Sunday, May 27, 2012

9 armed insurgents killed, 2 wounded and 9 others arrested by ANP



Publish Date: May 27, 2012
Nine armed insurgents killed, two wounded and nine others arrested by Afghan National Police

Counterterrorism:
During the past 24 hours, Afghan National Police, Afghan National Army, NDS and Coalition Forces launched four joint clearance operations in Kapisa, Kandahar, Maidan Wardak and Khost provinces.

As a result of these operations, six armed insurgents were killed, two wounded and nine others were arrested by Afghan National Police.
Also, during these operations, Afghan National Police discovered and confiscated six different types of weapons and amount of opium and explosive materials.

In the meantime, two mine planters were killed by their own explosives while they attempted to plant a roadside mine in the Tor Ghondi region, Nowzad District of Helmand province, last night.
In a separate report, one mine planter was killed by his own explosives while he attempted to plant an anti-vehicle mine in the main road of Panjwaie District of southern Kandahar province, last night.
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Six injured as grenade attacks rock northern Kenya

Map of Garissa district in Kenya
Map of Garissa district in Kenya (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
GARISSA, Kenya, May 26 (Xinhua) -- At least six people were injured in two simultaneous grenade attacks suspected to have been carried out by Somali Al-Shabaab in two border districts in Kenya' s northern region bordering the war-ravaged Somalia.

The attacks in Ifo 1 in Dadaab refugee complex in Garissa County and a hotel in Wajir town occurred less than ten minutes of each at 1730 GMT and 1740 GMT local time.

In the Ifo attack assailants numbering five have hurled a hand grenade into a construction site in private primary school benefiting refugees children targeting non-Somali masonries, who were at the time rest inside one of the classes under constructions.

The twin attacks which has similar hallmarks, with previous attacks in the region which was claimed by the group, has shocked residents and troubled the Kenya security machineries which is claiming a victory against Al-Shabaab in neighboring Somalia after the fall of the Afgooye to allied soldiers two days ago, a town believed to be the last foothold of the resistant group.

Regional police commander Leo Nyongesa confirmed that suspected members of the militant group hurled two grenades at Horseed primary school in Ifo, one of the three refugee camps in Northern Kenya, injuring five laborers who were at the time preparing supper in one of the classes under constructions.

"Assailants of unknown number have thrown two hand grenades into the primary school run by African Development Emergency Organization (ADEO) funded by UNHCR, injuring five masonries who were involved in the construction work," he told Xinhua by telephone.

Nyongesa said the five casualties were rushed to Ifo main hospital for treatment, noting that two of the five sustained heavy injuries while the three others escaped with minor injuries.

The school Principal Farah Gabay told Xinhua that the injured persons were all non-Somali construction laborious from other parts of the country working with a local construction company called Modogashe constructions limited.

He said the impact of the blast destroyed one of the eight classes under construction.

According to an eye witness, two people threw the hand grenade to the five who were busy finishing the day's work on Saturday night.

"We only saw two people running as they headed towards the nearby houses, this was immediately after the blast, on reaching there we saw the five wailing in pain as they bled profusely and a few meters from where they were lay the grenade," a refugee at the Ifo camp who did not want to be named told Xinhua.

In the Wajir attack, suspect Al-Shabaab assailant hurled a hand grenade into a popular Dubai Lodge in the main street of the town and injured seriously a man who was a reveler at the hotel.

Eye witnesses said those behind the attack were not sure of themselves and threw it cowardly and therefore did not hit their targets which was a big crowd that was busy watching the 7 p.m. news bulletin.

"They were aiming at a big crowd which was busy watching the 7 p.m. live bulletin, we only heard a commotion of people running outside immediately after the incident," said one of the lucky survivors who was also in the hotel.

Nyongesa who confirmed the two incidents said that investigations have been launched and promised to get to the bottom of the two incidents.

Nyongesa said four people believed to those behind the soaring incidents of Improvised Explosive Devices (IED) and hand grenades attacks in the region and mainly in the refugee complex, were arrested by the police on Saturday.

He said the suspects are helping the security personnel in unravel the mastermind and break into the Al-Shabaab operative cells.

The East African nation has also been plagued by a spate of grenade and landmine attacks in its northern region where the insurgents have killed more than 15 police officers and over 30 civilians.

Since the Kenya military incursion into Somalia several attacks believed to have been carried out by Al-Shabaab have occurred in Mandera, Wajir, and Garissa and Dadaab districts of northern Kenya even as the military reports gains against the militant group by capturing their military bases and killing scores of them.

Kenya blames the group for a string of attacks and kidnappings in Kenya, including those of four Europeans. The Kenyan government says the kidnappings threaten tourism, a key source of revenue for the country.

Somalia has been unfortunate for at least two decades during which time warlords and all other merchants of violence have devastated the country's human existence.

Al-Shabaab has been fighting since 2008 to topple Somalia's weak central government. The group has ties to al Qaida, and is considered a terrorist organization by the U.S. government.

Kenya accuses the al Qaida-linked group, which controls much of central and southern Somalia, of a spate of abductions from its territory-charges denied by the militants.

Al-Shabaab has said it views the presence of Kenyan troops in southern Somalia as an act of war.

from XINHUA
Editor: Mu Xuequan
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At least 22 militants killed in Yemeni fighting

(Reuters) - At least 22 Islamist militants were killed in overnight clashes and an air strike in southern Yemen, where government troops are fighting rebels linked to al Qaeda, a local official and residents said on Sunday.
Around 15 of the dead were killed in fighting north of the militant stronghold of Jaar, a town in Abyan province that has been controlled by the militants since last year.

The al Qaeda-linked Ansar al-Sharia (Partisans of Islamic Law) exploited last year's popular protests against former president Ali Abdullah Saleh to capture swathes of territory in Abyan, including the provincial capital Zinjibar.

The expansion of the militants' area of control has unsettled the United States and Saudi Arabia, both targets of failed attacks by Yemen's al Qaeda wing (AQAP), which this week claimed responsibility for a suicide bombing in the capital Sanaa that killed more than 100 soldiers.

This month the government began a counter-offensive against Ansar al-Sharia with U.S. help.

A military official said the army had managed to recapture key positions in Zinjibar, where at least 63 militants were killed on Saturday in heavy fighting, many of them Somalis.

The bodies of seven militants were seen on Sunday being carried away from a factory located west of Jaar, which is used by Ansar al-Sharia as a base, after it was attacked by a Yemeni warplane on Saturday night.

The United States and Saudi Arabia have been pushing Yemeni President Abd-Rabbu Hadi Mansour, who took over after Saleh stepped down in February, to unite the army and roll back the militants' gains.

Washington considers Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), the group's Yemeni wing which has attracted fighters from Somalia and Saudi Arabia, as its most active cell.

American intelligence and counter-terrorism officials say their ability to conduct operations against AQAP inside Yemen, notably with drone strikes, has improved significantly since Hadi took office.

(Reporting by Mohammed Mukhashaf; Writing by Sami Aboudi; Editing by Kevin Liffey)
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Afghan official: NATO airstrike kills 8 family members

Districts of Paktia Province
Districts of Paktia Province (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Kabul, Afghanistan (CNN) -- A suspected NATO airstrike killed eight civilians -- including six children -- in eastern Afghanistan, a provincial spokesman said.

The airstrike took place Saturday night in Paktia province, said Rohullah Samoon, spokesman for the governor of Paktia. He said an entire family was killed in the strike.

A large number of insurgents attacked NATO troops in the province, prompting them to return fire and ask for air support from a nearby base, said Maj. Martyn Crighton, a spokesman for the International Security Assistance Force.

The international coalition is aware of the reports that civilians died in an airstrike, Crighton said.

"We are taking any claim about civilian casualty very seriously, and we are looking at finding out information about what really happened last night," he said Sunday.

An investigation is in the early stages, and the international coalition is not taking or rejecting responsibility yet, Crighton said.

Samoon said the operation had not been coordinated with Afghan security forces. He said investigators have been sent to the area and will report their findings to President Hamid Karzai.

Karzai has assigned a delegation to investigate the incident, according to a statement from his office.

Separately, four ISAF service members were killed Saturday in southern Afghanistan, NATO said Sunday. The service members -- whose nationalities were not disclosed -- died after separate improvised explosive device attacks, the alliance said.

From Masoud Popalzai, CNN
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at least 20 militants were killed following this air raid too: http://www.khaama.com/nato-air-raid-kill-20-militants-in-paktia-province  
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Two civilians killed, one wounded in Helmand province

Government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan
Independent Departments of the Local Governance
Office of the Provincial Governor of Helmand
Helmand's Provincial Media Office
 
No: 0064 - News Release - Date: 2012-05-27
 
IED explosion killed innocent civilians in Helmand
 
Sunday 27th may; two civilians were killed and one other wounded as a result of terrorist’s IED
(improvised explosive device) explosion in Ghamgyan village, Marjah district of Helmand
province today around half past ten o’clock Am.
The two civilians were killed and one injured while driving in the Mazda vehicle and was
exploded by the terrorist’s land improvised mine in the area.
After the explosion the security forces arrested a person in the area from Waziristan and he is
under the investigation at the moment.
Helmand governor condemns the explosion harshly and offers own sympathy to the relatives and
family of the departed and pray for Allah paradise for the departed souls.
Also special force of National army conducted special operation on Saturday night in Mohammad
Anwar shah village, Gereshk district of Helmand province.
As a result of the operation eight suspects were arrested in the area and are under the investigation
at the moment. 
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May 27., 2012. - ISAF Joint Command Morning Operational Update

KABUL, Afghanistan – An Afghan and coalition security force conducted an operation to detain a senior Taliban leader in Nahr-e Saraj district, Helmand province, today.

The leader is the senior Taliban insurgent in Marjeh district and manages multiple insurgent cells in the area.

He directs suicide bombings and other attacks against Afghan and coalition troops throughout Marjeh and Nahr-e Saraj districts.

He also coordinates with Taliban leaders to move suicide bombers and explosives into Afghanistan for use against Afghan and coalition forces.

The security force detained multiple suspected insurgents as a result of this operation.

In other International Security Assistance Force news throughout Afghanistan:

North

An Afghan and coalition security force conducted an operation to detain a senior Taliban leader in Aliabad district, Kunduz province, today. The leader is the senior Taliban insurgent in Aliabad district and controls multiple insurgent cells. He plans, coordinates, and conducts roadside bombings and other attacks against district government officials, Afghan National Security Forces and coalition troops. During the operation, the combined Afghan and coalition force was attacked by insurgents. The security force returned fire killing several of the insurgents.

In Khwajah Sabz Posh district, Faryab province, an Afghan and coalition security force conducted an operation to detain an Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan facilitator today. The facilitator distributes funds, weapons and other equipment between IMU cells and manages the recruitment and movement of IMU insurgents for attacks against Afghan and coalition troops throughout Faryab province. As a result of this operation, the security force detained multiple suspected insurgents.

South

In Arghistan district, Kandahar province, an Afghan and coalition security force conducted an operation to detain a Taliban leader today. The leader conducts roadside bombings and indirect fire attacks against Afghan and coalition troops in Tarnek wa Jaldak district, Zabul province. He also provides weapons, ammunition, and roadside bombs to the insurgents under his control in Tarnek wa Jaldak. As a result of the operation, the security force detained multiple suspected insurgents.

An Afghan-led security force, supported by coalition troops, conducted an operation to detain a Taliban leader in Kandahar district, Kandahar province, today. The leader conducts roadside bombings and other attacks against Afghan and coalition security forces in Daman and Shah Wali Kot districts. He is also an explosives expert who builds improvised explosive devices and distributes them to the insurgents under his control. The security force detained multiple suspected insurgents as a result of this operation.

An Afghan and coalition security force detained an insurgent bomb maker in Tarin Kowt district, Uruzgan province, Wednesday. During the operation, the security force detained several other insurgents and recovered explosives, IED components, and weapons. The IED components and explosives were destroyed in place.

East

In Sherzad district, Nangarhar province, an Afghan-led security force, supported by coalition troops, conducted an operation to detain a Taliban leader. The leader conducts roadside bombings and ambushes against Afghan and coalition security forces in Sherzad and Khugyani districts. The security force detained two suspected insurgents and seized one pistol as a result of the operation.

An Afghan and coalition security force conducted an operation to detain a Taliban leader in Charkh district, Logar province, today. The leader conducts roadside bombings and ambushes against Afghan and coalition security forces throughout the district. As a result of the operation, the security force detained two suspected insurgents and seized one pistol and two grenades.

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5 people killed in Iraq's violence

BAGHDAD, May 26 (Xinhua) -- Five people were killed and four others injured on Saturday in separate bomb and gunfire attacks in Iraq, the police said.

In Iraq's northern province of Nineveh, three soldiers were killed when a roadside bomb went off near their patrol in Badosh area, just west of the provincial capital city of Mosul, some 400 km north of Baghdad, a provincial police source told Xinhua on condition of anonymity.

Near Baghdad, gunfire broke out in the town of Tarmiyah, some 30 km north of Baghdad, when gunmen attacked the car of the leader of a local government-backed Awakening Council group, an Interior Ministry source anonymously told Xinhua.

The clash resulted in the killing of two of the attackers and the wounding of one of the leader's bodyguards, the source said.

The Awakening Council group, also known as Sons of Iraq movement or Sahwa, consists of mostly anti-U.S. Sunni insurgent militant groups, who turned their rifles to fight al-Qaida network after Sahwa's leaders became dismayed by al-Qaida's brutality and religious zealotry in the country.

In Iraq's eastern province of Diyala, an army officer and a soldier were wounded when gunmen attacked their foot patrol in the city of Maqdadiyah, some 100 km northeast of Baghdad, a provincial police source told Xinhua on condition of anonymity.

In a separate incident, a young man was injured when a roadside bomb exploded near his house in the town of Jalawlaa, some 130 km northeast of Baghdad, the source said.

Violence is still common in Iraqi cities despite dramatic decrease since its peak in 2006 and 2007 when the country was engulfed in sectarian killings.

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R.I.P. - Pfc. Cale C. Miller

DOD Identifies Army Casualty
            The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Enduring Freedom.

            Pfc. Cale C. Miller, 23, of Overland Park, Kan, died May 24, in Maiwand, Afghanistan, of injuries sustained when enemy forces attacked his unit with an improvised explosive device.  He was assigned to the 4th Battalion, 23rd Infantry Regiment, 2nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division, Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Wash.

            For more information the media may contact I Corps public affairs office at 253-370-9861.

---


Statement From Miller's Family:

PFC Cale Miller. United States Army, Overland Park, Kansas, was killed during a combat mission in Maiwand, Kandahar Province, Afghanistan on May 24, 2012. Cale was a member of Company B, 4th Battalion, 23rd Infantry Regiment, 2nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team(SBCT) Fort Lewis, Washington.

Cale was a 2007 graduate of Olathe Northwest High School and attended the University of Kansas and Baker University. 

As he did throughout his life, his final act on this earth was selfless, and his sacrifice prevented the deaths of several of his Battle Buddies. Cale was a hero in everyday life, always putting others before himself, including giving his life so that others may live. He was also a warrior on the battlefield, and his loss is felt sharply by his fellow soldiers. 

His mother, Deborah Collins, said of her son, “Although we are devastated by our loss, we find comfort knowing that Cale died doing exactly what he wanted to do. His sacrifice shall not be in vain, and we rest assured knowing that some good will come from his untimely death. We love him to the moon and back.” 

In lieu of gifts/flowers, donations may be made in PFC Miller's name to the USO. The family requests privacy at this most difficult time. 

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5 militants killed, 6 security personnel hurt in Helmand

LASHKARGAH (PAN): At least 16 people, including civilians, militants, Afghan and foreign soldiers, were killed and wounded during a spate of violence across southern Helmand province, officials said on Saturday.

Five Taliban militants were killed during an operation by Afghan and foreign troops in the Nahr-i-Saraj area of Greshk district, police spokesman, Farid Ahmad Farhang, told Pajhwok Afghan News.

Meanwhile, four policemen and two International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) soldiers were injured during a roadside bombing in the Khakh area of Greshk district, he said. 

A civilian was killed and three others, all from the same family, were injured when their vehicle struck a roadside bomb in Weshtano area of Sangin district on Friday afternoon, the police official said, adding the  injured were shifted to a nearby health facility. Their condition was reported to be stable.

Elsewhere, police seized three mines and explosives during a search operation in Binzo village of Greshk district. Farhang said a local policeman was killed during a clash with the Taliban in Marja district.

Taliban spokesman, Qari Yousaf Ahmadi, said the fighters had inflicted heavy casualties on Afghan and foreign soldiers during attacks in Sangin, Greshk and Musa Qala districts.

from Pajhwok

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Rocket attacks kill two injure 13 in Quetta

QUETTA: Two people were killed and at least 13 others injured on Saturday amid rocket attacks in different parts of the violence-hit provincial capital of Balochistan, DawnNews reported.

According to police, at least two rockets were fired from Quetta’s adjoining areas. The first attack shattered a local shop completely in Qandahari Bazar and killed two people.

Meanwhile the second rocket was dropped on a house in Basti Panchayat near Kasi Road. Three houses were destroyed as a result and at least 13 people sustained injuries as well.

Injured were taken to a nearby hospital.

Police and Frontier Constabulary (FC) officials cordoned off the sites and initiated an inquiry into the incidents.

Moreover, a student was killed while five people including Principal of Kharan Public School received bullet shots when armed men opened fire at them earlier on Saturday, police said.

“Unidentified gunmen riding bikes targeted the vehicle of local private school principal Muzafar Jamali in Kharan district as a result one student Obaidullah sitting inside the vehicle died on the spot while five people including the principal sustained injuries and were shifted to a hospital.

The assailants managed to escape.

Due to their critical situation, doctors referred the injured to hospitals in Quetta.

Police registered a case and started investigation.

from DAWN
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R.I.P. - Cpl. Keaton G. Coffey

(Photo from Keaton Coffey's Facebook page)
DOD Identifies Marine Casualty

            The Department of Defense announced today the death of a Marine who was supporting Operation Enduring Freedom.

            Cpl. Keaton G. Coffey, 22, of Boring, Ore., died May 24 while conducting combat operations in Helmand province, Afghanistan.  He was assigned to 1st Law Enforcement Battalion, 1st Marine Headquarters Group, 1st Marine Expeditionary Force, Camp Pendleton, Calif.

            For additional background information on this Marine, news media representatives may contact the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force public affairs office at 760-763-4675.

---
from katu.com:

BORING, Ore. - A local soldier from Boring was killed in Afghanistan this past week.

Cpl. Keaton G. Coffey, 22, died on May 24 during combat operations in the Helmand province, according to the Department of Defense.

Coffey was assigned to the 1st Law Enforcement Battalion, 1st Marine Headquarters Group, 1st Marine Expeditionary Force out of Camp Pendleton, California.
Coffey, who was an only child, was engaged to be married in July. He went to Damascus Christian School before entering the service.

Photo from Keaton Coffey's Facebook page


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