War News for Wednesday, July 31, 2013

NATO is reporting the death of an ISAF soldier from an insurgent attack in an undisclosed location in eastern Afghanistan on Tuesday, July 30th.

 

The DoD is reporting the death of a soldier previously unreported by the military. Sgt. Stephen M. New died from a small arms weapons attack in the Sarobi District of Kabul Province, Afghanistan on Sunday, July 28th.

Authorities say Afghanistan War vet killed fiancee's mom, self

Teurlings graduate injured in battle in Afghanistan

Civilian casualties in Afghanistan spike in first half of 2013

Manning Is Acquitted of Aiding the Enemy


Reported security incidents
#1: Two persons were killed and four others sustained injuries when explosives went off in a warehouse on Ring Road on Tuesday. The police said that three dud shells were lying in a scrap godown of an Afghan national Asal Khan on Ring Road near Hazarkhwani. They said the shells went off all of a sudden, killing two young boys, Asad and Misal Khan, and injuring four others.

#2: At least five militants were killed and two policemen wounded during a fierce clash between the security forces and the rebels in southern province of Kandahar, an official said Wednesday. The conflict between the forces loyal to the government and the Taliban fighters happened last night in Dicoyat area of Maiwand district.


US/DoD: Sgt. Stephen M. New

War News for Tuesday, July 30, 2013

Taliban killed scores of MQM workers: UK paper


Reported security incidents
#1:Two targeted roadside bomb explosions left three Air Force troopers wounded this weekend, marking the first successful insurgent attack here in two months. The first roadside explosion took place just south of this airfield (Bagram) -- the busiest and one of the biggest in Afghanistan -- on Saturday and accounted for all three injuries. It crippled the heavily armored Mine Resistant Ambush Protected, or MRAP, vehicle these troops use, which are designed to shelter squads from the roadside explosions that have defined the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. The second attack, also on an MRAP, occurred later Saturday evening and did not cause any casualties.

#2: Taliban fighters disguised as police and armed with bombs and grenades broke 250 prisoners out of a Pakistan jail in a brazen overnight operation that raised serious questions over the new government's ability to combat militancy. Fighting continued into the early hours of Tuesday, with explosions and machine gunfire rattling the city of Dera Ismail Khan in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province near Pakistan's lawless tribal regions bordering Afghanistan. The militants then fought their way inside using rocket-propelled grenades and machine guns, and calling the names of Taliban prisoners through loud speakers. "It's completely dark in there. We don't know what's going on but there is fighting," provincial prisons chief Khalid Abbas told Reuters as the fighting unfolded.

#3: Afghan authorities say 50 militants, including foreign fighters, have been killed over a 24-hour period in a security operation in the country's east. The Afghan Defense Ministry said in a statement that the dead insurgents included Pakistani, Arab, Uzbek, and Chechen nationals. The statement said the "massive" operation by Afghan security forces in the eastern provinces of Nangarhar, Paktia, and Logar was proceeding "successfully and accordingly."

Nineteen militants have been killed in military operations in different Afghan provinces within the last 24 hours, the country's Interior Ministry confirmed on Tuesday. "Up to 19 Taliban militants were killed, three wounded and 13 others captured as Afghan National Police (ANP) conducted cleanup operations over the past 24 hours," the ministry said in a press statement. The raids were launched, with close support of the army and the NATO-led coalition forces in Kunar, Nangarhar, Kunduz, Zabul, Ghazni, Herat and Helmand provinces, it noted.

#4: Two persons were killed when an explosion occurred in a warehouse situated in Hazar Khawani area near Ring Road in Peshawar on Tuesday, Local TV reported. According to police, a blast occurred in a storage house in Hazar Khawani area due to which the roof of the godown collapsed and killed two persons on the spot.

#5: Four suspected militants were killed as police and other law enforcement agencies conducted a raid near Eastern bypass, Local TV reported. (Quetta)

#6: One policeman was killed and five security members wounded Tuesday morning when a bomb they were defusing went off in the southern Afghan province of Helmand, a provincial government spokesman said. "The police discovered an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) near a car dealer market in Lashkar Gah. A bomb squad team arrived at the scene later. The IED was detonated through a remote controller. As a result one cop was killed and three policemen and two members of the intelligence agency were wounded," spokesman Omar Zwak told Xinhua.


US/DoD: Sgt. Eric T. Lawson

US/DoD: Spc. Caryn E. Nouv

War News for Monday, July 29, 2013

NATO is reporting the deaths of two ISAF soldiers from a roadside bombing attack in an undisclosed location in eastern Afghanistan on Saturday, July 27th.

Wave of car bombings in Iraq kills at least 51

Afghan Consulate official goes missing in Quetta city of Pakistan


Reported security incidents
#1: Afghan officials say nine people have been killed and more than 20 injured when they were struck by a roadside bomb. The blast occurred late on July 28 in the Shahjoi district of southern Zabul Province, on the border with Pakistan. On July29, the deputy provincial governor, Mohammad Jan Rasolyar, said a senior police official, two local policemen, and six civilians were killed in the blast. Rasolyar said the target of the bombing was the deputy district police chief. He said 12 others, mostly women and children, were also injured.

#2: Pakistani intelligence officials say a suspected U.S. drone strike has killed five people in the tribal region near the Afghan border. They say two missiles hit the Shawal area of North Waziristan Sunday evening when the men were crossing on foot into Pakistani territory from Afghanistan. The two officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to brief reporters.

#3: Six FC personnel were killed as their vehicle plunged into ravine near here in South Waziristan on Monday, Geo News reported. Political administration said the FC vehicle was on its way from Wana to Tank, when during a turn near Gomal Zam Dam skidded and plunged into ravine, killing six FC personnel on board the vehicle.

#4: An Afghan soldier has killed a soldier and an officer and wounded another soldier and he managed to escape, Afghan media reported Monday. The incident occurred in the Kandgal area of Manugai District of Konar Province Sunday evening, an army spokesman, Harun Yusofzai, told Afghan Islamic Press news agency. He added: "A national army soldier opened fire at other soldiers at a security checkpoint. As a result, one soldier and an officer were killed and another soldier wounded. The attacker fled the area."

#5: At least 83 anti-government armed militants were killed during the major military offensive launched by Afghan national army in eastern Logar and Nangarhar province of Afghanistan. The ministry of defense of Afghanistan confirmed that the 83 militants were killed during the “Simurgh” military operaton in Azra and Hesarak districts.

News of the Day for Sunday, July 28, 2013

Three children are killed, four injured by an explosion in Farah City. The incident is apparently accidental, the result of unexploded ordinance in a scrap metal yard. (This is a common side effect of war, of course.)

Eighty British troops conduct a secret mission in southern Helmand province. UK forces officially withdrew from the province in 2010. MoD says an unspecified number of Taliban were killed or captured during the operation.

A farmer is killed by a roadside bomb in Kandahar province.

A child is rescued from kidnappers in Laghman province. The story does not state whether the motive for the crime was political or economic. However, since the incident was announced by the National Directorate for Security, one suspects the former.

President Karzai plans to visit Pakistan in an effort to mend relations. He has repeatedly accused Pakistan of harboring Afghan Taliban insurgents. (And he's right!)

Afghan government claims 30 militants killed in various operations in past two days. (This is approximately the standard number for these announcements. Also as usual, there appear to have been zero government or civilian casualties. Believe what you will -- C)

Parwan governor Abdul Basir Salangi and his bodyguards beat up a journalist who had criticized a book Salangi has written.

Attempt to assassinate northeastern Baghlan police chief Asadullah Shirzad by remote controlled bomb fails, but two civilian bystanders are killed. Also, governor of northern Samangan province Khairullah Anosh and two of his bodyguards are injured in a separate attack.



 

War News for Saturday, July 27, 2013

Reported security incidents
#1: Gunmen attacked a coastguard checkpost in southwestern Pakistan on Saturday, killing seven officials and wounding seven others, officials said. The incident happened in the Suntsar area of Gwadar district, 1,420 kilometres (882 miles) southwest of Quetta, the capital of the oil and gas rich Baluchistan province that borders Iran and Afghanistan. "Around 24 gunmen armed with rockets and heavy weapons, attacked the checkpost and killed seven coastguard officials," provincial home secretary Akbar Hussain Durrani said. He said at least seven coastguard officials were also injured in the early morning attack.

#2: THE death toll from twin suicide attacks at a busy marketplace in northwest Pakistan has risen to 51, officials say. The Friday attacks at the bazaar in Parachinar, the main town of Kurram tribal district on Pakistan-Afghanistan border were the deadliest to hit the country during the Islamic holy month of Ramadan. "The new deaths occurred overnight", Mehsud said, adding that more than 150 people were injured in the attacks.

#3: The governor of Afghanistan's northern Samangan Province has survived a roadside bomb attack claimed by Taliban militants. The attack occurred as Khairullah Anosh was traveling to work on July 27 in a pickup truck. He and two bodyguards sustained minor injuries.

 

#4: At least four paramilitary soldiers were injured when a bomb went off in Hangu on Saturday, Geo News reported. According to police, a bomb planted in a motorcycle went off when a vehicle of the Frontier Corps (FC) passed. District Police Officer (DPO) Sajjad Khan said that four FC officials were injured in the attack, which took place in Doaba area of Hangu.

#5: At least 10 security officials were killed and five others injured when unknown insurgents attacked a security check post in Gawadar district of the restive Balochistan province. The check post of coastguards was located in Sansar area, a mountainous region some 100 kilometers away from Gwadar, the port city in Balochistan.

#6: Forty-five Taliban militants were killed as NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) aircrafts raided their hideout in the southern Helmand province on Friday night, a statement of Helmand' s provincial administration said Saturday. "The armed militants were on five vehicles when came under ISAF aircrafts attack leaving 45 rebels dead and three others injured," the short statement contended without giving more details. Meantime, spokesman of Helmand local government Omar Zawak in talks with Xinhua confirmed the incident, saying the attack took place near Bahramcha town late Friday night. However, he did not furnish more details. Neither Taliban outfit nor ISAF has issued any statement.
#7: A bomb blast targeted the police convoy in northern Afghan province of Baghlan on Saturday, police said.

War News for Friday, July 26, 2013

Soldier from Mill City seriously wounded in Afghanistan

Taliban Claim Deadly Attack on Pakistani Spy Agency

Bombs, shootings kill 42 in Iraq

Afghan army launch major military offensive in Eastern Afghanistan


Reported security incidents
#1: The Taliban poisoned and captured at least 12 policemen as they broke their fast during the holy Muslim month of Ramadan in an attack in southern Afghanistan, officials said Thursday. The attack took place in Zabul province, where the insurgent militia is believed to have a strong presence despite numerous operations by Afghanistan's Western-backed government security forces. "Tragically, 12 policemen were poisoned and then taken away in a mini-van after breaking their fast yesterday evening in Shahjoy district of Zabul," Shah Nazanin, the district police chief, told AFP.

#2: At least two persons were killed and six others were injured when an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) hit a pick-up van on Kurram tribal region's Sherko road on Friday. Political administration officials told Dawn.com that a passenger van was travelling from Kurrams tribal region's north-western Alizai area to Parachinar area when it was targeted by a planted road-side bomb.

#3: 22 mutilated dead bodies have been found from the area of Khyber Agency of tribal area. An official Political staff member of Khyber agency while taking to BBC has confirmed the recovery charred dead bodies, and said that these bodies were found yesterday night from the area of Akka Khel, few kilometers away from Bara Bazar. He said that it is still not confirmed that who are these persons and who has killed them, however it seems that they have been killed during operation.

#4: Gunmen killed four people, including a Levies constable, in the Khuzdar district of Balochistan on Thursday. Muhammad Ali, a Levies official, told a private TV channel that militants, who had already taken up positions on a roadside, opened fire on a vehicle near Gazgi Chowki area of Khuzdar. He said the targeted vehicle was carrying Levies officials, who were bringing injured from an earlier firing incident to the District Headquarters Hospital Khuzdar.

US/DoD: 1st Lt. Jonam Russell

US/DoD: Sgt. Stefan M. Smith

US/DoD: Spc. Rob L. Nichols

War News for Thursday, July 25, 2013

Gunmen shoot dead 13 police, soldiers in Iraq strikes

Militants ‘executed’ drivers in Iraq

Watchdog critical of State Department contracting in Afghanistan

National Guard (in Federal Status) and Reserve Activated as of July 23, 2013


Reported security incidents
#1: The first attack took place in Kunduz city, the capital of Kunduz province 250 km north of Afghan capital Kabul, killing three people and injuring four others, police said. "A vehicle of National Directorate for Security (NDS) was running in Bandar-e-Kabul area of the city when a sticky bomb attached to the vehicle by militants went off at 07:00 a.m. local time, killing one NDS personnel aboard and two civilian passersby on the spot," a police official told Xinhua but declined to be named. Four more people sustained injuries and several shops and houses were damaged nearby in the blast, he added.

#2: Hour later in a similar bombing in Aqcha district of Jauzjan province 390 km north of Kabul, two people lost their lives and 10 others got wounded. "A bomb planted by the armed militants in Aqcha district and detonated at around 08:00 a.m. local time left two people including a police dead and injured 10 others including four policemen," a local official told Xinhua but declined to be identified. The police chief of Aqcha district Jawad Jahid said the enemies of peace, a reference to Taliban militants, planed explosive device on a rickshaw and detonated it next to a police vehicle inflicting casualties.

#3: Two persons were killed when unknown gunmen opened fire on a vehicle carrying the Frontier Reserve Police (FRP) official in Gulbahar area of Peshawar Thursday morning, Geo News reported. "The deputy commander of Frontier Reserve Police (FRP) Gul Wali Khan was going to his office from home when four people on two motorbikes lay in wait on both sides of the road," police official Imran Shahid said. "They opened fire on his vehicle. His bodyguard and his driver have been killed," Shahid told. A spokesman for the Lady Reading Hospital in Peshawar said the commander was in critical condition.

#4: The attack came hours after suicide gunmen and car bombers targeted the headquarters of Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) in the southern town of Sukkur, sparking a shootout that left seven people dead, two officials and five attackers.