Afghan, coalition forces kill 82 insurgents

[camochick]

http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20060624/afghan_assaults_060624/20060624?hub=TopStories

Afghan, coalition forces kill 82 insurgents
Updated Sat. Jun. 24 2006 8:48 AM ET

CTV.ca News Staff

Recent attacks by Afghan and coalition forces have left about 82 suspected insurgents dead in southern Afghanistan, the U.S. military reported on Saturday.

Many of the fatalities stemmed from a five-hour firefight on Friday between coalition troops and militants near the village of Mirabad, northeast of the capital in Uruzgan province in the south of Afghanistan.

Most of the 40 militants involved in the firefight were believed to have been killed, according to The Associated Press.

The insurgents were firing from protected positions in an orchard, ridgeline and compound.

No coalition or civilians were reported to be injured in the fighting.

In another skirmish in Kandahar province's Zharie district, about 25 militants were killed in a three-hour battle.

"Several extremists broke contact by using innocent Afghan civilians as shields to escape into nearby villages," a statement from the U.S. military said.

And coalition forces reported Friday that another 17 insurgents were killed Wednesday after forces attacked a militant bunker.

Troops ambushed militants on Wednesday near Tirin Kot, the capital of Uruzgan province, after observing insurgents transporting heavy weapons to and from the bunker.

The location was thought to be a launching site for several attacks on Afghan and coalition troops during the past week.

The fatalities came around the same time Afghan President Hamid Karzai issued a stern scolding to the coalition on Thursday, urging it to reassess its approach to combating terrorism.

Karzai said the deaths of hundreds of Afghans, including Taliban militants, are "not acceptable."

"In the last three to four weeks, 500 to 600 Afghans were killed. (Even) if they are Taliban, they are sons of this land," Karzai told reporters in Kabul.

He also called on the coalition to cut off the supply of terror funding, weapons and training rather than simply hunting down militants.

But a Task Force Aegis officer said coalition members are doing more than just killing Taliban.

"Killing or capturing those who continue to threaten the security of Afghan people is just one aspect of our efforts here,'' Maj. Nancy Hansen, spokeswoman for the Canadian-led Task Force Aegis said Friday.

"Over half the effort associated with the operation is geared toward reconstruction and humanitarian assistance.''

Karzai's warning came as Osama bin Laden's second-in-command urged Afghans to revolt against coalition forces, and as the U.S.-led Operation Mountain Thrust targets militant strongholds.

The campaign involves more than 10,000 British, American, Canadian and Afghan troops.

The offensive targets four southern Afghan provinces in an attempt to shut down groups that are blamed for a rash of violence in recent weeks.

More than 600 people -- mostly militants -- have been killed in the offensive, while 14 coalition soldiers have been killed in combat since mid-May.



Give em hell >

 

[boots]

After reading this article, the idea that he doesn't want us killing Taliban insurgents sets off a big red flag for me about Karzai. I can understand a desire to not have his people slaughtered, Taliban or not, but as was mentioned in the article, they used innocent civilians as shields. That is not ok. That puts them in the realm of, well... terrorists, I guess. :

 

[Fishbone Jones]

Of course we could pull out and let Karzai and his own army take care of it  ???. I'm sure though, he'll exert as much control, as he does over the rest of the country outside of Kabul. :

 

[KevinB]

He's a Pashtun -- so are the Taliban -- if we kill all of them - who will vote for him  :

He should remember that he is effectively only the mayor of Kabul  -- any influence outside of it is thur the coalition...

 

[IN HOC SIGNO]

He's a Pashtun -- so are the Taliban -- if we kill all of them - who will vote for him   :

He should remember that he is effectively only the mayor of Kabul  -- any influence outside of it is thur the coalition...

He's also a politician. We all know how much hot air they can expell...this is hardly worthy of reporting :

 

[darmil]

Well keep up the good work boys give'em hell.

 

[North Star]

Karzai needs the support of some Islamic fundamentalists who aren't necessarily Taliban, but might sympathize with them. Bitching about the tactics of the US and NATO give him a harmless way of playing to this group without taking any serious action (aka asking foreign troops to leave).

Yeah, he's a politician!

 

[paracowboy]

What's he supposed to say? "Well done you foreign bastards! Keep shooting my voters!"? At the same time he's calling for more selective targetting and less collateral damage, he's sending more ANA and ANP into the fight. I'm listening to his actions, not his words, personally.

 

[Kirkhill]

Yeah, he's a politician!

Isn't that the point of the exercise? To get rid of the bast**ds with guns, terrorists, and replace them with bast**ds without guns, politicians.  Even if you don't like politicians, far better "jaw-jaw and not war-war" as my favourite war-mongering politician (Winston Churchill) said.

 

[a_majoor]

I am really not liking the emphasis the news media are putting on the "body counts". You would almost think they were trying to report on some past war in South East Asia (Hmmm, why would that be?).

As a practical matter, what should probably be emphasized is how much military and paramilitary hardwear is being recovered after the battles. Recovering 82 rifles, a dozen RPGs and explosive devices and a hocky sock of cell phones and GPS receivers is probably a more telling sign of succes than any number of dead bodies.

 

[GAP]

As a practical matter, what should probably be emphasized is how much military and paramilitary hardwear is being recovered after the battles. Recovering 82 rifles, a dozen RPGs and explosive devices and a hockey sock of cell phones and GPS receivers is probably a more telling sign of success than any number of dead bodies.

Dead bodies help, but unfortunately, you are right. It's the only thing the media focus on.

You will notice it is difficult to get a body count from the reports on US actions. Viet Nam revolved around the body count, and that was just mostly SWAG (Scientific Wild Ass Guess). No body had a clue in most cases because we were fighting Vietnamese, the VC dressed in black pajamas, the people dressed in black pajamas, so all bodies counted.

 

[Colin Parkinson]

Meanwhile the Toronto Star reports:

Canadian and Coalition troops have killed 82 Afghans while conducting offensive operations in remote villages. The TS have learned that some of the killed might have been working with the Taliban. 

 

[Old Sweat]

The implication being that some of the Afghans were innocent bystanders? It's enough to make a grown man weep in frustration at the ability of the media to make a controversy where none exists.

 

[boots]

As a practical matter, what should probably be emphasized is how much military and paramilitary hardwear is being recovered after the battles. Recovering 82 rifles, a dozen RPGs and explosive devices and a hocky sock of cell phones and GPS receivers is probably a more telling sign of succes than any number of dead bodies.

What is done with the recovered equipment?

 

[a_majoor]

What is done with the recovered equipment?

Sorted, examined and catalogued for any intelligence value, then probably melted for scrap, with some bits and pieces going to museums as "war trophies".

 

[Colin Parkinson]

I am really not liking the emphasis the news media are putting on the "body counts". You would almost think they were trying to report on some past war in South East Asia (Hmmm, why would that be?).

As a practical matter, what should probably be emphasized is how much military and paramilitary hardwear is being recovered after the battles. Recovering 82 rifles, a dozen RPGs and explosive devices and a hocky sock of cell phones and GPS receivers is probably a more telling sign of succes than any number of dead bodies.

I think it is a great idea, as it will show the home crowd that this was no "wedding party"