# Coalition forces maintain pressure in Kabul and Paktika provinces

/ Published Dec. 29, 2008

**FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
December 28, 2008                                                                                        

Release Number 20082812-01

**Coalition forces maintain pressure in Kabul and Paktika provinces
KABUL, Afghanistan – Coalition forces killed five armed militants and detained six suspected militants during operations targeting Taliban facilitators and a Haqqani commander in Kabul and Paktika provinces, Saturday.

The operation in Sorubi District, approximately 60 km northeast of Kabul City, targeted a Taliban militant known to facilitate terrorist activities throughout the Uzbin and Tagab Valleys in Kabul and Kapisa provinces.  The targeted militant is also assessed to traffic foreign fighters, weapons and munitions into the region.

Suspected of meeting in the remote mountains to plan future attacks, the Taliban militants were tracked to the isolated location during the early morning hours by Coalition forces.  As the force approached the militants, they were engaged by small-arms fire.  Coalition forces engaged the militants with small-arms fire and precision munitions, and killed four militants.  A search of the militants following the operation revealed multiple AK-47s, rocket-propelled grenades, hand grenades and other military equipment.

In Gyan District, approximately 175 km southeast of Kabul City and just 10 km west of the Pakistan border, Coalition forces killed one militant and detained six suspected militants during an operation targeting a Haqqani commander believed to plan and execute attacks against Coalition forces in Paktika.  The wanted Haqqani commander is also responsible for roadside bomb attacks that indiscriminately kill innocent civilians and Coalition forces.

During the operation, one militant assaulted the force as they attempted to search the compound.  Realizing the threat, the force engaged the militant with small-arms fire and killed him.

The force searched the other compounds without incident and detained six suspected militants while protecting 18 women and 45 children.

“These insurgents only deliver fear and intimidation and then take credit for setting up some kind of shadow government all the while lining their own pockets with money from criminal activity,” said Col. Jerry O’Hara, a U.S. Forces Afghanistan spokesperson.  “They do nothing to help the Afghan people.  In 2008, Coalition medical teams treated over 100,000 Afghans in the eastern regions alone.  It’s a shame these actions never get reported.”

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United States Forces Afghanistan’s mission, in coordination with NATO’s International Security Assistance Force, is to conduct operations to defeat terrorist networks and insurgents by developing effective governance and building the Afghan National Security Force.  Effective security throughout the Government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan facilitates continued regional stability and increases economic development for the people of Afghanistan.

Contact Information – US Forces Afghanistan Public Affairs Office

Tel +93 (0) 799 51 2919 or cell phone 0093 (0) 788 189 049

USFOR-A-MediaRelations@afghan.swa.army.mil****