Afghan vice-president Dostum injured in Taliban ambush

[Shapur]

The news is Hindustan times... Is India the enemy of a war criminal like dostum ?

You never know with these warlords, they switch sides all the time.

 

[Hindustani78]

http://zeenews.india.com/news/world...-offensive-foiled-in-afghanistan_1943077.html
Last Updated: Monday, October 24, 2016 - 14:55

Kabul: At least 32 militants were killed as Afghan forces thwarted Taliban offensive to capture Faizabad district in Jauzjan province, an official said on Monday.

"Taliban attack on Faizabad district which begun on Saturday, has been thwarted and the rebels, after suffering huge casualties, and leaving 32 dead bodies behind, have run away," Xinhua news agency quoted the official as saying.

More than 60 militants sustained injuries in the two-day fierce fighting, the official said.

According to the official, the police chief of neighbouring Manjigak district was killed during the fighting.

Taliban militants who are active in parts of Jauzjan province with Shiberghan as its capital have not commented yet.

IANS

First Published: Monday, October 24, 2016 - 14:55

 

[Hindustani78]

Three people, including two Pakistan citizens had been detained after the truck was said to be carrying ammonium nitrate explosives that are often used to create improvised explosive devices. (Photo: ANI)

http://www.deccanchronicle.com/worl...n-truck-laden-with-1000-kg-of-explosives.html

Published Oct 24, 2016, 12:43 pm IST
Afghan forces seize Pakistan truck laden with 1,000 kg of explosives
Kabul: Counter-terrorist forces in Afghanistan's eastern Kumar Province have confirmed the seizure of a Pakistan licensed truck that was found with over 1,000 kilograms of explosives.

The Khaama Press quoted the Interior Ministry of Afghanistan, as saying that three people, including two Pakistan citizens had been detained after the truck was said to be carrying ammonium nitrate explosives that are often used to create improvised explosive devices.

Afghanistan has repeatedly charged Pakistan with giving shelter to terrorists, who stage attacks across Afghanistan.

 

[Asgard]

good to know he is safe.

 

[Kompromat]

This guy is a war criminal.

 

[Hindustani78]

http://www.thehindu.com/news/intern...ans-in-central-afghanistan/article9270836.ece


There has so far been no official claim of responsibility from the group.
Militants linked to the Islamic State group killed around 30 civilians, including children, in the central Afghan province of Ghor, the local government said on Wednesday.

The incident occurred late on Tuesday in north of the provincial capital Firoz Koh, with the government calling it a revenge attack after a local IS commander was killed.

“Our security forces with the help of locals conducted an operation and killed a Daesh (IS) commander on Tuesday. Daesh fighters in return abducted around 30 villagers, mostly shepherds,” Ghor Governor Nasir Khazeh told AFP.

“Their dead bodies were found by local people this morning.”

There has so far been no official claim of responsibility from the group.

The killings underscore unravelling security in Afghanistan as the resurgent Taliban continue a push into urban centres 15 years after they were toppled from power by the US invasion.

IS fighters are also making steady inroads into Afghanistan, winning over sympathisers, recruiting followers and challenging the Taliban on their own turf, primarily in the country’s east.

 

[Hindustani78]

http://zeenews.india.com/news/world...istan-killed-confirms-spy-agency_1944325.html

Last Updated: Thursday, October 27, 2016 - 21:57

Kabul: Two top Al-Qaeda leaders in Afghanistan were killed in a US drone attack, the nation`s spy agency confirmed Thursday, in a major blow to the group as it seeks to re-establish safe havens in the country.

Washington said the strikes on Sunday targeted Farouq al-Qahtani, Al-Qaeda`s emir for northeastern Afghanistan, and his deputy Bilal al-Utabi, calling it the most significant attack against the group`s leadership in several years.

Multiple Hellfire missiles "levelled" two different compounds in Kunar province where the men were believed to be hiding, US officials said Wednesday, without confirming if the strikes were successful.

Afghanistan`s National Directorate of Security offered confirmation of their death on Thursday, adding that a third senior member of the group had also been killed.

"The attack was carried out in coordination with NDS," the spy agency said in a statement, without naming the third leader.

Pentagon press secretary Peter Cook had earlier said their demise would deal a blow to the militant group`s presence in Afghanistan.

"Eliminating these core leaders of Al-Qaeda will disrupt efforts to plot against the United States and our allies, reduce the threat to our Afghan partners, and assist their efforts to deny Al-Qaeda safe haven in Afghanistan," Cook said.

The Pentagon had been actively hunting Qahtani for four years. He had longstanding ties with Osama Bin Laden before his death in the 2011 US raid on his Pakistan compound.

Qahtani had operated in Afghanistan since at least 2009 and was responsible for planning attacks against US and coalition forces in the country, officials said.

"He was seeking to re-establish (Al-Qaeda`s) control in Afghanistan," a US official said.

"He was charged with the requirement to establish AQ safe-havens throughout Kunar and Nuristan provinces."

His deputy Utabi, was seen as the second- or third-most senior Al-Qaeda leader in Afghanistan, the official said.In October 2001, in response to the 9/11 attacks, the US launched military operations to dislodge the Taliban from Afghanistan and capture or kill Al-Qaeda militants they were harbouring.

Their numbers have since been decimated, but the United States continues to target the remnants of the group.

In June, the White House restored the Pentagon`s authority to strike at insurgents.

The new authority has given the US-led NATO troops greater latitude to order air strikes against a web of militant groups in Afghanistan, including the Taliban, Islamic State jihadists and Al-Qaeda.

Qahtani and his deputies were in Hilgal village in Kunar`s Ghazi Abad district when they were attacked, US officials said.

They were in two separate buildings a few hundred metres (yards) apart and were targeted almost simultaneously by multiple missiles.

Provincial spokesman Abdul Ghani Mosamem told AFP at least 15 insurgents were killed, including two Arabs. A number of Pakistani Taliban fighters were also among the fatalities, he said.

An Afghan intelligence official in the province also confirmed two Arabs were killed in the strikes.

Qahtani and Utabi are well-known senior Al-Qaeda commanders in Kunar, and had been actively involved in recruiting young locals into the group.
Qahtani was born some time between 1979 and 1981 in Saudi Arabia and is a Qatari national.

In February, the US Department of the Treasury labelled Qahtani a specially designated global terrorist.

Qahtani "has a long history of directing deadly attacks against US forces... along with plotting Al-Qaeda terrorist operations in the United States and around the world," Acting Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence Adam Szubin said at the time.

AFP

First Published: Thursday, October 27, 2016 - 21:57

 

[Arsalan]

This guy is a war criminal.

So is most of the cabniet/assembly!
Its simple, its taliban vs Northern Alliance with NA in power. What else can we expect!!

 

[Hindustani78]

http://www.thehindu.com/news/intern...-airstrikes-in-afghanistan/article9285595.ece
Updated: October 30, 2016 17:50 IST

The statement, however, did not provide the details of the air strikes and was silent on whether international coalition was involved in the operation.
At least 19 Lashkar-e-Taiba militants were killed and eight others wounded in the airstrikes in Dangam district of eastern Kunar province, bordering Pakistan, Afghan government said on Sunday, signalling a major crackdown on the terror group operating from across the border.

The airstrikes in Airogoi village in Dangam district last evening also destroyed one BM—1 rocket launcher and one machine gun belonging to the Pakistan-based terror group, the Afghan Ministry of Interior said in a brief statement.

“19 members of Lashkar-e-Taiba were killed and eight others were wounded,” the statement said.

A major operation is underway in Dangam district to clear the area from the presence of terrorist groups, it added.

The statement, however, did not provide the details of the air strikes and was silent on whether international coalition was involved in the operation.

The action against the terror group comes as local officials in neighboring Nuristan province said in mid-2014 that LeT is attempting to establish bases in eastern parts of Afghanistan, Khaama news reported.

“The officials further added that over 100 LeT militants were deployed in Nuristan province in an attempt to set up training camps in Kamdish district,” it said.

The group, one of the largest and most proficient of the Kashmir-focused militant groups, was accused of coordinating and carrying out attack on Indian consulate in western Herat province of Afghanistan in 2014, it added.

Last month, Afghanistan’s Vice President Sarwar Danesh had accused Pakistan of waging an “undeclared war” on its people by plotting “merciless” terror attacks and training and financing groups like the Taliban and Haqqani network.

Speaking at the UN General Assembly, Mr. Danesh had said the “Taliban and Haqqani network are trained, equipped and financed” in Pakistan.

He had said more than 10 Pakistan-based terrorist groups were creating obstacles for state-building efforts and preventing the establishment of peace and stability in Afghanistan.

 

[Hindustani78]

http://www.khaama.com/huge-weapons-cache-including-54-bm-21-rockets-discovered-in-helmand-02175

By Khaama Press - Sun Oct 30 2016, 2:38 pm

A huge weapons cache belonging to the Taliban group was discovered and destroyed n southern Helmand province of Afghanistan, the Ministry of Interior (MoI) said Sunday.

The cache was discovered during an operation conducted in Nahr-e-Saraj district of Helmand as the Taliban militants were looking to use the weapons and explosives for the terrorist attacks.

“Last night, Afghan National Police (Special Units) launched a security operation in Nahar Saraj district of southern Helmand province,” Moi said.

“As a result of this operation, Afghan National Police (Special Units) discovered and confiscated a weapon cache consist of: 10 rocket launchers, 400 rifle grenades, 12 hand grenades, 54 BM-16 rockets, 200 PK machine gun bullets, 5 motorcycles, one radio handset and some amount of explosives,” MoI added .

The anti-government armed militant groups including the Taliban insurgents have not commented regarding the report so far.

Helmand is among the relatively volatile provinces in southern Afghanistan where the Taliban insurgents and militants belonging to other insurgent groups are actively operating in a number of its districts.

Officials in the 215th Maiwand Corps of the Afghan National Army (ANA) earlier said a factory producing Improvised Explosive Device (IED) for the Taliban militants was destroyed during an operation of the Afghan National Defense and Security Forces (ANDSF) in this province.

 

[Hindustani78]

Afghan officials frequently complain about terrorist acts sponsored by Pakistan killing civilians within their borders. At the UN General Assembly in September, Vice President of Afghanistan Sarwar Danesh asserted that several attacks over the past year had been "planned and organized from the other side of the Durand Line, inside Pakistani territory."

 

[H!TchHiker]

Afghan officials frequently complain about terrorist acts sponsored by Pakistan killing civilians within their borders. At the UN General Assembly in September, Vice President of Afghanistan Sarwar Danesh asserted that several attacks over the past year had been "planned and organized from the other side of the Durand Line, inside Pakistani territory."

Nothing new in this

 

[Hindustani78]

http://www.khaama.com/top-haqqani-network-commander-killed-in-paktika-province-02200
By Khaama Press - Wed Nov 02 2016, 3:17 pm

A top commander of the Haqqani terrorist network was killed during an operation of the Afghan police forces in eastern Paktika province.

The Ministry of Interior (MoI) said commander Wahid also famous as Jamshid was killed during a targeted operation in Warmami district.

MoI further added that the Afghan police forces did not suffer any casualties during the operation.

The Haqqani terrorist network is accused of staging numerous deadly attacks in Afghanistan including a coordinated attack on VIP protection unity in Kabul which left at least 74 people dead and over 300 others wounded.

 

[Hindustani78]

Last Updated: Thursday, November 3, 2016 - 18:15
http://zeenews.india.com/news/world...ghans-killed-in-clash-police-say_1946079.html

Kunduz: Two U.S. service members were killed on Thursday while helping Afghan security forces fighting the Taliban around the northern city of Kunduz, the U.S. military said, while Afghan officials reported at least 16 civilians were killed.

Although the U.S. military gave no details, Afghan officials said there had been heavy fighting about 5 km (3 miles) from the city centre overnight.

The Taliban said in a statement a U.S. air strike had destroyed many houses and killed women and children.

There were angry protests by civilians who brought the bodies of at least 16 dead into Kunduz, Mafuzullah Akbari, a police spokesman said.Mafuzullah Akbari, a police spokesman said.

The deaths underline the precarious security situation around Kunduz, which Taliban fighters managed to enter last month, a year after they briefly captured the city in their biggest success in the 15-year long war.

The U.S. military gave no details on the identity of the two personnel who were killed or what units they served with and there was no immediate detailed comment on the circumstances of their deaths.

There was also no immediate word on whether any air strikes had been carried out.

"The service members came under fire during a train, advise and assist mission with our Afghan partners to clear a Taliban position and disrupt the group`s operations in Kunduz district," the U.S. military said in a statement.

Although U.S. combat operations against the Taliban largely ended in 2014, special forces units have been repeatedly engaged in combat, providing assistance to the Afghan army and police.

Masoom Hashemi, deputy police chief in Kunduz province, said police were investigating to try to determine if any of the dead were linked to the Taliban.

Thousands of U.S. soldiers remain in Afghanistan as part of the NATO-led Resolute Support training and assistance mission and a separate counterterrorism mission.

The deaths come a month after another U.S. service member was killed on an operation against Islamic State fighters in the eastern province of Nangarhar.

Afghan forces, fighting largely on their own since the end of the international combat mission, have suffered thousands of casualties, with more than 5,500 killed in the first eight months of 2016.

Reuters

First Published: Thursday, November 3, 2016 - 17:56

 

[Hindustani78]

Relatives sit next to body of a man who was killed during the clashes between Afghan security forces and the Taliban in Kunduz, Afghanistan, on Thursday. Photo: Reuters
http://www.thehindu.com/news/intern...-leaves-many-civilans-dead/article9301130.ece

Three local troops and two American service members were also killed in the joint operation by U.S. and Afghan forces.
U.S. and Afghan forces came under fire on Thursday while targeting senior Taliban commanders during a joint operation in northern Kunduz province, calling in airstrikes during an assault that killed 26 civilians, three local troops and two American service members, NATO and local officials said.

NATO described killings as being part of “a train, advise and assist mission,” rare combat casualties for Western forces who handed over the task of securing Afghanistan to local troops some two years ago.

Meanwhile, Afghan officials said they were still investigating the attack and its civilian casualties, some of which may have been caused by the airstrikes. Residents later carried over a dozen corpses of the dead, including children, toward the local governor’s office in a show of rage a year after American forces attacked an area hospital.

NATO declined to identify the Americans killed, pending notification of their next of kin. NATO and the Pentagon did not respond to a request for comment from The Associated Press to further clarify the American troops’ mission in the area.

“Today’s loss is heartbreaking and we offer our deepest condolences to the families and friends of our service members who lost their lives today,” Gen. John W. Nicholson, commander of U.S. Forces-Afghanistan, said in a statement.

The target of the raid were two senior Taliban commanders, who were killed in the fighting along with 63 other insurgents, Kunduz police chief Gen. Qasim Jangalbagh said. He said Afghan special forces carried out the raid and that he did not have any information about NATO involvement in the assault.

Jangalbagh said 26 civilians, including members of the Taliban fighters’ families, were killed in the assault.

Kunduz official Mohammad Yousf Ayoubi and parliament member Malim Chari both also told the AP that civilians were killed in the fighting, though they had few details. Dr. Mohammad Naim Mangal, the director of a Kunduz hospital, said his facility received the bodies of a dead man and a child and treated 30 people, including children, wounded in the fighting.

NATO only said it was “aware of the allegations,” while the Pentagon did not immediately respond.

U.S. Brig. Gen. Charles Cleveland, briefing journalists in Brussels during a teleconference, said three Afghan troops were killed in the assault. Mohammad Radmanish, a deputy spokesman at the Afghan Defense Ministry, offered the same figure.

In a later statement, Cleveland said that “friendly forces received direct fire and airstrikes were conducted to defend themselves” and an investigation was underway.

A Taliban statement also said there were civilian casualties while claiming its fighters killed 16 U.S. troops. The insurgents often exaggerate their battlefield successes.

Taliban fighters briefly overran the city of Kunduz, the provincial capital with the same name, in early October, a show of strength by the insurgents that also highlighted the troubles facing local Afghan forces 15 years after the U.S.-led invasion of the country. The Taliban captured and held parts of Kunduz a year earlier as well before the city was fully liberated weeks later with the help of U.S. airstrikes.

Those 2015 airstrikes also saw a U.S. Air Force special operations AC-130 gunship attack a Kunduz hospital run by the medical charity Doctors Without Borders, killing 42 people. Sixteen U.S. military personnel, including a two-star general, later were disciplined for what American officials described as mistakes that led the strike. Doctors Without Borders has called the attack a war crime and demanded an independent investigation.

Yet another airstrike killing civilians could stoke anger among Afghans, and the country’s former President Hamid Karzai repeatedly clashed with NATO over them, straining relations.

On Thursday, Afghan President Ashraf Ghani issued a statement criticizing the Taliban for using women and children as “a shield” during the raid. He also announced a local investigation had been started.

NATO’s combat operations ended in Afghanistan at the end of 2014, a move that put Afghan forces in charge of the country’s security. Since then, Afghan forces have suffered heavy casualties battling the Taliban, who have at times overrun provincial capitals before being pushed back. Meanwhile, NATO and U.S. casualties have been few.

There have been at least other four combat deaths among American forces in Afghanistan in 2016. In October, a U.S. soldier was killed by a bomb in Nangarhar province while another was shot dead by a man wearing an Afghan army uniform in Kabul. In August, an American soldier was killed and another wounded by a roadside bomb in Afghanistan’ southern Helmand province. In January, a U.S. soldier was killed by small arms fire in Helmand.

The fight in Afghanistan American’s longest war began after the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks as the Taliban harbored al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden. The Taliban and Afghan government recently held secret talks to see if they could start peace negotiations to end the fighting, though questions remain over which faction of the insurgency is doing the talking.