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| -Lurid Crime Tales- |
| Iranian-backed Afghan Taliban commander survived airstrike |
| 2009-06-11 |
| Update on yesterday's article A Taliban commander thought to have been killed in a US airstrike in western Afghanistan has survived the attack, while fighting in northern and western Afghanistan intensifies. Mullah Mustafa, a Taliban commander in Ghor province, denied reports he was killed in the June 9 airstrike. Mustafa contacted Quqnoos, an "Some people went to the US forces and provided them with false information, and then they bombed our area," Mustafa said. "I am not harmed." Mustafa said his six-year-old son and ten year old brother were among those killed. The deputy governor of Ghor province claimed 10 civilians were killed in the strike. Major fighting in Badghis and Farah province The airstrike in Ghor, a province largely free of Taliban influence, highlights the spread of the fighting into regions previously thought to be safe. Over the past few days, Coalition and Afghan forces have fought major battles in Badghis and Farah provinces, two areas that had been considered relatively safe but have seen an uptick in violence over the past year. Just today, 41 Taliban fighters were killed during fighting in both provinces. In the Balamurghab district in Badghis province, the Afghan Army said 25 Taliban fighters and an Uzbek were killed and 10 more were wounded during the latest round of fighting. The Afghan Army and Coalition forces launched an operation there more than three weeks ago to secure a road construction project. So far, more than 60 Taliban fighters have been killed in the operation. The Balamurghab district serves as the Taliban's main operations hub for northwestern Afghanistan. Taliban commanders in Badghis claimed to have 74 bases scattered throughout the Balamurghab district alone. Both Balamurghab and the neighboring district of Ghormach are under Taliban control. US, Spanish, and Afghan forces now maintain a presence in the Balamurghab district at the newly-built Forward Operating Base Columbus. Badghis is critical to the Taliban's northern front. The Taliban are attempting to isolate the province by keeping the instability high so the paved section of the northern ring road cannot be completed. The Taliban want to use their safe havens in Badghis to launch attacks against neighboring Faryab province and eventually Mazar-i-Sharif. In Farah province, Afghan soldiers killed 16 Taliban and al Qaeda fighters during an operation in the village of Taqsirak in the Bala Buluk district. A Taliban commander named Mullah Nik and an Arab trainer were killed during the fighting. Nik was described as "a Taliban proxy deputy governor for Farah province." The Arab fighter was described as a suicide attack mastermind and an expert on building improvised explosive devices. Al Qaeda's paramilitary Shadow Army is known to dispatch its cadre in one- and two-man teams to Taliban groups with more than 100 fighters. These al Qaeda fighters serve as embedded trainers to the Taliban, and provide instruction on conducting infantry, suicide, and roadside bombing attacks. |
| Posted by:ed |
| #4 killiing all of them is na good move |
| Posted by: funky skunk 2009-06-11 22:33 |
| #3 Overlapping generations.... hmmm.... |
| Posted by: 3dc 2009-06-11 21:51 |
| #2 sever the genetic line? Good move |
| Posted by: Frank G 2009-06-11 20:01 |
| #1 his six-year-old son and ten year old brother were among those killed. That's gotta be worth something, long-term. |
| Posted by: Glenmore 2009-06-11 19:09 |