Daily Security Brief: March 8, 2012

BADAKHSHAN: Three suspected insurgents were arrested with explosives and suicide jackets during an operation by foreign troops in Faizabad, the capital of northern Badakhshan province, officials said on Thursday.

The operation was conducted on the house of Abdul Ghafor in the Qala-i-Qazi area on the outskirts of the city on Wednesday night, police office Col. Sakhidad told Pajhwok Afghan News. The foreign troops detained the son of Ghafor and two others from the house, he said.

An intelligence official, who did not want to be named, said a suicide vest, a pressure cooker full of explosives, 60 meters of wire and other explosives were confiscated during the raid. He said identity of the two suspects was yet to be ascertained.

The International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in a statement confirmed the operation, saying two individuals had been arrested in Faizabad city.

The arrested men were members of the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan, the force said, accusing the detainees of planting roadside bombs in Badakhshan and Kunduz provinces.

–Pajhwok Report

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GHOR joined the peace process in the Charsada district of northwestern Ghor province, officials said on Thursday.

Mullah Abdul Majeeb, who led the 10-member rebel group, surrendered to security officials in the district, Lt. Col. Gul Ahmad, the district police chief, told Pajhwok Afghan News.

The surrendering men also turned in their weapons, mines and some explosives, he said, the group was involved in roadside bombings and ambushes against Afghan and international troops. The surrender would leave a positive impact on the security situation in the area.

–Obaid Ghori

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KABUL: Three Taliban commanders were killed and eight others fighters were wounded during a clash with Afghan commandos in eastern Kunar province, an official said on Thursday.

The clash took place in the Jangle area in Sarkano district, Maj. Asadullah, the commando force commander, told Pajhwok Afghan News.

He identified the slain commanders as Mullah Ziaur Rahman, Fazal Akbar and Saz Wali. The area had been cordon off by the security personnel, the major said, adding some weapons and explosives were also confiscated.

Zabihullah Mujahid, a Taliban spokesman, expressing unawareness about the incident, said the fighters targeted a patrol of foreign troops in the Sarkano district, inflecting heavy casualties on the international servicemembers.

–Khwaja Basir Ahmad

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KABUL: Two leaders of the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU) were arrested in an operation in the northwestern province of Badakhshan, NATO said on Thursday.

One of the leaders, responsible for suicide bombings in Badakhshan and Kunduz provinces, was wounded during the offensive and was being treated, the alliance said in a statement.

The second leader was a bomb-making expert and helped planned suicide attacks, the statement said, adding an additional suspected insurgent was detained with a suicide vest, explosives, blasting caps and detonation cord.

In Helmand, a Taliban fighter was captured during an operation in Marja district, where the militant controlled an insurgent cell and organised roadside bombings, ambushes, and attacks against Afghan civilians and security forces, the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) said.

Another militant facilitator was captured in Lashkargah, the provincial capital, on Wednesday, the force said. The facilitator supplied weapons and ammunition in Helmand and Kandahar provinces. The security force also seized multiple weapons as a result of the operation.

In Nadir Shah Kot district of Khost, an Afghan and coalition security force arrested a Haqqani leader in a similar operation. The security force also seized one shotgun and detained multiple suspected insurgents during the operation.

–Pajhwok Report

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KHOST: Three suspected militants, planting roadside bombs, were killed an attack by foreign troops in the southeastern province of Khost, an official said on Thursday.

The security personnel were on a patrol in the Mehdikhel area on the outskirts of Khost City, when they spotted five militants planting roadside bombs in the area, police chief Brig. Gen. Sardar Mohammad Zazai told Pajhwok Afghan News.

He said the forces opened fire at the fleeing insurgents, killing three of them on the spot.

The International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) soldiers had tried to arrest them, but the insurgents did not stop, he added.

Resident Ali Gul said the bodies of three fighters were found on the road, but their identity remained unknown.

The Taliban have so far said nothing about the incident.

–Hidayatullah Khosti

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KUNDUZ: A tribal militia commander was killed along with his guard after they were attacked by another militia group in the Khanabad district of northern Kunduz province on Thursday, an official said.

Ali Ahmad alias Chob Kala and his guard were killed in Sarak-i-Naw area, the town’s administrative head, Nizamudin Nashir, told Pajhwok Afghan News. An elderly man was also injured in the attack.

Nashir said the slain commander was a former jihadi commander, who had been active in Chartot area. The deaths were a result an old enmity between two tribal militia groups, he said. 

Police spokesman Syed Sarwar Hussaini said an investigation had been launched into the incident, but no arrest had so far been made.

Meanwhile, the provincial council secretary was injured in a roadside bombing in Khaiaban area of the provincial capital.

Maulvi Khosh Mohammad was injured in the blast that ripped through his vehicle at around 3:30pm in the area, police spokesman Syed Sarwar Hussaini told Pajhwok Afghan News.

Mohammad sustained minor injuries and his vehicle partially damaged in the explosion.

–Wahidullah

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NANGARHAR: Security forces confiscated dozens of kilograms of drugs during operations in eastern Nangarhar and southwestern Nimroz provinces, officials said on Thursday.

On Wednesday, police recovered more than 30 kilograms of drugs from a truck destined for Iran in the Pul-i-Abrishm area of Nimroz, police chief, Col. Mohammad Musa Rasuli, told Pajhwok Afghan News.  He said one suspect had been detained in connection with the narcotics.

In eastern Nangarhar, 12 kilograms of opium, a jerry can filled with acid and two weapons were seized in the Chanar village of Spinghar district, the police said in a statement.    Two suspects were detained in connection with the seizure.

Another 10 kilograms of heroin, a walkie-talkie, 2 Kalashnikovs, a pistol and a mine were confiscated from two vehicles during a joint security operation in Nangarhar. Two suspects were also arrested.

Counternarcotics police officer, Col. Khanzada said two people carrying 10 kilograms of heroin were detained in Durbaba district, while third person with a gun held in Hesarak district.

—Pajhwok Report ‎

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