War News for Friday, November30, 2012

Senate backs accelerated withdrawal of US forces from Afghanistan

US special envoy to Pakistan and Afghanistan to retire


Reported security incidents
#1: A bomb (Thursday) blast killed two civilians at a park in Khost, about 150 kilometers (90 miles) south of the capital, Kabul, said Jabar Nahimi, governor of Khost province in eastern Afghanistan. Eight others were wounded in the blast, including four women and a child, he said.

#2: Three persons were injured and a security forces vehicle damaged in twin blasts in different localities of Khyber Agency on Friday. According to details, in Sheikhwal area of Landikotal, unknown miscreants targeted a vehicle of Khasadar Force. As a result of blast, the vehicle was damaged partially but no human loss was reported. The second blast took place at Pak-Afghan Highway where a planted bomb exploded with big bang. Three passersby were injured in the blast.

#3: At least three people were killed and four others injured in a U.S. drone strike launched in Pakistan's northwest tribal area of South Waziristan on Thursday afternoon, reported local media Geo. According to the report, U.S. unmanned aircraft fired two missiles at a vehicle suspected of carrying militants in the Sheen Warsak area of Wana, capital town of South Waziristan which borders Afghanistan. One local TV channel said that the target was a suspected militant house instead of a vehicle.

War News for Thursday, November 29, 2012

Unknown disease outbreak kills 2 people in Baghlan
 

#1: Pakistani intelligence and government officials say a suicide bomber targeted a prominent Pakistani militant commander in the country's northwest, wounding him and killing three people. The officials say the bomber attacked Maulvi Nazir on Thursday in Wana, the main town in the South Waziristan tribal area. Nazir was one of 14 people wounded in the bombing. Nazir is the most prominent militant commander in South Waziristan and is believed to have a nonaggression pact with the Pakistani military. Nazir has focused his fighting against U.S.-led forces in Afghanistan, not against the Pakistani state. The officials say Nazir was attacked at an office in Wana he uses to meet with locals and hear their complaints. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk to the media

#2: A roadside bomb on Thursday struck a mini-bus in Afghanistan's Uruzgan province, 370 km south of Kabul, leaving 10 people dead and eight others injured, a local official said. "The bloody incident took place in Deh Rawad district at around 10:30 a.m. local time today leaving 10 civilians dead and eight others injured,"Abdullah Humat, spokesman for provincial administration, told Xinhua.

War News for Wednesday, November 28, 2012

The AP is reporting a new death of a soldier supporting OEF. Spc. Zachary Shanafelt died at at Walter Reed Hospital, Bethesda Md. on Wednesday, November (21st. ?) from an apparent non-combat related injury while deployed to Combat Outpost Qaisar, near Qeysar, Faryab Province, Afghanistan. The Military has not confirmed this new death.


Report: Kabul Bank sent millions of dollars abroad


Reported security incidents
#1: At least 4 Afghan civilians were killed following a roadside bomb explosion early Wednesday morning in this province, local authorities in southern Helmand province of Afghanistan said. Provincial governor media office following a statement announced the incident took place in Nawzad district after a civilian vehicle struck with a roadside bomb.

#2: In a separate incident Taliban militants killed 5 Afghan civilians in eastern Kunar province of Afghanistan. A spokesman for the provincial security commandment SherWaliSamim said Taliban militants abducted the five individuals on Tuesday night and killed them later.Taliban militants group yet to comment regarding the report.

“Taliban rebels abducted five members of local development council in Watapur district couple of days ago and after shooting them dead last night, handed their bodies over to the villagers this morning,” Samim told Xinhua. The local development council is a government-back body working with local administration on reconstruction field in rural areas.

#3: Meantime, the Afghan Interior Ministry in a statement released here Wednesday reported killing 27 Taliban fighters over the past two days. “Afghan National Police backed by the army and NATO-led coalition forces have killed 27 Taliban militants during series of operations conducted in Kabul, Laghman, Kunduz, Sar-e-Pul, Kandahar, Zabul, Uruzgan and Nangarhar provinces over the past 24 hours,” the Interior Ministry statement added.

Meanwhile, Afghan and foreign forces killed nine Taliban and detained six more in different operations throughout the past 24 hours, interior ministry said Tuesday, a claim rejected by Taliban as false. The combined force conducted operations in Kabul, Kunduz, Balkh, Kandahar, Uruzgan, Logar and Helmand provinces, killing nine anti-government gunmen and capturing six more, the interior ministry said in a press release.
#4: A bomb and gun attack killed three soldiers of Afghan National Army (ANA) and wounded four more in Maqur district of Badghis province this morning, an official said Tuesday. An ANA vehicle struck a landmine in Sang-e-Atash area of Maqur district at approximately 9:00 a.m. (local time), a government official in Badghis province told Afghan Islamic Press (AIP). He said Taliban gunmen attacked the ANA troops soon after the explosion, adding three Afghan National Army (ANA) troops were killed and four wounded in the bomb and gun attack.

#5: Another two soldiers were killed in northern Kunduz province, according to the statement, which said three soldiers were injured in southeastern Khost province. The injured were shifted to health facilities and their condition is said to be stable.

#6: According to local authorities in wester Herat province of Afghanistan, a NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) drone crashed in Pashtun Zarghoon district on Tuesday night. Provincial security chief Gen. Abdul Hamid Hamidi confirming the report said a drone belonging to NATO troops crashed in Taqcha and Taqanko area at Pashtun Zarghoon district which is under the control of the Taliban militants. He said the drone was busy with taking pictures of the area when the incident took place.

#7: According to reports Afghan national police forces clashed with each other in Central Baghlan district of northern Baghlan province late Tuesday evening. Provincial police chief Syed Zamanuddin Hussaini confirming the report said the incident took place after Central Baghlan district chief Amir Gul rejected the newly elected district security chief. He said the newly elected district security chief was about to be introduced to Afghan security forces but armed individuals loyal to Amir Gul attacked the party. Unconfirmed reports suggest at least two people were killed and a number of others were injured following the clashes. Clashes between the two sides are still going on and additional forces have been deployed in Central Baghlan district to control the security situation.


DoD: Cpl. Christopher M. Monahan Jr.

War News for Tuesday, November 27, 2012

Reported security incidents
#1: Afghan forces backed by the NATO-led troops killed eight Taliban militants in Laghman province 90 km east of Kabul on Tuesday, spokesman for provincial administration said. "In the operation launched early morning in some villages outside provincial capital Mehterlam, and lasted for a few hours, eight Taliban rebels were killed and four others injured," Sarhadi Zawak told Xinhua. There were no casualties on security forces, he said. Meantime, Taliban purported spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid in talks with media via telephone from unknown location confirmed the fighting but added only one Taliban fighter was killed in the firefight

#2: Four people were killed and two others wounded in a landmine blast and firing incidents in Bolan and Dera Bugti districts of Balochistan, on Monday. According to Levies officials, a landmine exploded in a village in Shuran area of Bolan district which killed two persons on the spot and seriously injured another.  "The deceased were riding a motorbike when it drove over a landmine which exploded with a huge blast, destroying the motorbike," Levies official said.

#3: Meanwhile, a man was killed in Kurdan area of Dera Bugti district. According to reports, the man was on his way along with his camel when he hit a landmine in Kurdan area. Resultantly, he and his camel died on the spot.

#4: Defence ministry on Monday said six Afghan National Army (ANA) troops were killed and 10 more wounded during separate hostile incidents over the past 24 hours. The ANA troops were killed and wounded in explosions and direct attacks while discharging security responsibilities in Ghazni, Helmand, Uruzgan, Wardak and Faryab province, the defence ministry said in a statement. It said two anti-government gunmen were killed by combined force in Charchino district of Uruzgan while three suspects were detained in Kandahar city and Muhammad Agha district of Logar province, adding the security force also recovered 450 kg of explosions in Narkh district of Wardak province. Meanwhile, two police among six persons were wounded in two back-to-back bomb explosions in Haska Maina district of eastern Ningarhar province this morning, sources said Monday. A roadside bomb exploded near a police vehicle in Baghiband Kandao area of Haska Maina at about 7:30 a.m. (local time), injuring two police, security forces told Afghan Islamic Press (AIP). The sources said another bomb went off in the same area when people gathered there to assist police, adding four civilians were wounded in the second blast.

War News for Monday, November 26, 2012

NATO is reporting the death of a USFOR-A soldier from an insurgent attack in an undisclosed location in southern Afghanistan on Saturday, November 24th.

NATO is reporting the death of an ISAF soldier from an IED blast in an undisclosed location in southern Afghanistan on Monday, November 26th.

US may keep 10,000 troops in Afghanistan

For Private Security Guards in Kabul, Hazardous Duty


Reported security incidents
#1: At least 19 people have been injured in a bomb attack in the eastern Afghan city of Khost. Local officials say the bomb was planted on a bicycle and detonated early on November 26 in a market. All of those wounded are civilians, with several in critical condition.

#2: Six people, including two policemen, were wounded in a roadside bombing in the Haska Mena district of eastern Nangarhar province on Monday, an official said. The explosion took place in Yaghi Bund area around 7:30am, the district chief, Israr Ahmed Qari, told Pajhwok Afghan News. The bomb exploded near a police patrol. A witness, Shahid Asifullah, said the police vehicle was comprehensively destroyed and one policeman critically wounded in the blast that also damaged other vehicles passing the scene.

#3: Two Taliban militants were killed and six others, including brother of a shadow governor, were wounded in northern Faryab province, a military official said on Monday. The two-day operation was conducted in Mato and Chalgazi areas of Qaisar district, Gen. Noor Muhammad Hamid, the 209th Shaheen Corps commander, told Pajhwok Afghan. A brother of Mullah Daud, the Taliban’s governor for Faryab, was among the detainees. Ten villages of the district were cleared of Taliban, the ANA commander said. An inhabitant of Khwaja Ganti area, Syed Shafiq, said four militants, including a commander, were injured in the offensive. He had no information about ANA causalities.

#4: Unknown miscreants Monday attacked a police mobile van apparently with a bomb near Acheeni check-post here, however, no casualty has been reported. According to district police here, the incident occurred in Sarband area where the miscreants targeted the mobile van of the Sarband police station apparently with a low intensity bomb that blasted with a huge bang.

 #5: Explosives were found under the vehicle of Geo News’ senior anchor and journalist Hamid Mir in Islamabad Monday, Geo News reported. According to initial reports, Hamid Mir went to the nearby market in his car and after returning home, the neighbor’s driver spotted a suspicious bag under his car. The bomb disposal squad was immediately called in to remove the bag after which it was revealed that the bag contained half kilograms of explosive material that was diffused by the squad.

#6: At least five people, including three cops, were injured in a grenade attack on a hotel in Mardan. According to details, an ASI and two other police officials of Police Station Matloon were having meal at a hotel when some unidentified persons hurled a hand grenade at them. The attack injured ASI Irshad, Constable Tauseef Shah and Constable Ghani Akbar and two civilians. The injured were shifted to a hospital in Peshawar.


DoD: Petty Officer 1st Class Kevin R. Ebbert

News of the Day for Sunday, November 25, 2012

After deadly sectarian fights, Afghanistan closes 3 university campuses. Fights between Sunni and Shiite students erupt on the occasion of Ashura, and result in the closure of 3 public universities in Kabul for at least 10 days. One student is confirmed dead and 30 injured. The linked story includes an additional claim of 2 dead by a witness. Reports suggest that Sunni students somehow interrupted Ashura ceremonies, although the precise manner in which violence was instigated is unclear.

A reminder that Ashura violence is not new in Afghanistan. Tarana Akbari, the "girl in green" whose photograph following the death of her brother and other relatives in a bombing last year, has revisited the site to demonstrate defiance. More than 80 people were killed or injured in the attack.

We should also note that there has been a campaign of violence against Ashura observances in Pakistan.

Suicide bomb attack in Maidan Shahr, Wardak, kills 2 and injures 80. The Taliban claim the attack as retaliation for the recent execution of 4 Taliban convicted of murder and rape.

Afghanistan ministry of women's affairs announces an increase in reports of violence against women, with 3,500 in the first six months of the year, including 70 beheadings. (I should point out that in these situations, you can't be sure whether this represents an increase in incidence, or more complete reporting. In a sense, it could be good news if at least more of the reality is coming to the surface. -- C)

Nine rockets fired from Afghanistan land in South Waziristan. The area from which the rockets were launched was recently abandoned by NATO forces and turned over to Afghan forces.

Khushnood Nabizada for Khaama discusses the appalling lack of consumer protection in Afghanistan. The country has become a dumping ground for shoddy and counterfeit goods, including fake medicines and adulterated food and fuel; while cartels conspire to maintain high prices. The country cannot develop a thriving economy without effective economic regulation. (Hear that, Ayn Rand fans?)

War News for Saturday, November24, 2012

Reported security incidents
#1: At least seven people including three children were killed, while eighteen others including a policeman were injured in a massive bomb blast that went off near a Muharram procession at Bannu Chungi in Dera Ismail Khan here on Saturday morning, Geo News reported. The bomb disposal squad says 8-10 kilograms of explosives were used in the locally made bomb, while police say the bomb was planted in a garbage dump.

#2: At least six Afghan security guards were wounded as a suicide car bomb went off outside an Afghan-NATO military base in eastern Afghan province of Nangarhar Friday evening, a provincial police spokesman said. "The bomber rammed his explosive-laden vehicle into the wall of the base near the entrance of the compound at about 18:40 local time," Housain Mashriqiwall told Xinhua. Earlier Friday, three civilians were killed and 90 others wounded when the Taliban carried out a suicide bombing on a police station in Wardak province 35 km west of Kabul.

War News for Friday, November 23, 2012

Reported security incidents
#1: A suicide car bomber killed three people and wounded dozens near a NATO-run training base on Friday, in an attack claimed by the Taliban as revenge for the execution of its militants. Several NATO soldiers were lightly wounded, a spokesman for the US-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) said, without giving further details. A police spokesman said the blast was near "a joint coordination office" for the Afghan army, police and NATO troops in Maidan Shar, the capital of Wardak province, some 50 kilometres (30 miles) from Kabul. The base is close to the provincial governor's office and two of his bodyguards were among the dead, his spokesman Shahidullah Shahid told AFP. Ninety people were wounded, 75 men, 11 women and four children."

#2: Unidentified gunmen shot dead the deputy intelligence chief of Shindand district on Thursday.
The armed motorcyclists gunned down Tajuddin, deputy intelligence chief of Shindand, near the district bazaar, the Shindand police chief Ghulam Sakhi Hussaini told the Afghan Islamic Press (AIP).

#3: In a separate incident, a woman was killed and two minors were injured when their vehicle struck an IED in Sanoghan area of Shindand district today, an official told the AIP. The victims belonged to a cop’s family, he maintained.

#4: Two police constables were killed after militants attacked a police and paramilitary force-manned Speen Qabar checkpost of Badhaber police on Thursday, officials said. They said some 50 militants carrying RPG-7 rockets and medium-range machineguns attacked the post jointly manned by the police and Frontier Constabulary (FC). It is the first time the militants attacked a checkpost during the day. DSP Fazal Mulla told reporters two cops had been killed in the attack. In the surprise ambush, the attackers killed Rehman Wali inside the post while Shamsur Rehman went missing and was later found dead.

War News for Thursday, November 22, 2012

Reported security incidents
#1: A cop died while 29 more became unconscious at a base in Qaisar district of Faryab province last night. An area resident told the Afghan Islamic Press (AIP) that a total of 30 policemen became unconscious at a base in Qaisar district, adding one of them lost his life. The Faryab governor's spokesman Ahmad Javed Baidar confirmed the incident. He, however, did not disclose exact number of the affected policemen. He said the policemen became unconscious after eating meal. He said it seems someone had poisoned their food.

#2: Meanwhile, gunmen shot dead a former commander of the Junbish-i-Milli, Amanullah, in Dhun Darra area of Pashtunkot district while he and his son were was on their way to the mosque last night. His son sustained injuries in the attack, he said, adding the attackers fled from the scene. The Taliban spokesman Qari Muhammad Yousaf Ahmadi claimed responsibility for killing Amanullah. He said their fighters also killed two more commanders, Abdul Rashid and Sangin, in the same district yesterday.

#3: Eight militants, including three commanders, were killed during a joint operation in the Baraki Barak district of central Logar province on Wednesday, an official said. ANA and International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) troops conducted the operation in Allahdad Khel village of the district, said the governor's spokesman, Din Muhammad Darvesh. He to Pajhwok Afghan News the NATO-led troops provided air support to the ANA.

#4: As many as five people, including three soldiers and a woman, were killed and over 20 seriously injured when a bomb ripped through a Pakistan Army vehicle in the provincial capital in a high security zone of Shahbaz Town on Wednesday. According to DIG Hamid Shakeel, the bomb was planted on a motorcycle parked on Smungli Road at Shahbaz Town to target an army vehicle escorting a school van. "Explosives were detonated when a vehicle of security forces passed by," the DIG said, adding as result five people, including three security personnel and a woman, were killed on the spot and over 11 others wounded. However, rescue workers said that more than 20 people were injured in the blast.

#5: Three Afghan civilians were killed Wednesday evening in an explosion in the country's southern province of Helmand, police said Thursday. "Two brothers and a cousin were killed when their motorcycle touched off an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) in a road in Shawal area of Nad Ali district late Thursday," provincial police spokesman Farid Ahmad Farhang told Xinhua.

#6: At least one security person was killed and two others injured when a security checkpost was attacked by unknown gunmen in Pakistan's northwest city of Peshawar on Thursday morning, reported local media Dunya. The attack took place at about 11:40 a.m. local time when unknown gunmen opened fired at a checkpost guarded by Frontier Corps, a paramilitary force in Pakistan, in the Budhber area of Peshawar. One FC member was killed and two others injured in the attack. The attackers fled the scene after FC retaliated. Other details about the attack are not immediately available.

War News for Wednesday, November 21, 2012

Reported security incidents
#1: A suicide bomber blew himself up near a NATO base in Kabul's heavily-fortified diplomatic district on Wednesday, killing two Afghan security guards and wounding two government officials, police said. The Taliban, leading an insurgency against US-led troops and the Afghan government, claimed responsibility and said the target was a CIA office. "One suicide attacker and two security guards were killed in the attack and one security guard was injured," Kabul police chief Mohammad Ayoub Salangi told AFP, dismissing reports that a second bomber was involved. Shrapnel hit a passing vehicle of NATO's International Security Assistance Force but no personnel were injured, a spokesman said. "All ISAF bases in the green zone are secure," he added.

#2: A total of seven Taliban have been killed and 11 others detained by the Afghan police within a 24-hour time, the Afghan Interior Ministry said in a statement earlier Wednesday. "Afghan National Police (ANP) supported by the army and NATO- led Coalition Forces launched seven joint cleanup operations in Nangarhar, Wardak, Faryab, Kandahar, Zabul, Logar and Khost provinces, killing seven armed Taliban militants and detaining 11 other suspected Taliban over the past 24 hours," the ministry said in the statement.
 
#3: Separately, a policeman with the ANP and two Taliban militants were killed and a policeman was injured when Taliban raided a police post in southern Helmand province overnight. "Taliban launched an armed attack against a police checkpoint in Musa Qala district mid-night sparking an hour-long fighting which results in the death of a policeman and two Taliban militants," a spokesman for provincial government, Ahmad Zirak, told Xinhua Wednesday morning.

#4: In eastern Logar province, 60 km south of Kabul, another Afghan and coalition forces unit killed several insurgents during an operation in search of a high-ranking Taliban leader and weapons facilitator Wednesday morning, the coalition statement further said. "As the Afghan and coalition security force approached the Taliban leader's suspected location, multiple insurgents armed with rocket propelled grenades and small arms maneuvered against and attacked the combined force. The partnered force returned fire, killing several insurgents and defeating the attack.

#5: At least five people were killed and several others injured in a blast in the Shahbaz Town area of the city (Quetta), Geo News reported Wednesday. CCPO Quetta Mir Zubair said three security personnel were among those killed in the blast. Zubair added that initial investigations showed that the blast was caused by an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) planted on a motorcycle. Following the blast, firing was also reported in the area. Buildings and vehicles in the area were also damaged due to the blast. According to initial reports, the blast targeted a security forces' vehicle.

#6: Two Afghan National Army (ANA) soldiers were killed and eight more injured in separate violence-related incidents across the country, the Ministry of Defence announced Tuesday. A defence ministry press release available with the Afghan Islamic Press (AIP) stated the ANA soldiers suffered casualties in separate blasts and attacks of the enemy in Nangarhar, Ghazni, Helmand and Laghman provinces over the past 24 hours.


DoD: Lance Cpl. Dale W. Means

War News for Thursday, November 20, 2012

Maine soldier returns home 5 months after attack in Afghanistan

Wounded in Afghanistan: 'I'm just so thankful to be alive'

500 French combat troops exit tense Afghan region


Reported security incidents
#1: Gunmen on Tuesday killed the driver of a NATO supply truck in northwest Pakistan on the Afghan border, officials said. The shooting took place in the Jamrud area of Khyber, one of seven districts in Pakistan's semi-autonomous tribal belt where Taliban and Islamist militants are active. “Two gunmen on a motorcycle fired at a NATO truck and killed its driver when a convoy of three trucks was passing,” local government official Asmatullah Wazir told AFP. He said an assistant of the driver was wounded and that the gunmen escaped.

#2: A six-year-old girl was killed while a woman and her nine-year-old son were injured when shells fired by militants from across the Afghan border hit houses in the Charmang area of Bajaur Agency on Monday. The shells hit two houses in Hilal Khel Border village in late afternoon, killing six-year-old Asma and injuring one Haya Bibi and her son Inamullah, said a security force official.

#3: helicopters on Monday pounded militant hideouts in North Waziristan, killing as many as four and injuring several others, according to a private TV channel. According to reports, the gunship attacked militant hideouts in Mir Ali area of the North Waziristan Agency.

#4: A roadside bomb struck a police van in the western Farah province, killing a police officer and injuring two others on Tuesday, an official said. "A roadside bomb planted by Taliban militants on the road leading to Farah airfield was detonated by remote control at 02:05 p.m. local time, leaving a police official dead and injuring two others," deputy to provincial police chief Mohammad Ghous Malyar told Xinhua. The blast took place near the airstrip and the person killed in the incident is a Taliban former commander named Noor Mohammad Jan who had recently switched side and joined the government, the official added.

#5: Provincial governor and security chief for southern Helmand province of Afghanistan escaped a life attempt attack in this province, local authorities said. A local security official speaking on the condition of anonymity said the incident took place in Sangin district on Monday. According to reports provincial governor Gen. Mohammad Naim Baloch and provincial security chief Abdul Nabi Elham were on their way to attend a session which was attended by a number of foreign ambassadors along with Zerar Ahmad Muqbil Afghan counter-narcotics minister. This comes as former provincial governor Gulab Mangal escaped militants attack in this district earlier.

#6: In the meantime local officials in Helmand province said at least 2 Afghan police officers and 2 Taliban militants were killed following armed clashes in this province. A spokesman for Helmand governor Farid Ahmad Farang said a four day joint military operation by Afghan police and army has been launched to clear the militants in Nawa district.

War News for Monday, November 19, 2012

NATO is reporting the death of an ISAF soldier from an IED blast in an undisclosed location in southern Afghanistan on Sunday, November 18th.

Reported security incidents
#1: Four civilians were wounded during a clash between the Afghan army and insurgents in the Khogyani district of eastern Nangarhar province, an official said on Monday. Haji Syed Rehman, the district chief, told Pajhwok Afghan News that the militants attacked a convoy of the Afghan National Army (ANA) in Mamla area late Sunday night. The soldiers escaped unhurt, but four civilian were wounded.

#2: Roadside bombs killed a total of five people and wounded 10 on Sunday in two separate blasts in the tribal areas near the Afghan border, officials said. One of the improvised explosive devices was planted along the route of an army convoy in the Mir Ali area 35 kilometres east of Miranshah, the main town in the North Waziristan district, they said. "The explosion killed at least two soldiers and injured seven others," a security official in Miranshah said on condition of anonymity. Another local security official confirmed the attack and said two of some 10 to 15 vehicles in the convoy were severely damaged.

#3: In the Shin Qamar area of the Khyber tribal region, at least three labourers were killed and three wounded on Sunday in an explosion caused by a roadside bomb, said senior local official Nasir Khan. He said the bomb went off as the labourers, who were carrying construction materials on mules, passed by. Local intelligence officials also confirmed the incident.

#4: Units of Afghan police have eliminated nine Taliban militants during series of operations over the past 24 hours, Interior Ministry said in a statement released here on Monday. In the operations, according to the statement which have been carried out in Kabul, Kunar, Kandahar, Helmand, Daikundi, Faryab, Uruzgan and Farah provinces over the past 24 hours, nine Taliban fighters were killed and 20 others made captive. The statement did not say if there were any casualties on the police side.

Meanwhile Afghan security forces, backed by International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) troops, killed 16 insurgents in a string of operations across the country, the Ministry of Interior said on Sunday. The operations were conducted in Kabul, Laghman, Faryab, Kandahar, Zabul, Maidan Wardak, Ghazni, Paktika and Helmand provinces over the past 24 hours. Eight insurgents were wounded and four others detained.

#5: Five soldiers were killed in a bomb attack on an ANA patrol in the Ghormach district of Faryab, the ministry said, adding that another five troops were wounded.

#6: In the eastern province of Kunar, the militants killed three soldiers, who had been kidnapped three days ago, a military spokesman, Col. Noman Hatifi, told Pajhwok Afghan News. The soldiers' bodies were found Sunday morning, according to Hatifi, who said the victims hailed from northern Afghanistan.

#7: A suspected insurgent was killed by the explosives he was planting on a roadside in the Cholan village on the outskirts of Khost City, the capital of Khost southeastern province.

#8: A suicide bomb targeting a car enroute to Qazi Hussain's rally in Mohmand Agency injured three people and damaged the vehicle, local political administration said. According to the administration, the incident took place when a woman suicide bomber blew herself up near the vehicle, resultantly three activists of Jamat e Islami (JI) got injuries. The administration said that Qazi Hussain Ahmed was present at the place of public gathering when the incident took place.

#9: A district police chief was injured along with his son and two guards when his vehicle struck a roadside improvised explosive device in Baghlan province on Sunday. The police chief of Khanabad district, Kunduz province, Sofi Habibur Rahman, his son and two guards were injured when a roadside IED struck his vehicle in Markazi Baghlan district of Baghlan province, the Baghlan provincial police chief Kameen told the Afghan Islamic.

#10: A powerful blast rocked the border town of Islam Qala in the western Herat province 640 km west of Kabul on Monday, injuring three people, a local official said. "The blast happened at around 09:50 a.m. local time near a border police checkpoint in the border town of Islam Qala, leaving three people injured," the official told Xinhua but declined to be identified.

#11: According to local authorities in eastern Ghazni province of Afgahnistan, Taliban militants assassinated an Afghan man over espionage charges in Deh-Yak district. District police chief Faiz Toofan confirming the report said the deceased Afghan man was recogized as Faiz Toofan and was a resident of Deh-Yak district. He said Mohammad Ibrahim was killed by Taliban militants in Laghwat village. In the meantime local residents and eye witnesses in the area said the man was killed following firefight between Taliban militants and Afghan police forces however local officials deny reports by local residents and said he was killed by Taliban militants.


DoD: Sgt. Channing B. Hicks

DoD: Spc. Joseph A. Richardson

News of the Day for Sunday, November 18, 2012

Three Afghan National Police steal 29 million Afghanis (about $550,000) from the branch of the National Bank of Afghanistan in Nouristan province they were assigned to guard. Two of them have been captured, with most of the cash, the third is at large. They were captured in the home of the previous head of security for the province.

Taliban kill a man in Ghazni province accusing him of "espionage."

A seven year old boy is murdered in Herat in an extortion attempt. Kidnapping an extortion are apparently commonplace in the province.

Two Taliban operatives involved in IED construction and weapons trafficking reported captured in Kandahar.

In Singapore ahead of the Asia-Pacific summit, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton discusses Afghanistan. She says that economic development is essential to future stability and suggests (rather vague) plans to promote regional trade tying together central Asia and India.

Oy, department: The president of rescued and rebadged Kabul Bank – New Kabul Bank – was accused in court on Saturday of abetting an illegal money transfer on the night he was appointed president of the crisis-riddled lender.

Afghan officials say Pakistan has promised to stop cross-border shelling. We shall see.

Afghans protest the execution by Iran of 13 young Afghan men, claiming they had only gone to Iran seeking work and were innocent of any other wrongdoing. A spokesman for the families threatens the Afghan government with violent action if it does not confront Iran over the issue.

Karzai meets with Shiite clerics, urges them to be cautious on Ashura. (For those who don't know, that is the Shiite holy day commemorating the martyrdom of the prophet's grandson Hussein in 61 AH, 680 CE. This is the event that essentially marks the Shiite/Sunni schism, and has recently been the occasion for attacks on Shiite worshippers.)

Turkmenistan is pushing plans to build a gas pipeline across Afghanistan to India and Pakistan. "The TAPI (Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India) natural gas pipeline, which is backed by the Asian Development Bank (ADB), is regarded with suspicion as a wildly ambitious pipedream by some analysts."

Eric Margolis says the real scandal of Gen. Petraeus has nothing to do with sex. Excerpt:

Every war produces generals glorified into heroes by government, media and their own public relations efforts.  Gen. Petraeus, who commanded US occupation forces in first Iraq, then Afghanistan, continues to be hailed as a “military genius” and “war hero.”

Look again.  Petraeus and his fellow generals used every weapon in the US arsenal against Iraq’s eleven resistance groups (deceptively misnamed “al-Qaida” by Washington), including the mass ethnic cleansing of two million Sunni Iraqis,  death squads, torture, and brutal reprisals. . . .

Petraeus was then sent to work his magic in Afghanistan before returning to Washington to head CIA.  There, the brainy general, who had a knack for self-promotion and public relations,  tried again to crush the Pashtun resistance by massive bombardments, billions in high tech gear,  reprisals that wiped out entire villages,  search and destroy missions.  Torture and executions were as common as during the Soviet occupation. . . .

Cost of Afghan War:  $1 trillion and rising. Afghan dead unknown. US military, some 2,100 dead, 17,000 wounded. The US military has clearly been fought to a standstill in Afghanistan by medieval tribesmen with AK-47’s, reconfirming its name - “graveyard of empires. As for the military genius of Gen. Petraeus, recall the famous cry of King Pyrrhus, “one more such victory and we are lost.”

War News for Saturday, November 17, 2012

Reported security incidents
#1: Four policemen were killed in a clash with Taliban militants in the Worduj district of remote northern Badakhshan province, an official said on Saturday. Col. Asadullah, the district police chief, acknowledged the death of four policemen in the assault. In a counterattack, several insurgents were killed, but he gave no specific casualty figures.

#2: Eight insurgents were killed in a clash with security personnel in the eastern province of Laghman, officials said on Saturday. The clash erupted during a joint operation by Afghan security personnel and the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) late on Friday on the outskirts of Mehtarlam, the capital of Laghman. Sarhadi Zwak, the governor’s spokesman, told Pajhwok Afghan News two policemen were wounded in the four-hour gunbattle in the Abuzai bridge area. The security personnel were inspecting locations for police checkpoints when the fighters attacked them, said the provincial police chief, Brig. Gen. Fazal Ahmed Sherzad.

#3: Afghan police have killed 11 Taliban fighters in a series of operations across the country over the past 24 hours, Interior Ministry said in a statement on Saturday. These operations have been conducted in Nangarhar, Maidan Wardak, Ghazni, Paktika, Paktiya, Helmand and Farah provinces, killing 11 Taliban militants and capturing 12 others. There were no casualties on the police personnel.

#4: Local authorities in southern Kandahar province of Afghanistan on Friday announced a number of Afghan civilians and security forces were killed or injured following coordinated blasts in Panjwai district today. The first incident took place in Shirwan village injuring an Afghan boy while he was moving his households. Panjwai district chief Haji Afzal Ahmad Ishaq confirming the report said a 15 year old Afghan boy was injured around 12:30 pm while he was shifting his households to his new house and struck with a roadside bomb. In a separate incident at least 2 Afghan local police officers were killed and 1 other was injured after their vehicle struck with a roadside bomb in Panjwai district. Meanwhile an Afghan national army soldier was injured after his vehicle struck with a roadside improvised explosive device in this district.


DoD: Staff Sgt. Rayvon Battle Jr.

War News for Friday, November 16, 2012

NATO is reporting the deaths of two ISAF soldiers from an IED blast at a base in an undisclosed location in eastern Afghanistan on Friday, November 16th.

Reported security incidents
#1: At least two members of a Pakistani paramilitary force have been killed and several others injured in a bomb attack in the southwestern province of Balochistan, Press TV reports. A car bomb targeted a Frontier Corps (FC) center in Zohab district of the province on Friday. No group has claimed responsibility for the attack.

#2: At least four people including two troops were killed in a suicide blast in Pakistan’s southwest province of Balochistan on Friday morning, said an officer. Talat Masood, a commander of Frontier Corps, a paramilitary force in Pakistan, which is mainly responsible for the country’s border safety, said that the blast took place early Friday morning in Zhob, a small town in northern Balochistan, which is about 50 kilometers away from the Afghan border. FC personnel on routine patrol stopped a suspected car for check near a FC headquarters in Zhob and one of the two persons sitting in the car blew himself up, killing two FC personnel right on the spot, said Masood, adding that the suicide bomber and his accomplice were also killed in the blast.

#3: The Afghan forces and the NATO-led coalition troops have eliminated two insurgents and detained two in restive eastern Afghan provinces within a 24-hour period, the coalition forces confirmed in a press release issued from Bagram, the main U.S. base in the country, on Friday.

#4: Up to 11 Afghan civilians, including seven women and four children, were killed and four were wounded Friday afternoon when a vehicle was struck by a roadside bomb in the country's western province of Farah, a provincial source told Xinhua.

#5: According to local authorities in north-eastern Badakhshan province of Afghanistan, a number of Taliban militants on ambushed a police check post on Thursday night in Wardaj district. District police chief Asadullah confirming the report said at least 4 Afghan police officers were killed and 2 others were injured following the clashes. This comes as at least 8 Afghan police officers were killed after Taliban militants ambushed Afghan security forces in Kohi-e-Ghanio area in this district.

#6: In a separate incident earlier Taliban militants kidnapped 16 Afghan police officers and killed 4 of them in Bashin area of Wardaj district.

#7: According to local authorities in western Nimroz province of Afghanistan, unknown gunmen on Thursday evening shot dead a local tribal elder and former deputy justice department in this province. Provincial security chief Haji Mosa Rasool confirming the report said the incident took place after unknown gunmen riding motorcycle opened fire on Mawlavi Ghulam Sarwar Baloch and killed him. Mr. Rasool further added the incident took place late Thursday evening in Zaranj city.

War News for Thursday, November 15, 2012

A lost civilisation: 3,000-year-old cemetery discovered in Swat


Reported security incidents
#1: Unknown armed men attacked an oil tanker and two food-laden trucks in Samangan province 215 km north of Kabul late Wednesday night, a local official said Thursday. “Unidentified armed men, possibly Taliban militants attacked and destroyed an oil tanker and two trucks carrying food stuffs to Kabul late last night,” Ghulam Mohammad, head of the police’s crime investigation department in Samangan, told Xinhua.

#2: Afghan police during series of operations have killed eight Taliban militants and arrested a dozen other across the country over the past 24 hours, Interior Ministry said in a statement released here Thursday. "In the operations conducted in Kabul, Kunar, Balkh, Faryab, Kandahar, Uruzgan, Maidan Wardak, Logar, Ghazni, Paktiya, Farah and Helmand provinces, eight Taliban rebels have been killed, 12 detained and three others wounded," the statement added.

War News for Wednesday, November 14, 2012

NATO is reporting the death of an ISAF soldier from an unexplained explosion at a base in an undisclosed location in southern Afghanistan on Tuesday, November 13th.

Reported security incidents
#1: Taliban insurgents on Wednesday dragged two young Afghan men from their car and shot them dead because they worked for NATO troops as interpreters, police said. The bloodied bodies of the men were found next to their car on the side of a road in Logar province, less than 80 kilometres (50 miles) south of the capital Kabul.

#2: According to local authorities in southern Kandahar province of Afghanistan, Taliban militants attacked a NATO military base in this province. The officials further added a heavy explosion took place after ammunitions depot caught fire as a result of the rocket attack. Panjwai district Fazal Ishaq confirming the report said the incident took place in Zangiabad village in Panjwai district. He said the fire as a result of the explosion in ammunitions depot continued for several hours however he did not disclose further information regarding the casualties as a result of the incident.


DoD: Sgt. Matthew H. Stiltz

War News for Tuesday, November 13, 2012

Afghan Warlord’s Call to Arms Rattles Officials


Reported security incidents
#1: Rockets struck near Kabul's presidential palace and international airport on the 11th anniversary of the Taliban withdrawal from the Afghan capital, killing one and wounding three, police say. Police said four rockets were fired from a vineyard northeast of Kabul, with two landing "near" Kabul international airport without causing any casualties. Airport sources said one of the rockets exploded in a car park at the airport and another landed near a police checkpost but failed to detonate. A third rocket hit the compound of the privately run Shamshad TV station without causing casualties. "But unfortunately, the fourth one landed in District 9 (near the presidential palace) and hit a car, wounding three civilians and killing one," Kabul police said in a statement.

#2: A roadside bomb attack left four Afghan National Army (ANA) troops dead and two wounded in Bala Murghab district of Badghis province last night, an army officer said Monday. A landmine exploded on ANA patrol in Akazai village of Bala Murghab district, killing four troops and wounding two others, an army officer in western Badghis province, told Afghan Islamic Press (AIP). He said a clash also took place between Taliban and Afghan army troops after the bomb attack but did not caused any casualties to troops, adding it was unclear if Taliban suffered any damage or not.

#3: A press release issued by media office of Wardak governor said three anti-government gunmen were emplacing a landmine in Madad village of Chak district to target security force when the landmine exploded prematurely. He said all the three gunmen were killed in the explosion.

#4: A bicycle bomb apparently targeting security forces killed two people and injured nine others at airport road in Quetta on Tuesday, Geo News reported. According to police, the device exploded on the road from Quetta to the airport as a convoy of the government paramilitary Frontier Corps (FC) passed nearby. "Two people passing by were killed in the blast and nine others wounded. The injured also included three FC soldiers," a senior police official told. Firing was also reported after the explosion. Law enforcement agencies and rescue teams immediately reached the spot to initiate rescue efforts.

#5: In Kapisa, 20 armed insurgents and the soldier were killed during a clash in Tagab district on Sunday night, Governor Mehrabuddin Safi told Pajhwok Afghan News. He said the clash was touched off by a Taliban attack on an ANA check-post. A key insurgent commander, Ghulam Rabbani, was among the dead. Two Afghan soldiers were also injured.


DoD: Capt. James D. Nehl

MoD: Captain Walter Barrie

War News for Monday, November 12, 2012

The British MoD is reporting the death of a British ISAF soldier from an insider attack by small arms fire/gunshot wounds at Forward Operating Base Shawqat in the Nad 'Ali district, Helmand province, Afghanistan on Sunday, November 11th. Here’s the ISAF release.

 

NATO is reporting the death of a USF-A soldier from an IED blast in an undisclosed location in southern Afghanistan on Sunday, November 11th.

 

NATO is reporting the death of an ISAF soldier from an insurgent attack in an undisclosed location in eastern Afghanistan on Monday, November 12th.

Reported security incidents
#1: “Four civilians were killed in Nez Naarai village, in Shawal area of South Waziristan, when Afghan forces fired mortar shells from across the border,” a security official based in Peshawar told AFP. A second security official said the victims were collecting wood and were hit by the mortar shells as they loaded it into a vehicle.

#2: A would-be suicide bomber was killed and another injured in an exchange of fire with police in Assadabad, capital of eastern Afghan province of Kunar, on Monday, provincial police chief Awaz Mohammad Nazari said. "Two suicide bombers equipped with suicide vests and pistols were attempting to target police in Assadabad city at around 08:30 a.m. local time but police identified and opened fire at them, killing one on the spot and injuring another," Nazari told Xinhua. A police officer was slightly injured during clash, he admitted.

 
DoD: Spc. Daniel L. Carlson

DoD: Kenneth W. Bennett

News of the Day for Sunday, November 12, 2012

Roadside bomb in Khost kills a family of 6 who were just returning home from a maternity hospital with their newborn baby.

Explosion in Kandahar province kills a woman and child, injures 3 others, who were on their way to a wedding.

Two Afghan soldiers attack NATO troops in Badghis province, injuring one. The attackers are detained. Khaama has a somewhat different account of what appears to be the same incident. In this version, a single assailant attacks a Spanish Provincial Reconstruction Team, and the attacker is killed.

Afghan witnesses testify by video-link at a hearing to determine whether Staff Sgt. Robert Bales should face court martial for the murder of 16 civilians, including 9 children:

Rafiullah, a boy of 15 who spoke in Pashtun, said he was at home with his grandmother, Na'ikmarga, and his sister, Zardana, when a US soldier came. "He had rifle and a pistol," Rafiullah said of Bales. "He put a pistol in my sister's mouth and then my grandmother started to wrestle with him. At that time I ran out of the door ... My sister and I were running. As soon as he left the room, my grandmother ran too."

When asked what happened next, Rafiullah answered: "He shot my grandmother and then my sister, and then me. He shot me on my legs. Zardana was shot on her head."

U.S. soldier killed by roadside bomb on Saturday. No additional information as of now. (This story also reports civilian casualties described in links above.)

Veterans Day in the US coincides with "Remembrance Sunday" in the UK. I am seeing more stories about this occasion from the UK than I am from this side of the Atlantic. Unlike in the US, in Britain it is acceptable to raise questions on the day, rather than blindly supporting military adventurism. From Rachael Gribble:

Remembrance Sunday is an annual opportunity for the British public to pay their respects to those who have died during service to their country. By taking part in wreath laying ceremonies, observing two minutes silence at 11 am, or wearing a poppy, the public can express their appreciation for the role of the Armed Forces in ways that they might not wish or feel able to do at other times. This show of respect extends to those who have served, as donations to the Royal British Legion help provide support for ex-Service personnel through out the UK.

 As in previous years, this Sunday is likely to trigger discussions about the UK's continued military presence in Afghanistan, shaped by public doubts about the mission and the rising death toll amongst UK troops (particularly those resulting from caused by so-called 'green on blue' attacks). Also important are the mounting financial costs, which have reportedly led the Chancellor, George Osborne, to press senior military officers on why withdrawal from Afghanistan cannot happen earlier than scheduled, if not immediately.

 Australia also observes the day.

War News for Saturday, November 10, 2012

NATO is reporting the death of an ISAF soldier from an insurgent attack in an undisclosed location in eastern Afghanistan on Friday, November 9th.

Reported security incidents
#1: A bomb planted on a bicycle exploded and inflicted casualties in Khost city, the capital of Khost province 150 km southeast of Kabul on Saturday, deputy to provincial police chief Mohammad Yaqub said. “The bomb planted on a bicycle was detonated by remote control at around 02:30 p.m. local time and inflicted casualties,” Yaqub told Xinhua. The blast happened while police were on patrol in the area, he said, without giving the number of casualties or their identity. Meanwhile, doctor Abdul Majid, head of a hospital in Khost city confirmed that a dead body and five injured people have been taken to the hospital and all are civilians.

#2: Units of Afghan police during series of operations across the country have killed 15 Taliban fighters over the past 24 hours, Interior Ministry said in a statement released here on Saturday said. "In the operations conducted in Nangarhar, Sar-e-Pul, Jowzjan, Kandahar, Helmand, Khost, Zabul, Logar and Herat provinces over the past 24 hours, 15 Taliban rebels were killed," the statement said.

War News for Friday, November 09, 2012

NATO is reporting the death of an ISAF soldier from a non-combat related injuries in an undisclosed location in southern Afghanistan on Friday, November 9th.

Sweden plans phaseout from Afghanistan


Reported security incidents
#1: At least one security personnel was killed and another was injured when militants attacked a security check post in South Waziristan early Friday, security sources confirmed. The attack took place at Toi Khula fort area in the Wana agency headquarters at around 4am (PST) in the morning. The security forces, in the counter attack, killed at least six militants and wounded 13 of them, the security sources claimed.

#2: An IED ripped through an ANA vehicle in Todah Cheena area of Badpakh district at approximately 8:00 a.m. (local time), leaving five troops dead and one more injured, Sarhadi Zawak, spokesman for Laghman governor told the Afghan Islamic Press (AIP). He said the ANA logistic vehicle was on way from Badpakh district after supplying goods to the army.

#3: Meanwhile, a defence ministry press release stated three ANA soldiers were killed and seven more injured in IED strikes and attacks of the armed opponents in Farah, Khost, Helmand and Wardak provinces over the past 24 hours.

#5: Afghan officials say four police officers have been shot dead in southern Helmand province in an insider attack by their colleagues. Mohammad Toryali, police chief of Grish district, says the shooting occurred at a police outpost during a shift change. The officers on duty were killed by four of their colleagues who had arrived to replace them, Toryali said Friday. The killers fled.

#6: Taliban attacked Afghan security escorts of foreign forces in Sabari district of Khost province yesterday, killing two security policemen, an official said Thursday. Besides the death of two guards, a vehicle was also destroyed after the attack in Zambar area, Zar Mueed Mukhlis, governor of Sabari district, told AIP. Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid, however, said their fighters attacked troops of Quick Reaction Force in Sabari district and caused them casualties but they had no precise details.

War News for Thursday, November 08, 2012

U.S. Wounded In Iraq, Afghanistan Includes More Than 1,500 Amputees


Reported security incidents
#1: Three more Australian soldiers have been wounded in Afghanistan after their armoured truck hit a roadside bomb. The military says the incident happened on Tuesday when the soldiers from the 3rd Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment Task Group, were moving between bases in the Oruzgan province.

#2: In one of the attacks, 10 civilians, including a child and four men, died as their vehicle struck a land mine in southern Helmand province. Seven other people in the group — which was heading to a wedding — were wounded in the blast, said Ismail Khan Hotak of the provincial security coordination center.
#3: A suicide bomber on a motorcycle blew himself up amid a police patrol in the southern city of Kandahar, killing the three policemen and wounding two, said Ahmad Jawed Faisal, a provincial governor spokesman.

#4: And five troops died when their convoy hit a land mine in eastern Laghman province, according to Sarhadi Zewak, also a governor spokesman.

#5: Also Thursday, two boys were killed by a roadside bomb in Zabul province in southern Afghanistan. Deputy provincial chief Ghulam Gilani Farahi said the device had probably been planted by insurgents targeting police officers patrolling the area.

#6: The death toll increased to four following a suicide car bomb attack on the paramilitary Rangers headquarters in Pakistan's southern port city of Karachi on Thursday, said a spokesman of Rangers. The dead included three members of Rangers and the suicide bomber, the spokesman said, adding that 19 people were also wounded in the blast. According to police and local media reports, a suicide bomber rammed an explosive-laden truck into the headquarters in North Nazimabad district of Karachi at about 6:55 a.m. local time. The injured people included at least eight policemen, police said.

War News for Wednesday, November 07, 2012

Reported security incidents
#1: Up to six Taliban militants and two policemen were killed following a clash between the police and militants in Afghanistan's northern province of Faryab overnight, the police said Wednesday, Xinhua reported. "A group of armed militants, numbered around 20, launched an armed attack against Afghan Local Police (ALP) checkpoints in Shirin Tagab district, sparking a gun battle lasting for hours Tuesday night," acting-provincial police chief, Nabi Mullahkhil, told Xinhua. He said the fighting left two ALP cops and six militants dead in the province 425 km northwest of Afghan capital Kabul. "A Taliban deputy shadowy district chief for the district named Qari Firoz was among the dead and the ALP also arrested three militants besides seizing weapons after the clash," he added.

#2: Afghan security forces supported by the NATO-led coalition troops have killed 30 armed Taliban militants in operations during the past 24 hours, the Afghan interior ministry said Wednesday. "Afghan National Police, Afghan National Army and Coalition Forces launched eight joint clearance operations in Nangarhar, Kapisa, Kunduz, Kandahar, Helmand, Sar-e-Pul, Logar and Paktiya provinces," the ministry said in a daily statement. As a result of these operations, 30 armed Taliban were killed, 11 wounded and nine others were arrested by Afghan National Security Forces, it said, giving no casualties on the security forces.

#3: A suicide bomber blew himself up in Pakistan's northwestern city of Peshawar on Wednesday, killing at least six people including a senior police officer and wounding more than 30, officials said. The blast ripped through a congested area of the city, which lies close to Pakistan's lawless tribal areas and is frequently hit by bombings, around 9:00 am (0400 GMT). Police official Badshah Khan said the bomber, who was on foot, targeted the vehicle of senior investigator Hilal Haider, killing him and a number of his colleagues. Another officer, Asif Iqbal, told AFP there were six dead including four policemen. Hospital officials and senior administration official Habibullah Arif said more than 30 people were wounded in the blast and some were in a critical condition.

#4: Elsewhere on Wednesday, a roadside bomb in the tribal district of Kurram killed a police official and wounded 14 other people, local administration official Shamshad Khan said.

#5: A helicopter of Pakistan Air Force (PAF) made an emergency land near Pishin, Balochistan on Tuesday. According to a private TV channel report, during the emergency landing due to technical fault, the pilot was injured who was immediately shifted to hospital. The helicopter made the emergency landing near Band Khushdil.


DoD: Pfc. Brandon L. Buttry