Saturday, February 2, 2013

Feb. 02., 2013. - RC-East operational update

BAGRAM, Afghanistan - Afghan and coalition forces detained five insurgents and cleared four improvised explosive devices during operations in eastern Afghanistan throughout the past 24 hours, Feb. 1.

Ghazni province

Afghan and coalition forces found and safely cleared two IEDs in Gelan district.

Coalition forces detained an insurgent in Ghazni district. The detained suspect was transferred to a base for questioning.

Laghman province

Afghan National Security Forces found and safely cleared an IED in Alingar district.

Afghan National Security Forces found and safely cleared an IED in Mehtar Lam district.

Paktya province

Afghan and coalition forces detained four insurgents during an operation in Chamkani district. The detained suspects were transferred to a base for questioning.

Operations in RC-East are ongoing.

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Nigeria: 17 Boko Haram Members, Soldier Die in JTF Raids

A series of raids launched by the Joint Task Force (JTF), code named Operation Restore Order (ORO) in suspected camps of the Boko Haram sect, has claimed 17 terrorists and a soldier.
The task force, which confirmed the casualty figure yesterday, said the victims died during gun battles in two special operations supported by the Nigerian Air Force (NAF) helicopter gunship.

In a statement issued yesterday by the JTF spokesman, Lt-Col. Sagir Musa, he said the raids were launched to dislodge Boko Haram terrorists' camps in Sambisa Game Reserve in Bama Local Government Area and Farin-Ruwa forest in South-West/East of Demboa Local Government of Borno State on Wednesday and Thursday.

Musa said the camps were properly sighted and fortified and had training facilities; armoury, accommodation, drugs store/medical, kitchen, vehicle holding area, latrine and water points (river).

According to him, the camps were used to conduct training and carry out recent attacks, killings and bombings in Maiduguri, Musari, Konduga, Biu, Bama, and Demboa communities.

Musa said, "Efforts by JTF troops to destroy the camps led to fierce exchange of fire that resulted in the death of 17 Boko Haram terrorists with one JTF personnel killed. The camps were destroyed and are being monitored. The following items were recovered: 6 Ak 47 rifles, 2 G3 rifles, 3 pistols, 1 rocket propelled grenade bomb (RPG), 1 RPG tube, 20 RPG chargers, 2 double barrel rifles."

"Others are 2,543 assorted ammunition, 33 assorted empty magazines, 3 laptops computers,10 assorted Motorola walkie talkies, 20 telephone handsets, 40 assorted primed IED canisters, 3 bags of rice and 2 bags of beans, 2 jerry cans of palm oil, 1 bag of salt, 1 generating set, and light green uniforms (sown and unsown)."

The JTF spokesman reiterated the need for local communities to give credible and timely information to the task force/ security agencies. He urged members of the public to pass any credible information to the JTF through the hot lines, which he gave as 080-64174066, O81-54429346.

from allAfrica/Leadership

By Sadiq Abubakar, 2 February 2013

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Osama bin Laden’s son-in-law arrested in Turkey

English: Osama bin Laden interviewed for Daily...
English: Osama bin Laden interviewed for Daily Pakistan in 1997; (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
According to Turkish media agecnies, Osama bin Laden’s son-in-law Suleiman Abu Gheith was arrested by Turkish security forces in Ankara following a tipoff from U.S. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA).
According to reports Suleiman Abu Gheith was the former spokesman of the terror network and reportedly escaped Afghanistan following the Sept. 11 attacks on the World Trade Center in 2001 and settled in a camp in Iran.

The location of Suleiman Abu Gheith was reportedly disclosed to Turkish intelligence agency (MIt) by US intelligence after he entered Turkey on a false passport.

He was detained at a hotel in Çankaya district of Ankara, Hurryiet Daily News reported, quoting the Daily Milliyet.

In the meantime another Turkish media agency reported that Suleiman Abu Gheith was intending to seek political asylum in Turkey.

The man is the husband of Fatima Bin Laden who currently lives in Saudi Arabia. Abu Gheit is a Kuwaiti national who had citizenship revoked.

There has been no official comment from either Turkey or the United States on any possible link between Suleyman and the perpetrators of Friday’s suicide bombing at the United States Embassy.

It remains to be seen if there will be any friction between the two NATO allies, should Turkey deport Suleyman to Iran without giving the CIA an opportunity to interrogate one of Osama Bin Laden’s closest surviving relatives.

from KHAAMA
By Meena Haseeb - 02 Feb 2013, 2:11 pm

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22 killed as army camp attacked in NW Pakistan

Pakistani troops keep guard near the site of an attack in the Sari Norang area of Pakistan's northwest district of Lakki Marwat, on Feb. 2, 2013. At least 22 people were killed and a dozen others injured when a security camp was attacked in Lakki Marwat on Saturday morning, local media reported. Banned outfit of Pakistan Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack. (Xinhua)
ISLAMABAD, Feb. 2 (Xinhua) -- At least 22 people were killed and a dozen others injured when a security camp was attacked in Pakistan's northwest district of Lakki Marwat area on Saturday morning, local media reported.
Urdu TV channel Geo said that the killed people include eight security personnel and 12 militants.

Banned outfit of Pakistan Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack, and a Taliban spokesperson revealed that they sent 30 trained militants including four suicide bombers to launch attack at the military camp.

Ahsan Ullah Ahsan, the Taliban spokesperson, said the attack was the revenge of deaths of two Taliban commanders in U.S. drone strikes.

Army sources confirmed that 10 of the assailants were shot dead in the counter attack by security forces and 20 others fled the scene.

They said that the militants' plan to incur huge loss to security forces was foiled by the soldiers on duty, who fought bravely against the attackers.

Some local TV channels quoted unidentified security officials as saying that the escaped militants are hiding in a residential area near the security camp.

The injured people were shifted to a nearby hospital where several of them were in critical condition. Hospital sources confirmed that there were at least eight soldiers among the injured people.

The attack was launched at about 4:00 a.m. local time when 30 militants equipped with sophisticated weapons stormed the army camp located in the Saraey Noor Rang area of Laki Marwat, a restive district located in the country's northwest province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

The attack was followed by a gun battle between security forces and militants which lasted for more than four hours.

Both President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Raja Parvez Ashraf condemned the attack and directed the hospital administration to provide best medical treatment to the injured people.

from XINHUA (<- more photos)
2013-02-02 14:34:55
Editor: Lu Hui

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Yemeni warplanes strike al-Qaida-held sites in south

map by Evan Centanni (www.polgeonow.com)
ADEN, Yemen, Feb. 2 (Xinhua) -- Yemeni warplanes carried out strikes against al-Qaida hideouts in the southern province of Abyan on Saturday, but no casualties were immediately reported, an army officer told Xinhua.

About two suspected al-Qaida-held positions and other checkpoints manned by terrorists in the mountainous areas of Maraksha in Abyan province were bombed with several rockets, the local army officer said on condition of anonymity.

"The military aircraft struck the al-Qaida-held sites in Maraksha region in Abyan with an effective operation," the army officer said.

"The two air strikes targeted a large group of al-Qaida terrorists who were preparing to establish training camps in Abyan 's mountainous areas," the army officer added.

However, the army officer did not mention the number of casualties amongst the al-Qaida members.

On Thursday, the pro-government militiamen backed by a unit of the armed forces clashed with al-Qaida militants in the mountainous region of Maraksha, leaving at least 14 people killed on both sides, the Defense Ministry said in a brief text message obtained by Xinhua.

The Yemen-based al-Qaida branch, known locally as Ansar al- Sharia (Partisans of Islamic Law), took advantage of a political upheaval in 2011 in Yemen to take over several towns of the southern restive regions.

The militants were targeted by Yemeni security authorities after a U.S.-backed offensive launched in the southern Abyan province months ago routed the militants out of their strongholds that they had controlled for nearly a year.

The Yemeni government along with the United states and oil-rich Saudi Arabia have beefed up anti-terror operation since President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi took office in February 2012.


from XINHUA
2013-02-02 18:07:28
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