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| Afghanistan | |
| Militants under pressure from Afghan forces, Pakistani tribesmen | |
| 2007-03-23 | |
Local forces on both sides of the Afghanistan-Pakistan border have killed as many as 200 militants without the active backing of Western soldiers, reports said Friday. Afghan security forces killed at least 49 militants in Helmand province without the participation of NATO troops, Afghan officials said. Pakistani villagers had killed up to 160 foreign fighters in the lawless border area between Pakistan and Afghanistan, a Pakistani provincial governor said. There were smaller number of casualties among the Afghan forces and Pakistani villagers.
The operation launched Thursday by Afghan security forces included army and police units in Helmand province, adjacent to Kandahar province where Canada's soldiers are based. Afghan officials said their attack is the single biggest operation they have undertaken without NATO support. As well as the militants, seven police officers were reported killed. NATO spokeswoman Lt.-Col. Angela Billings said it's becoming more common for Afghan forces to run their own operations. NATO forces have been training the Afghan army and police. In Pakistan, tribesmen in South Waziristan have been fighting foreign militants since Monday. The Pakistani government, which is under Western pressure to stop the Taliban attacks on Afghanistan, has been trying to enlist the tribesmen in its campaign. The governor of North West Frontier Province, Ali Mohammed Jan Aurakzai, said Friday that the casualties — up to 160 militants, including Uzbek and Chechen fighters — showed the policy was working. "Local tribesmen are not allowing foreigners to live in their areas," he told reporters in Peshawar. As many as 30 tribesmen also died, he said. | |
| Posted by:Steve |