Here's how you know
 **Official websites use .mil** .mil
 **Secure .mil websites use HTTPS** lock () https://


Skip to main content (Press Enter).
 Toggle navigation
            
            U.S. Central Command
                CENTCOM
        Search
                    Search CENTCOM:
                        Search
                Search CENTCOM:
                    Search
    Home

    ABOUT US
    
        COMMAND PRIORITIES

    LEADERSHIP

    COMPONENT COMMANDS

    HISTORY

    POSTURE STATEMENT

    CENTCOM AOR
    
        CENTCOM COALITION

    OPERATIONS AND EXERCISES
    
        USMTM

    CONTACT
    
        OPERATIONAL CONTRACT SUPPORT

    COMMUNITY RELATIONS

    THEATRE MEDICAL CLEARANCE

    INNOVATION VENDOR PORTAL

    MILITARY MEMBER INNOVATION PORTAL

    MEDIA
    
        SOCIAL MEDIA

    NEWS ARTICLES

    PRESS RELEASES

    STATEMENTS

    IMAGERY

    VIDEOS

    TRANSCRIPTS

    VISITORS AND PERSONNEL
    
        FAMILY CENTER

    FAMILY READINESS

    CENTCOM WEBMAIL

    SOCIAL MEDIA SECURITY

    ACCOUNTABILITY

    EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS

    USCENTCOM UNCLASSIFIED REGULATIONS

    FOIA LIBRARY

    INNOVATION OASIS

    WELCOME GUIDE  Home
  MEDIA
  NEWS ARTICLES
  News Article View
 News
 U.S. Forces Strike Taliban, East Turkestan Islamic Movement Training Sites By Terri Moon Cronk
                DoD News, Defense Media Activity
 During the past weekend, U.S. forces conducted air operations to strike Taliban and the East Turkestan Islamic Movement, or ETIM, training facilities in Afghanistan’s Badakhshan province, the commander ofNATOair operations in Afghanistan said today. 






U.S. and British coalition partners and Afghan security forces train together in an aerial reaction force exercise utilizing British helicopter assets at Camp Qargha in Kabul, Afghanistan, Jan. 16, 2018. Army photo by Capt. Leanna Litsch




U.S. and British coalition partners and Afghan security forces train together in an aerial reaction force exercise utilizing British helicopter assets at Camp Qargha in Kabul, Afghanistan.
        Aerial Reaction Force Training
            U.S. and British coalition partners and Afghan security forces train together in an aerial reaction force exercise utilizing British helicopter assets at Camp Qargha in Kabul, Afghanistan, Jan. 16, 2018. Army photo by Capt. Leanna Litsch

            SHARE IMAGE:

                Download Image
                    Image Details
                    
                    Photo By: Capt. Leanna Litsch
                    
                    VIRIN: 180116-A-NK138-494 Speaking with Pentagon reporters via satellite, Air Force Maj. Gen.James B. Hecker, commander of NATO Air Command Afghanistan, updated Pentagon reporters via satellite from Afghanistan on the alliance’sResolute Supportmission there. “The destruction of these training facilities prevents terrorists from planning any acts near the border with China and Tajikistan,” the general said. “The strikes also destroyed stolen Afghan National Army vehicles in the process of being converted to vehicle-borne improvised explosive devices.” ETIM is a terrorist organization that operates in China and the border regions of Afghanistan, Hecker noted. “ETIM enjoys support from the Taliban in the mountains of Badakhshan, so hitting these Taliban training facilities and squeezing the Taliban's support networks degrades ETIM capabilities,” he said. 







00:58
    
    

    
    
    
    VIDEO  | 00:58
            |
            U.S. Forces Strike Terrorist Training Camps, Resolute Support Air Commander Says From videos of the airstrikes he showed, Hecker said, it can be seen how a single B-52 bomber demonstrates its reach and lethality by setting a record employment of 24 precision-guided munitions against Taliban narcotics and training facilities. “What allowed this impressive air power to be unleashed was a critical modification that we made to the B-52 in late November, installing a conventional rotary launcher that allows B-52s to carry more precision-guided munitions,” he said. **Centcom’s Main Effort** “Afghanistan has become [U.S. Central Command’s] main effort, thanks to the recent successes in Iraq and Syria, Hecker said. “This has allowed Centcom to shift more assets our way, which will significantly improve our ability to assist the Afghans.” The general provided three examples of air assets now available to the mission in Afghanistan. “We have increased our close air support capabilities significantly by adding an A-10 squadron in Kandahar Air Force Base. We now have 50 percent more MQ-9 intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance aircraft. And we're adding an additional combat search and rescue squadron,” he said. Hecker added that those are just the tangible air platforms in Afghanistan, and the platforms would have limited value if those were the only changes there. But another change is one you don't physically see, he told reporters. **Intelligence Community** “It is the change of the weight of effort of the intelligence community,” he said. “The intelligence community is the backbone that develops our targets, provides data analysis, and eventually produces the targets we strike in Afghanistan.” 







00:50
    
    

    
    
    
    VIDEO  | 00:50
            |
            Resolute Support Air Commander: ‘We Will Cripple’ Taliban’s Revenue Generation This is the intelligence community that's spread throughout the security enterprise beyond Afghanistan, Heckler noted. “They analyze surveillance and reconnaissance data to develop the networks that produce targets for our air power to strike. This behind-the-scenes legwork allows us to hit the Taliban where it hurts most, whether it's command-and-control or their pocketbooks.” Cripple the Taliban’s revenue-generation enterprise is part of that effort, he said. “We will take away their ability to wage war on the battlefield and brutally murder innocent civilians, like the recent cowardly acts that we witnessed in Kabul and Jalalabad,” the general said. “With the current uplift in resources, we can decimate Taliban command-and-control nodes,” said he added. “That means we can strike at the heart of training camps where they brainwash young men to strap on a suicide vest, to kill themselves and their fellow Afghans, who are working to rebuild the country.” (Follow Terri Moon Cronk on Twitter: @MoonCronkDoD)
 SHARE
 PRINT
 Related Videos Full Event: Air Force General Briefs Reporters on Resolute Support Mission
 Related Links Transcript: News Briefing By Major General Hecker via Teleconference From Kabul, Afghanistan
 About UsCommand PrioritiesLeadershipComponent
   CommandsHistoryPosture Statement
   Area of
   ResponsibilityCENTCOM Coalition
   Operations And
   ExercisesOperation Inherent
   ResolveResolute Support
   MediaSocial MediaNews ArticlesPress ReleasesVideo And Imagery
   Visitors And
   PersonnelFamily ReadinessCENTCOM WebmailSocial MediaSecurityAccountabilityEmergency
   Preparedness
   ContactCommunity Relations
                    Stay Connected
                
                Privacy & Security  Inspector General  FOIA  Privacy Act
            

Hosted by Defense Media Activity - WEB.mil