiers in support of Afghan troops launch a "major offensive" near Gereshk, Helmand Province. Little resistance is reported so far.

NATO air strike kills two people said to be planting mines in Khost.

Afghan defense ministry announces death of five soldiers in the past 24 hours in various incidents,along with seizure of weapons and drugs.

Update: Afghan Independent Human Rights Commission (AIRHC)find widespread torture within Afghanistan's security agencies, calls for urgent action to address it. Excerpt:

The report revealed "credible evidence of torture at nine NDS facilities and several Afghan National Police facilities, including beatings, suspension from the ceiling, electric shocks, threatened or actual sexual abuse, and other forms of mental and physical abuse, which were routinely used to obtain confessions or other information".

The AIRHC called for list of recommendations to be put into place, including for the Afghan government to remove officials who use torture from their posts, with all investigations and the findings to be made public. It asked for the AIRHC to have "full, unfettered, and confidential access to all NDS detainees and facilities".

And it said the government must "cease holding detainees incommunicado" - by notifying the detainee's family of the arrest as soon as possible, permitting family visitors, informing them of the reasons for their arrest within 24 hours, and ensuring access to legal counsel.

It called on the Nato-led mission to ensure foreign forces do not transfer detainees to facilities where there is real risk of torture.

Iraq Update

In a bizarre incident, Sadrist militia frees a captive, purportedly a former American soldier, who nobody seemed to know was missing.

Al Qaeda in Iraq claims responsibility for a Feb. 19 attack that killed 19 police and cadets. (Odd they are just getting around to it.)

War News for Saturday, March 17, 2012

NATO is reporting the death of an ISAF soldier from an IED attack in an undisclosed location in eastern Afghanistan on Thursday, March 15th.


Reported security incidents
#1: Four armed insurgents were killed and a woman injured during a joint operation in northern Afghan province of Faryab on Saturday, NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) said. "An Afghan and coalition security force conducted an operation in search of an insurgent leader of the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan in Shirin Tagab district, Faryab province, today," the ISAF said in a press release. Four armed insurgents were killed in shoot-out during the raid on a building, including one who fired on the joint forces from behind women and children leaving the building, said the release. One Afghan civilian female was wounded during the exchange.

#2: According to local authorities in eastern Khost province, at least 3 Afghan civilians were injured following an explosion in this province. The officials further added, the incident took place around 11:00 am local time in a shop located near the Medicins San Frontieres hospital. Provincial security chief and acting provincial police chief Mohammad Yaqoob said, the explosives were packed inside a furniture production equipment.

#3: Afghan Defense Ministry following a press release on Saturday announced at least 2 Afghan National Army soldiers were injured while conducting their duties in southern Kandahar western Herat provinces of Afghanistan. The two Afghan army soldiers were injured at Maiwand district of southern Helmand province and Gulistan district of western Herat province. Defense officials did not disclose further information on how the two soldiers were injured.

War News for Friday, March 16, 2012

NATO is reporting the deaths of twelve ISAF soldiers in a helicopter crash in Kabul province, Afghanistan on Friday, March 16th. News reports that a Turkish military helicopter crashed into houses in the outskirts of Kabul killing twelve Turkish soldiers and a number of civilians on the ground.

NATO is reporting the death of an ISAF soldier from a non-combat related injuries in an undisclosed location in eastern Afghanistan on Wednesday, March 14th.


Afghan's botched attack on Western officials revealed

Official: Afghan-US talks on night raids ongoing

New case of Aghan killing Marine


Reported security incidents
#1: update Thirteen Afghan civilians, including four women and nine children, were killed Thursday when a roadside bomb went off in the country's southern province of Uruzgan, a provincial police source said. "A total of 13 innocent civilians, including four women and nine children, were killed as a roadside bomb struck a car in Siyachoi area of Diarawud district at about 12:15 p.m. local time Thursday," Farid Hayel, a police spokesman in the province, told Xinhua. The victims were members of the same family, he added.


DoD: Spc. Daquane D. Rivers

War News for Thursday, March 15, 2012

Reported security incidents
#1: An Afghan man who crashed a stolen truck at an airfield as U.S. Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta's plane was landing there died Thursday of extensive burns, a top U.S. general in Afghanistan said. U.S. Lt. Gen. Curtis Scaparotti, the deputy commander of American forces in Afghanistan, told reporters traveling with Panetta in Kabul that the driver was an interpreter working for the foreign forces. The man apparently had a container of fuel in the car, which ignited during the crash Wednesday at the British airfield in Helmand province in southern Afghanistan. "There was a puff of smoke and he came out engulfed in flames," Scaparotti said. He said the truck was headed toward a group of U.S. Marines assembled at the ramp. A U.S. military official said a British soldier was injured when he tried to stop the driver from stealing the truck on the base. The Afghan man hit the British soldier with the truck as he was driving away.

#2: update A motorcycle bomb killed an Afghan intelligence official and wounded three people in the southern city of Kandahar, a provincial government spokesman said. Two of the wounded were also intelligence officers, while the other person was a civilian.

#3: Six Afghan civilians, including four women and two children, were killed Thursday when a roadside bomb went off in the country's southern province of Uruzgan, police said.

#4: Afghan Defense Ministry following a press release on Wednesday announced at least 6 Afghan National Army soldiers were injured in various incidents across the country. The source further added, the Afghan Army soldiers were injured in various regions of the country while discovering and defusing improvised explosive devices and roadside bomb explosions. At least 3 Afghan Army soldiers were injured at Greshk district, 2 soldiers were injured Kajaki district in Helmand and another Afghan soldier was injured at Panjwai district in Kandahar province.


Pakistan:
#1: A suicide bomber detonated his explosive vest next to a police vehicle in the northwestern city of Peshawar, killing one policeman and injuring seven, police officials said.

Three policemen were killed and another was injured in a suicide blast that took place on Thursday morning in Pakistan's northwest city of Peshawar, said local police. Shafqat Malik, Assistant Inspector General of police in Peshawar, said that the attack took place at about 9:30 a.m. local time when a suicide bomber blew himself up near a police vehicle in Pishtakhura area of the city. Superintendent Police Kalam Khan who was on an inspection tour of check posts at the outskirts of Peshawar was killed right on the spot while his three colleagues in the vehicle were wounded in the blast. Two of the injured police later died in hospital.

#2: A homemade bomb exploded near a group of pro-government tribal militiamen in the Mamund area of the northwestern Bajaur tribal region, killing five militiamen and wounding two, security officials said.

War News for Wednesday, March 14, 2012

Turkish warplanes hit Northern Iraq

Kyrgyzstan ready to shift U.S. Airbase to civilian facility: official


Reported security incidents
#1: A roadside bomb killed at least eight Afghan civilians travelling in a minibus in the southern province of Helmand on Wednesday, a local government official said. The bomb struck in the Marjah district of Helmand while travellers were on their way to the provincial capital of Lashkar Gah, said Daoud Ahmadi, a spokesman for the governor.

#2: Blast rocked Kandahar city, the capital of Kandahar province, 450 km south of capital Kabul on Wednesday, killing one person and injuring two others, an official said. "The terrorists planted explosive device on a motorbike and detonated it in Kandahar city at around 12:20 p.m. local time today, as a result, one policeman was killed and two others sustained injuries," the official told Xinhua but declined to be identified, saying authorized officials would brief the media after completion of investigation. He also did not say if the injured men were police or civilians.

#3: Officials in the ministry of interior affairs of Afghanistan following a press release on Wednesday announced, at least 3 armed insurgents were killed and another insurgent was detained following military operation by Afghan National Police. The source further added, the militants were killed and detained following 6 separate military operations conducted by Afghan National Police in conjunction with the Afghan Army, Afghan Intelligence and Coalition Security Forces during the past 24 hours. The operations were conducted at Kunar, Nangarhar, Helmand, Nimroz and Herat provinces of Afghanistan.


Pakistan:
#1: US drone aircraft struck twice in the tribal regions along the border with Afghanistan on Tuesday, killing 15 suspected terrorists, including two senior terrorist commanders, security and intelligence officials said. In the first strike, a drone fired missiles at a vehicle in the Birmal area of the South Waziristan tribal region, killing eight.


DoD: Staff Sgt. Jesse J. Grindey

War News for Tuesday, March 13, 2012

NATO is reporting the death of an ISAF soldier from a non-combat related injury in an undisclosed location in southern Afghanistan on Monday, March 12th.


Murder in Afghanistan, the Coverup Begins (updates)

NATO losing war on drugs in Afghanistan

U.S. Officials Debate Speeding Afghan Pullout


Reported security incidents
#1: Taliban militants have opened fire on an Afghan government delegation visiting a village in southern Afghanistan where 16 civilians were killed. The delegation was with families of the victims in Balandi village when they heard shooting, said Qayum Karzai, a brother of the Afghan president who was part of the group. He said he did not believe anyone was killed in the attack. However, a policeman was reportedly shot in the foot.

#2: Afghan Interior Ministry on Tuesday announced at least 2 armed insurgents were killed and 7 others were detained following military operations by Afghan National Police. According to a statement issued by the Afghan Interior Ministry, the militants were killed during 5 separate military operations conducted by Afghan National Police during the past 24 hours. The operations were conducted in conjunction with the Afghan National Army, Afghan Intelligence and International Coalition Security forces at Kabul, Helmand, Uruzgan, Logar and Khost provinces of Afghanistan.


Pakistan:
#1: A suspected U.S. drone strike killed five alleged militants in Pakistan's tribal region bordering Afghanistan on Tuesday, two intelligence officials said. The suspected drone fired two missiles on a vehicle, carrying suspected militants, in the area of Shawal in North Waziristan, one of the seven districts of Pakistan's volatile tribal region bordering Afghanistan, the officials said.

#2: Militants threw a grenade and then opened fire at a meeting of tribal elders and local officials in the town of Mir Ali in the North Waziristan tribal region, killing at least three people, including a senior local official, security officials said.

War News forMonday, March 12, 2012

Reported security incidents
#1: According to local authorities in southern Afghanistan, at least 2 Afghan National Police forces were shot dead by an individual in southern Uruzgan province. The officials further added, the incident took place at Khas Uruzgan district on Sunday evening.

#2: Afghan Interior Ministry on Monday announced, at least 6 insurgents were killed and injured and 16 others were arrested by Afghan security forces. According a statement issued by Afghan Interior Ministry, the militants were killed, injured and detained by Afghan National Police forces during the past 24 hours in 6 separate operations. The operations were jointly conducted by Afghan Police, Afghan Army, Afghan Intelligence and International Coalition Security forces at Nangarhar, Kunar, Kandahar, Helmand, Khost and Farah provinces of Afghanistan. At least 3 armed insurgents were killed, 3 militants were injured and 16 others were arrested during operations, officials added.


pakistan:
#1: Two people were killed and 17 others wounded when a homemade bomb exploded next to a bus on the outskirts of the town of Sadda in the northwestern Kurram tribal region, near the Afghanistan border, local government officials said.

Two persons were killed and nearly 20 others injured when a bus was targeted with a roadside bomb in the restive Kurram tribal region of northwest Pakistan today, security officials said. The incident occurred in Pir Qayyum area of the tribal district. The bus was going from Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa capital Peshawar to Parachinar, the main town of Kurram Agency. Two persons were killed instantly and 17 injured persons were taken to a hospital in Parachinar, security officials told TV news channels.

#2: A bomb exploded at a funeral on the outskirts of the northwestern city of Peshawar, killing at least 13 people and wounding 31 others, police officials said. The Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) Darra Adem Khel faction claimed responsibility for the attack.

#3: A homemade bomb exploded next to a house in the North Waziristan tribal region, near the Afghanistan border, killing two local tribesmen, security officials said.

News of the Day for Sunday, March 11, 2012

A U.S. soldier left his base in Panjway district, Kandahar province, and entered the village of Belanji where he went on a murderous rampage. According to the NYT, villagers say he killed 15 civilians and injured 5, by shooting into houses. He then returned to his base and is in custody. According to Daily News and Analysis of India, an Afghan government minister says he entered three houses and killed 16 people. (Other accounts give lower death tolls.)

Interior Ministry spokesman Sediq Sediqi asks for restraint as the investigation takes place, fearing violent protests. A member of parliament from the area, Abdul Rahim Ahyoubi, says the death toll is 17, and gives a different name for the village, Alokozai.

An AP photographer has seen the bodies of 15 slain civilians.

The U.S. House Oversight Committee on Foreign Affairs and Investigations has called for the Government Accountability Office to investigate alleged theft of foreign aid by president Karzai and his family. The U.S. embassy has distanced itself from the letter, saying it is the personal view of committee Chair Dana Rohrbacher. I'm no fan of Rohrbacher, but there have been plenty of published reports implicating Karzai's brother in embezzlement. - C

Khaama discusses the ongoing talks about future strategic relations between the U.S. and Afghanistan. Karzai says the question of permanent U.S. bases will be discussed later, after other questions are worked out. (Wait -- I thought we were leaving?)

Given the great importance and likely repercussions of the incident in Kandahar, I will do an update later today if there is significant further information or reaction. -- C

Iraq Update

Gunmen break into a house in the village of Mishada, north of Baghdad, and kill five members of a family. The target appeared to be a bodyguard of the mayor of nearby Tarmiyah.

Milias are targeting people identified with the "Emo" subculture in Iraq, and 58 people have been killed. Apparently it is believed that they are gay. "Officials and human rights groups estimated as many as 58 Iraqis who are either gay or believed to be gay have been killed in the last six weeks alone - forecasting what experts fear is a return to the rampant hate crimes against homosexuals in 2009. This year, eyewitnesses and human rights groups say some of the victims have been bludgeoned to death by militiamen smashing in their skulls with heavy cement blocks."

War News for Saturday, March 10, 2012

Turkish jets strike north Iraq: rebels

Iraq Oil Outlook Overly Ambitious

Officials: Yemen forces target militant hideouts, killing 18

Pakistan Picks New Director for Spy Agency


Reported security incidents
#1: An Afghan police official says insurgents attacked a checkpoint in eastern Afghanistan and that two border policemen and three attackers were killed in the ensuing firefight. Regional border police spokesman Edris Mohmand says insurgents assaulted the checkpoint in Lalpur district of Nangarhar province Friday. The area is near the border with Pakistan. The assault resulted in a three-hour gunbattle between the police and the assailants.

#2: Four civilians were killed and one more wounded by a NATO air strike in the northeastern Kapisa province overnight, local officials said.

#3: Afghan and foreign troops killed two insurgents and detained 27 more during joint operations in several parts of the country, the Ministry of Interior said.

Pakistan
#1: Pakistani fighter jets bombed four militant hideouts in the Khadezai and Mamozai areas of the northwestern Orakzai tribal region, near the Afghanistan border, killing 21 militants and wounding 23 military officials said. There was no way to independently confirm the death toll. Militants often dispute official death figures.

#2: An American missile attack killed 12 terrorists on the Pakistani side of the Afghan border on Friday, one of only a handful of such strikes this year, Pakistani officials said. The missile struck in the Mandao district of South Waziristan, a rugged terrorist stronghold where the Pakistan Army has staged offensives in the past, the officials said, giving no further details.

#3: Taliban militants armed with guns and rockets ambushed a military convoy on Friday, killing seven soldiers and injuring two in North Waziristan, officials said. The attack took place at the Khar Kamar area of Datta Khel tehsil, 30 kilometres west of Miramshah. Security officials said nine militants were also killed in the attack, but there was no independent confirmation of the toll. “After the ambush, military helicopters and troops retaliated and there were reports of deaths of nine militants,” an intelligence official said.

War News for Friday, March 9, 2012

The DoD is reporting the death of Spc. Edward J. Acosta who died in La Jolla, California, U.S. On Monday, March 5th. He was wounded in a roadside bombing in in Wardak province, Afghanistan on Saturday, December 3rd 2011.


Wounded Soldier Defies Odds

War radioactive contamination threatens Iraqis in Maysan Province

U.S. and Afghanistan Agree on Handover of Prisoners


Reported security incidents
#1: One child was killed, and a woman and a child were injured when a mortar shell hit a house in the Bara area of Aka Khel, in northwest Pakistan's Khyber tribal region, security officials said.

#2: Militants attacked a Pakistan Army post in the Sarwakai area of the South Waziristan tribal region, near the Afghanistan border, killing a soldier, security officials said.

#3: Three people including a pro-government figure were shot dead by gunmen in northern Afghan province of Kunduz Thursday night, a district official said Friday. "Unknown armed men opened indiscriminate fire on the vehicle of a local elder namely Ali Mohammad in Sarak-e-Naw area of Khan Abad district late on Thursday killing Ali Mohammad and two of his comrades on the spot," administration chief of Khan Abad district, Nizamuddin Nashir told Xinhua. The official said Mohammad was a former Mujahidin commander and was working in a commission in charges of recruiting locals for local police force in Kunduz province, some 250 km north of capital city of Kabul.


DoD: Spc. Edward J. Acosta

War News for Thursday, March 08, 2012

Afghan air force probed in drug running investigation

War kills: US Army suicides rose 80% after Iraq invasion

National Guard (in Federal Status) and Reserve Activated as of March 6, 2012


Reported security incidents
#1: Nine local policemen were killed following a militant attack in Afghanistan's central province of Uruzgan, officials said on Thursday. Taliban fighters attacked a local police's checkpoint, killing nine policemen in the Dashi area of Charchino district, the governor's office said in a statement. Official sources said that one of the policemen had links with Taliban fighters who assailed the checkpoint. Nine policemen were killed and a 10th was missing as a result of the assault, head of district development council, Juma Gul, said. A Taliban spokesman, Qari Yousuf Ahmadi, claimed responsibility for the attack, saying they killed 10 policemen in the checkpoint.

#2: Afghan officials say a roadside bomb has gone off in the country’s east, wounded 11 people, including four policemen. Nangarhar provincial government spokesman Ahmad Zia Abdulzai says Thursday’s bomb was hidden beside a road in Jalalabad city. He says most of the wounded were people who were walking by when the bomb exploded. Four of the injured were police.

#3: A Spanish soldier was wounded Wednesday while on patrol in northwestern Afghanistan, but is out of danger, the Spain’s Defense Ministry said. The soldier, whose identity is being withheld, was part of a mission to re-supply an Afghan army observation post near Spain’s Bernardo de Galvez base in Ludina. Wounded when insurgents fired on the patrol.

#4: Four civilians were killed and 10 injured on Wednesday when a remote-controlled motorbike bomb exploded in an Afghan town on the border with Pakistan, police said. Officials blamed the attack, in the town of Spin Boldak in Kandahar province, on the Taliban, who are waging a 10-year insurgency against the Western-backed government in Kabul. "There was a motorbike bomb blast against border police in Spin Boldak. Four civilians, one of them a woman, were killed and 10 others were injured," said Janan, a rapid-reaction police unit commander who uses only one name.

#5: Gunmen opened fire at a bus station in the Kech area of the southwestern Baluchistan province, killing five people, police officials said.

#6: An explosion shocked northern Kunduz city on Thursday, casualties feared, a local official said.


MoD: Sergeant Nigel Coupe

MoD: Corporal Jake Hartley

MoD: Private Anthony Frampton

MoD: Private Christopher Kershaw

MoD: Private Daniel Wade

MoD: Private Daniel Wilford

War News for Wednesday, March 07, 2012

The British MoD is reporting that six British ISAF soldiers are missing and presumed dead after a roadside bombing in an undisclosed area in southern Afghanistan on Tuesday, March 6th. Here's the ISAF statement.


Seven Polish soldiers to take stand for attack on Afghan village

Afghan avalanche kills 47


Reported security incidents
#1: A bomb hidden in a parked motorcycle exploded at a market in southern Afghanistan on Wednesday, killing four people, officials said. All those killed in the midday blast in Spin Boldak, on the Pakistani border, were civilians, said Zalmai Ayubi, a spokesman for the Kandahar provincial government. Eight people were wounded in the explosion, including one border police officer, he said.

#2: Afghan and foreign troops killed four insurgents during joint operations in several parts of the country in the last 24 hours, the Interior Ministry said in a statement.

#3: Four insurgents were killed by a NATO air strike in the eastern Kunar province when they attempted to attack a prison in Asadabad district, police said. A 12-year-old child was also killed by insurgents' gunfire, added Kunar police chief Ewaz Mohammad Naziri.

#4: A roadside mine killed two civilians in Kunar's Manogai district, police chief Naziri said.

#5: Seventeen militants, six of them foreigners, were killed and 12 others wounded in clashes with security forces in the mountainous region of Upper Orakzai, a military official said. The official said an unknown number of troops were also injured or killed, but he didn't provide any further information.

#6: A homemade bomb planted under a car exploded in the town of Badaber on the outskirts of the northwestern city of Peshawar, killing one person and wounding four others, police officials said.

#7: A homemade bomb exploded in the Takht-e-Bahi area of the northwestern Mardan district, damaging 22 shops, police officials said.

#8: A homemade bomb exploded on the outskirts of the northwestern town of Dera Ismail Khan, wounding two children, police officials said. Another bomb planted nearby was defused by the police. Dera Ismail Khan is near Pakistan's unruly northwestern tribal areas that lie along the border with Afghanistan, where several militant groups have strongholds.

#9: One Pakistan Army soldier was killed and two wounded when a homemade bomb exploded while they were on patrol in the Mohmand tribal region, security officials said.

War News for Tuesday, March 06, 2012

185 Yemeni troops dead in weekend al-Qaida attack

Pak Taliban ‘number two sacked’

US wants unconditional Nato supply resumption


Reported security incidents
#1: Afghan officials say a suicide bomber, on Monday, killed at least two civilians after detonating explosives at the gates of the NATO base where copies of the holy Quran were burned. The bomber targeted a vehicle belonging to the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF), said district Governor Kabir Ahmad Rahil. He added that there could be foreign casualties, although a NATO spokeswoman said no coalition troops had been harmed in the attack. Rahil says four more civilians were wounded in the attack.

#2: An explosion in Afghanistan Sunday wounded five Michigan Army National Guard Soldiers. An explosive thrown at the soldiers’ post in the Kunduz Province.

#3: One Pakistan Army soldier was killed and two wounded when a homemade bomb exploded while they were on patrol in the Mohmand tribal region, security officials said.

#4: Seven militants were killed and nine others injured in a gun battle after they ambushed a convoy of Frontier Corps troops in the Uch area of the southwestern province of Baluchistan, a Frontier Corps spokesman said. It was the second incident of this kind in Uch in two days. The spokesman said a large quantity of arms and ammunition was recovered.

#5: A group of militants ambushed a Pakistani paramilitary convoy in the Uch area of the southwestern Baluchistan province, security officials said. Three militants were killed when Pakistani forces returned fire.

#6: A soldier was killed by a homemade bomb in an empty house during a clearing operation by Pakistani forces in the Bara area of Khyber, security officials said.

#7: Three militants from the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), or Pakistan Taliban, were killed in fresh clashes with another militant group, Lashkar-e-Islam, in the Tirah Valley of Khyber Agency, tribal sources said.

#8: A homemade mine killed two insurgents and their two children in the southern Helmand province on Monday, the interior ministry said in a statement. One more child was wounded in the attack in the province's Grishk district.

#9: Afghan police backed by national army and the NATO-led coalition forces have killed four anti-government militants and captured eight others over the past 24 hours, a statement of Interior Ministry released here said. "During the past 24 hours, Afghan National Police, Afghan National Army, and Coalition Forces launched 10 joint operations in Nangarhar, Kunduz, Kandahar, Helmand, Zabul, Maidan Wardak, Logar, Herat and Farah provinces. As a result, four armed insurgents were killed, one wounded and eight others were arrested by Afghan Police," the statement added. However, it did not say if there were any casualties on security forces.

#10: At least four people were injured Tuesday morning in a blast in Jalalabad city, capital of eastern Afghan province of Nangarhar, a provincial health official said.

#11: Six people were injured as a roadside bomb struck a vehicle in Khost province 150 km southeast of capital Kabul on Tuesday, a local official said. "A mine planted by militants struck a police van in Khost city, the capital of Khost province at around 09:00 a.m. local time today. As a result, six people were injured and all the victims have been taken to hospital," head of health department in Khost city Amir Padshah Mangal told Xinhua. Two police officers and four civilians,including a child, are among the injured, he added.

War News for Monday, March 05, 2012

Afghan camps for Baloch militants shut: Malik

CIA-led force may speed Afghan exit

Pakistan tests fire nuclear capable ballistic missile

Checkpoint attacks kill 23 Iraqi police

Death toll in south Yemen attacks rises to 85

U.S.-Afghanistan Talks Falter Despite Leeway on Detention Facilities

Holder expected to explain rationale for targeting U.S. citizens abroad


Reported security incidents
#1: A suicide attack targeting police in northwest Pakistan late Sunday wounded five officers and badly damaged a vehicle, officials said. The bomber struck a police patrol in Dera Ismail Khan town in the troubled Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province which borders Afghanistan. "The suicide bomber was on foot. He blew himself up when the police vehicle was patrolling in a street," senior police official Qazi Jamil ur-Rehman told AFP. "Five policemen were wounded, condition of one of them was critical," he said.

#2: Unknown gunmen shot and killed a former local politician in Charsadda district, in the northwestern Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (KPK) province, police officials said. Police officials said the man was a member of the Awami National Party (ANP), the provincial ruling party, which is often targeted by militants who see the ANP as supporting the U.S.-led war against al-Qaeda and The Taliban in Afghanistan.

#3: Provincial governor for eastern Kunar province Syed Fazlullah Wahidi escaped militants attack on Sunday afternoon. The incident took place at Noor Gul district on Jalalabad and Kunar highway. Syed Fazlullah Wahidi said, a number of unknown gunmen opened fire him while he was on his way towards Jalalabad city on Sunday afternoon. He also added, there were no casualties as a result of the incident and the assailant militants managed to flee the area. According to Mr. Wahidi, several bullets hit the vehicle of his bodyguards but his bodyguards and driver did not suffer any casualties.

News of the Day for Sunday, March 4, 2012

Afghan army chief of staff, Gen. Sher Mohammad Karimi, laments the failure of NATO troops to grasp Afghan sensitivities and culture in an interview with Reuters. Excerpt:

"They took advantage of [the burning of Korans]. They will take advantage." Karimi, sitting in his office at the heavily guarded Ministry of Defense, lamented NATO's failure to grasp the sensitivities regarding Afghanistan's culture and religion during the United States' longest war, now in its eleventh year. "Those friends who have come here to help us are not doing it the way we asked them too," . . . "God forbid if this mistake is repeated there will be a lot of trouble next time."

Reuters' Michael Georgy vividly shows how strongly many Afghans feel about religious symbols. Excerpt:

Matihullah, 24, had always dreamed of becoming a lawyer. Then news spread that Western soldiers had burned many copies of the Muslim holy book at a NATO base in Afghanistan. He gave up his studies and embarked on a new mission in life -- to become a suicide bomber.

"Since the desecration and burnings of holy books of the Koran, I have been burning with the desire of revenge. It is running in my blood," said Matihullah, wearing the traditional white skull cap worn by many Afghans.

AP's Deb Reichmann also explores the depth of anger over the incident.

Afghan authorities burn 21 tons of drugs in Helmand. Well, not exactly. The haul includes opium, "chemicals used to process opium into cocaine" [sic -- that would be a neat trick] and alcohol. How much of it was alcohol we are not told. Note the irony that a society which strictly prohibits alcohol is economically dependent on opium.

Semantic quibble drives bad policy department: Top US military officials are considering whether to put elite special forces under CIA control similar to the way in which they were used in the operation to kill Osama bin Laden last May, the AP reported. "In this way, the US could say there are no special forces left on the ground in Afghanistan because once Navy Seals, Rangers and other elite units are assigned to the CIA, even temporarily, they become spies, the AP said. . . .Handing over much of the combat to special operations troops would help the US shrink its presence in Afghanistan in time to meet the Obama government's 2014 deadline. However, a CIA-led conflict would mean the US public would not be told about funding or operations." Got that, suckers? We're going to pretend we don't have any troops in Afghanistan, but we actually will, however it will be a secret, even though we know about it. Change you can believe in.

Afghan authorities claim to have arrested a man in Kandahar who was planning to burn a Koran and frame Americans for it, or that's what I think this means anyway, the English isn't great. Maybe I believe this.

Head of Afghan central bank says capital flight has doubled. "taking out of money from the country’s airports and ports has doubled causing grave concern of the Central Bank. According to the in charges the figure formerly was around USD 3 billion while now it has reached USD 4.6 billion." They don't give a time frame. Note what happens: Foreign aid pours into the country, rich Afghans end up skimming much of it, then they send it abroad. -- C

Five Afghan soldiers injured in Helmand province. This Khaama Press article also has a roundup of security incidents.

War News for Saturday, March 03, 2012

The DoD is reporting a new death previously unreported by the military. Cpl. Conner T. Lowry died during combat operations in an undisclosed location in Helmand province on Thursday, March 1st. News reports that he was a victim of a roadside bombing.


Taliban infiltration sophisticated: Afghan Army

US motives behind the CACI programme

Pakistan Battles Militants, in Worst Fighting in Months


Reported security incidents
#1: A suicide bomber on a motorcycle attacked a NATO convoy in Afghanistan’s southern province of Kandahar on Friday, wounding seven people including four soldiers, an official has revealed. “A suicide attacker rammed his explosives-laden motorcycle into a NATO convoy in Dand district injuring four foreign soldiers, one policeman, one translator and one civilian,” the Daily Times quoted provincial governor Toryalai Weesa, as saying.

#2: Six armed insurgents were killed and four others detained during joint operations in two Afghan provinces, the country's Interior Ministry said on Saturday. "The Afghan National Police, Afghan army and International Coalition Forces launched three joint operations in Nangarhar and Badghis provinces killing six armed insurgents and detaining four others over the past 24 hours," the ministry said in a statement.

According to officials in the Ministry of Defense of Afghanistan, at least 7 Afghan National Army service members were injured. Afghan Defense Ministry following a statement said, at least 5 Afghan National Army soldiers were injured at Delaram district of western Nimroz province while 2 others were injured at Moqor district of western Badghis province.

#3: "Two more insurgents were killed by their own IED while they attempted to plant it in the Badpakh District of eastern Laghman province Friday night," according to the statement.

#4: A roadside bomb killed four civilians in a car in the Khogyani district of eastern Nangarhar province, the governor's office said in a statement.


DoD: Cpl. Conner T. Lowry

DoD: Staff Sgt. Jordan L. Bear

DoD: Pfc. Payton A. Jones

War News for Friday, March 02, 2012

Brother Rice grad killed in Afghanistan - Lance Cpl. Conner Lowry was a gunner on a Humvee when he was killed, the report said Thursday night. Lowry, who had been a Marine for nearly three years, had just four months to go before being discharged, his family told the station. The circumstances of his death were not immediately known.


Reported security incidents
#1: Officials in Pakistan are quoted as saying at least 10 Pakistani soldiers and 23 suspected militants have been killed in a clash in the northwestern Khyber tribal region, near the Afghanistan border. Security officials are quoted by the AFP and Reuters news agencies as saying the clash occurred on March 2 in the Tirah valley, and one official was quoted as saying the fighting lasted for nearly six hours. Reports say the clash broke out after militants attacked a security checkpoint and Pakistani troops returned fire. An AFP report quotes a Khyber official as saying militants of the Taliban-linked Lashkar-e-Islam group launched the attack.

#2: Taliban shot dead a pro-government tribal elder of Mohmand Agency along with his nine-year-old son in Ghoshta area of Afghanistan near the border. Malik Nasrullah, an elder of Mamad Kor Khwezai, and his son Yasir were killed by militants in Afghanistan, sources said here on Thursday.

#3: Six tribesmen were critically injured when six mortar shells fired by NATO forces in Afghanistan landed in Zairai village of tehsil Dattakhel in North Waziristan Agency on Thursday. Official sources said that NATO forces stationed in Afghanistan fired six mortar shells into Dattakhel area of North Waziristan, the tribal area considered by US as stronghold of al Qaeda-affiliated terrorists, seriously injuring six tribesmen. The injured were shifted to hospital.

#4: A suicide bomber detonated his explosive vest at a camp of the Lashkar-e-Islam (LI) militant group in the northwestern Khyber tribal region, killing four militants and wounding six, an LI spokesman and intelligence officials said.

At least 23 people were killed when a suicide blast occurred near a mosque in Pakistan's northwestern tribal area of Khyber Agency on Friday afternoon, reported local Urdu TV channel ARY.

#5: Pakistani fighter jets bombed two militant hideouts in the Akhunkot and Barlas areas of the northwestern Orakzai tribal region, killing 15 militants and wounding 12 others, security officials said.

#6: Gunmen opened fire at a car in the northwestern city of Peshawar, killing an intelligence official, police officials said.

#7: Three militants were killed and two soldiers wounded when militants attacked a Pakistani paramilitary convoy in the Dera Bugti area of the southwestern Baluchistan province late on Thursday, security officials said on Friday.

#8: According to local authorities in southern Afghanistan, at least 4 people were killed and another one was injured following armed clashes between the Afghan National Army and International Coalition Security Forces in southern Kandahar province. The officials further added, the incident took place on Thursday morning around 3 am local time at Zherai district of southern Kandahar province.

#9: According to local officials northern Faryab province, at least 5 people including 2 Afghan security forces were killed following an improvised explosive device explosion in this province. Provincial security chief Abdul Khaliq Aqsai said, the incident took place at Senjetak area at Qaisar district, killing at least 2 Afghan police and 3 Afghan civilians. He also added, deputy of development council for northern Faryab province was also injured during the incident.

#10: Two area soldiers were among five from Michigan injured Sunday by an explosive device in Afghanistan.