2004 in Afghanistan
The following lists events that happened during 2004 in Afghanistan. January. Thursday, January 1 – Close to half of the loya jirga boycotted a vote on five disputed articles concerning the Proposed Afghan Constitution, promoting Chairman Subghatullah Mujadidi to call for a two-day adjournment to for negotiations. Advisors from the United Nations (UN) and the United States were present to help mediate between the two sides. The primary controversy concerned whether to have a strong president or a strong parliament. Friday, January 2 – In Kabul, Afghan leaders met privately with U.S. and UN officials, including UN envoy  Lakhdar Brahimi and U.S. ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad, to try to end the impasse over the Proposed Afghan Constitution. Saturday, January 3 – A rocket exploded in Kabul. There were no casualties. Sunday, January 4 – The loya jirga adopted the proposed Afghan Constitution by way of consensus. Monday, January 5 – North of Qalat, Zabul Province, men kidnapped an Afghan aid worker who was part of a caravan for Shelter For Life. Two local people were shot and injured when they tried to stop the militants. Taliban spokesman Mullah Abdul Hakim Latifi claimed responsibility. Tuesday, January 6 – In Kandahar, at least sixteen people  were killed (six of which were children) and 58 people were wounded when a time bomb hidden in an apple cart exploded away from an Afghan military base. The crowd had gathered to investigate another bomb that had gone off 15 minutes earlier and injured a small child. A suspect was caught trying to hide in a nearby home. The blasts occurred moments before a motorcade was about to pass. Thursday, January 8 – In Kandahar, two Afghan National Army soldiers were wounded (one losing a leg) by a bomb that exploded on the roof of a building less than an  eighth of a mile from the January 6 incident that killed over a dozen people. Friday, January 9 – A rocket hit an army camp in Wana (Pakistan), South Waziristan, Pakistan, killing four Pakistani soldiers. Saturday, January 10 – Interim Afghan president Hamid Karzai announced that he would be a candidate for the election to be held in June. Sunday, January 11 – Five Afghan National Army soldiers died and three others were injured when they came under attack in Kandahar Province. Monday, January 12 – The Afghan National Field Hockey Team arrived in Peshawar, Pakistan to play six matches over ten days. Tuesday , January 13 – Afghanistan released 100 Pakistani prisoners to reciprocate a similar gesture by Pakistan only days earlier. The prisoners had been suspected of fighting for the Taliban. Wednesday, January 14 – About a dozen rockets were fired at the U.S. base near the Khost airport in Afghanistan. There were no casualties. Thursday, January 15 – Outgoing U.N. envoy to Afghanistan, Lakhdar Brahimi, told the United Nations Security Council that elections scheduled for June were unrealistic because factions and extremists continued to threaten the peace process. Brahimi also criticized the Bonn Agreements on the grounds that the Taliban had not been present there . He also criticized western feminists protesting the burqa. He said women would go further in Afghanistan through education, not changes in dress. Friday, January 16 – At the request of the United Nations, Chinese police officer Zhang Ming was sent to Afghanistan to help fight drug trafficking. Saturday, January 17 – Forty rebels ambushed an Afghan convoy in Kandahar Province, provoking a gun fight that left three rebels and two Afghan National Army soldiers dead. Monday, January 19 – In a raid on a compound in Kabul, Canadian soldiers arrested 16 men and seized drugs, cash and weapons. Tuesday, January 20- Pakistan announced  there no longer any bans on goods exported to Afghanistan, with the exception of ghee and cooking oil. Thursday, January 22 – 100 Canadian soldiers arrived in Kabul to start a six-month tour of duty. Friday, January 23 – Iran announced that it would place a dozen jailed al-Qaeda suspects on trial. Saturday, January 24 – In Nangarhar Province, at least four children were wounded by a landmine. Sunday, January 25 – Responding to rocket attacks on its air base in the region, U.S. planes bombed several areas in the Narang district, Kunar Province. Monday, January 26 – With assistance from UNICEF and  the World Health Organization, the Afghan Ministry of Health began a three-day vaccination program intended to reach about five million children aged five and under in Afghanistan. Tuesday, January 27 – A Canadian soldier, Jamie Brendan Murphy, and one Afghan civilian were killed by a suicide bomber in Kabul. Three others soldiers and nine bystanders were injured. Wednesday, January 28 – A British soldier was killed and another four were wounded by a car bomb in Kabul. Mullah Hakim Latifi of the Taliban claimed responsibility. Thursday, January 29 – Eight U.S. soldiers were killed and at least three were wounded when an  explosion occurred at a weapons storage area near Ghazni. The explosion may have been caused by a booby-trap. Saturday, January 31 – In Deh Rawood, a remote-controlled bomb destroyed a vehicle, killing Mayor Khalif Sadaht and seven of his relatives. February. Sunday, February 1 – Afghan families began celebrating Eid al-Adha. In Kabul, former king Mohammad Zaher Shah and interim president Hamid Karzai joined for prayers at the downtown palace. Monday, February 2 – U.S. president George W. Bush submitted a 2005 budget proposal to the U.S. Congress which contained US$1.2 billion in assistance for Afghanistan focusing on education , health, infrastructure and assistance to the Afghan National Army. The budget did not contain funding estimates for U.S. military operations. Tuesday, February 3 – Interim Afghan president Hamid Karzai appointed Mohammad Yusuf as governor of Farah Province, and Azizullah Afzali as governor of Baghdis province. Karzai also named new police chiefs in five northern and central provinces. Gul Nabi Ahmadzai was appointed chief of training for the Afghan National Army. Wednesday, February 4 – Interim Afghan president Hamid Karzai fired Mohammad Aref Sarwari, the head of national security. Thursday, February 5 – Police arrested the owner of a taxi used in a suicide  bombing that killed a British soldier in Kabul on January 28. Friday, February 6 – The Indian company Mahindra Defence Systems announced that it would provide 80 SUVs and 40 jeeps to the Afghan National Army over the next six months. Saturday, February 7 – The Afghan Disarmament, Demobilisation and Re-Integration Program, headed by Milos Krsmanovic, launched a disarmament program in northern Afghanistan aimed at disarming some 2,000 militiamen under the command of generals Abdul Rashid Dostam and Atta Muhammad. Sunday, February 8 – Over 200 Afghan delegates gathered in Kabul for the International Conference on Counter-Narcotics in Afghanistan to discuss  law enforcement and alternative livelihoods for poppy farmers and demand reduction. Keynote speakers included executive director of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime Antonio Maria Costa, interim president Hamid Karzai and the United Kingdom's foreign office minister Bill Rammell. Monday, February 9 – Under tight security, NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer visited Kabul and met with Afghan interim president Hamid Karzai. Tuesday, February 10 – In Afghanistan, the Kabul Primary Court sentenced to death two former Taliban officials, Zia Ahmad and Abdul Nab, for the murder of aid-worker Bettina Goislard November 16, 2003. The trial took  three hours and the judgment took twenty minutes. No witnesses to the crime were present at the trial. The men planned to appeal the decision. Wednesday, February 11 – In Khost, Major Mohammed Isa Khan, the deputy intelligence director of Khost Province, was assassinated in his car by gunman Hafez Elal. Elal tried to escape but was chased down by bodyguards. To avoid capture, he detonated explosives strapped to his body. Taliban spokesman Mohammed Saiful Adel claimed responsibility. Thursday, February 12 – Addressing the National Defence College in Islamabad, Pakistan, president Pervez Musharraf admitted that some anti-government activity in Afghanistan was  coming from within the Pakistan border. Friday, February 13 – One civilian and old soldier were killed and six people were wounded in an explosion at an Afghan National Army military post near Khost. Saturday, February 14 – Near Bala Buluk in Farah Province, four Afghans working for the United Nations de-mining agency were fatally shot in an ambush. Sunday, February 15 – A Canadian soldier was shot in the face when his rifle went off in his sleeping quarters at Camp Julien in Kabul. He survived and was placed in critical condition. Monday, February 16 – After being open for one day , a driving school in Herat was shut down by local authorities. Tuesday, February 17 – In Kandahar Province, men loyal to two senior government officials exchanged gunfire in a bazaar wounding four people. Wednesday, February 18 – Taliban leader Mullah Dadullah warned Afghans not to vote in the election scheduled for June. Thursday, February 19 – former Afghan king Mohammed Zahir Shah was released from a hospital in New Delhi, India after two weeks of receiving medical treatment for an intestinal problem. He remained in New Delhi, however, for further observation. Sunday, February 22 – Before takeoff, a Louis Berger Group helicopter was attacked  by gunfire in Thaloqan village in Kandahar Province, killing the Australian pilot and seriously injuring a U.S. woman. Taliban spokesmen took responsibility. Monday, February 23 – In Thaloqan village in Kandahar Province, U.S. forces from the 10th Mountain Division assisted hundreds of local police in a search for the gunman who killed an Australian pilot the previous day. Thirty suspected Taliban members were rounded up. Wednesday, February 25 – Five Afghan employees of Serai Development Foundation were killed and two injured in an ambush northeast of Kabul. Thursday, February 26 – United States Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld spoke in front of a  graduating class of 48 Afghan policemen in Kandahar. Friday, February 27 – Two hundred five South Korean medics and military engineers left Seoul for Afghanistan to replace existing troops, and to help with reconstruction projects for six months. Saturday, February 28 – The United States and Pakistan denied an Iranian radio report that Osama bin Laden had been captured "a long time ago" in Pakistan's border region with Afghanistan. March. Monday, March 1 – During public ceremonies in Kabul, of Shia Muslims commemorating the slaying of their leader Imam al-Husayn, an Afghan National Army cadet shouted abusive language and spat at  a banner, prompting the Shia Muslims to throw stones at the soldiers. The cadets then fired into the crowd, killing one and injuring sixteen. Tuesday, March 2 – A voluntary repatriation program for Afghan refugees run by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees resumed after a four-month hiatus following the murder of a staff member in November. Wednesday, March 3 – At a ceremony held in the Chinese embassy in Kabul, Chinese ambassador to Afghanistan Sun Yuxi and Afghan Irrigation, Water Resources and Environment Minister Mohammad Yusuf Nooristani signed a contract detailing China's assistance in a major irrigation re -build project near the capital. The project was supposed to be finished in early 2006. Thursday, March 4 – Rebels attacked a border post in Maruf district in Kandahar Province, killing seven members of the Afghan National Army. Friday, March 5 – U.S.-led forces killed nine rebels in a gun battle in near Orgun, near the border with Pakistan. Saturday, March 6 – Near Qalat, Zabul Province, Mohammad Isah, a director of the Afghan Red Crescent Society, was murdered by men who stopped his car. Sunday, March 7 – Afghan government officials announced that Afghan Planning Minister Haji Muhammad Mohaqiq resigned from the cabinet . Mohaqiq said he was fired after announcing his intention to run against interim president Hamid Karzai in the June 2004 elections. Mohaqiq was replaced by Ramazan Bashardoost. Monday, March 8 – Human Rights Watch published "Enduring Freedom - Abuses by US Forces in Afghanistan", which criticizes the United States' actions in Afghanistan. The report cites excessive force, arbitrary detentions and the mistreating people in custody as prominent abuses. Tuesday, March 9 – In Ankara, Turkey, Afghan Deputy Prime Minister and Defense Minister Mohammad Fahim Khan met with Turkish National Defense Minister Vecdi Gönül. Wednesday, March 10 – Three rockets were fired at the U.S.  base at the airport near Kandahar. There were no casualties. Friday, March 12 – Dodsal, a Dubai-based construction company, signed a US$230 million contract to set up a modern petroleum infrastructure in Afghanistan. The deal entails the construction of 700 retail outlets. Saturday, March 13 – In Kandahar Province, rebels attacked a government office. In the battle, three rebels and one Afghan National Army soldier were killed. Sunday, March 14 – Three rockets landed in Jalalabad. There were no injuries, but windows shattered and some walls crumbled. Monday, March 15 – The United States initiated Operation Mountain Storm, which intended to drive  from inside Afghanistan into a region of rebel sanctuaries and meet the Pakistani military driving from the opposite direction. Tuesday, March 16 – In an iris verification center in Quetta, Pakistan, 174 Afghan refugees were processed. Each refugee older than six years underwent a computerized iris scan to determine if they had previously been checked and received a repatriation package. The refugees then entered Afghanistan through the Chaman border. Wednesday, March 17 – In Kabul, United States Secretary of State Colin Powell met with Afghan interim President Hamid Karzai to discuss security and preparations for the June elections. Thursday, March 18 – Pakistani  forces re-engaged an operation against suspected Al-Qaeda rebels in the villages of Azam Warsak, Shin Warsak and Kaloosha in the mountainous region of South Waziristan, close to the border of Afghanistan. Each side utilized heavy weaponry. 24 rebels and 16 Afghan troops were killed there during a sweep March 15. The U.S. deployed 13,500 soldiers on the Afghan side. Friday, March 19 – A U.S. airstrike on a village in the Charcheno district of Afghanistan killed six civilians and injured seven. Saturday, March 20 – Taliban forces threatened to kill a Turkish highway engineer kidnapped three weeks earlier, demanding that  Afghan authorities release two Taliban militia members who were sentenced to death for the November 16 murder of Bettina Goislard. Sunday, March 21 – Afghan Civil Aviation Minister Mirwais Sadiq (son of governor Ismail Khan) was killed by a rocket propelled grenade during a gun battle in Herat. Two police officers also died in the attack. Herat military commander Zaher Naib Zada claimed responsibility for the assassination. Zada had earlier been fired by Sadiq's father. Factional fighting between supporters of Zahir Nayebzada and of Ismail Khan involving tanks and guns ensued in the region, leaving more than 100 people dead . Days later, president Hamid Karzai would say Sadiq's death was caused by a "small accident." Monday, March 22 – Afghan defense minister Mohammad Qasim Fahim and interior minister Ali Ahmad Jalali arrived in Herat to assess tensions. Tuesday, March 23 – In Herat, a public burial took place for Mirwais Sadiq. The body was taken by tank to its resting place on a hill overlooking the city. Thousands were in attendance. Friday, March 26 – The United Nations Security Council unanimously passed Resolution 1536 which extended the mandate of the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan for another full year. Saturday, March  27 – In Afghanistan, three hand grenades were thrown at homes of Afghan National Army soldiers. No one was injured. Sunday, March 28 – Afghan interim president Hamid Karzai announced that the national elections scheduled for June would be delayed until September to give the U.N. more time to prepare. Monday, March 29 – In Kandahar, militia corps commander Khan Mohammed oversaw hundreds of his fighters giving up their assault rifles, machine guns, and rockets to the Afghan National Army. Tuesday, March 30 – In a raid in southern Afghanistan, U.S. troops detained six suspected Taliban members. Wednesday, March 31 – In Berlin, Germany, a  two-day international conference on reconstruction assistance to Afghanistan began. The conference was attended by 65 countries. Alastair McKechnie, the World Bank country director for Afghanistan, hoped to accumulate during the conference donations of US$27.5 billion (to be granted over seven years). Afghan interim president Hamid Karzai and United States Secretary of State Colin Powell announced that the United States had, on top of the US$1.2 billion already promised, pledged an additional US$1 billion in aid for 2004. Japan promised US$525 million more over the next two years. German Chancellor Gerhard Schröder pledged (in addition to  US$391 million promised at a conference in Tokyo in 2002) US$391 million over the next four years. April. Thursday, April 1 – Up to fifty New Zealand Special Air Service troops flew to Afghanistan for "long-range reconnaissance and direct action missions". Monday, April 5 – In Badakhshan Province, anti-narcotics police destroyed four heroin laboratories and seized 10 tons of opium poppy. There were several arrests. Wednesday, April 7 – A three-hour gun battle occurred during a joint Afghan–U.S. operation near Gereshk in Helmand Province, killing one rebel and one Afghan soldier, while wounding one U.S. soldier and  one Afghan soldier. Thursday, April 8 – Troops under the command of Abdul Rashid Dostum overran Maymana, the capital of Faryab Province. Some reports claim Dostum forces fired into a crowd, killing four. Gov. Enayatullah Enayat was rushed to an airport and evacuated. Afghan National Army troops were flown from Kabul to Faryab province. Saturday, April 10 – In Kod-i-Barq, Balkh Province, an armed encounter took place between forces loyal to Abdul Rashid Dostum and a local Tajik leader Atta Mohammad. The incident took place in the Mazar fertilizer factory residential area and resulted in a few injuries. Monday, April  12 – In Verona, Italy, nine members of the Afghanistan national football team disappeared during the team's tour of Europe. Italian border police were alerted. They later surfaced in Germany and the Netherlands to claim asylum. Tuesday, April 13 – Afghan national security officers, local police and more than 100 Canadian soldiers raided a compound in the Charar Asiab district outside Kabul, arresting six suspects of Hezb-e-Islami Gulbuddin. Wednesday, April 14 – Taliban members ambushed and shot dead the deputy chief of Mezana District and several of his colleagues in Zabul Province. Thursday, April 15 – United Nations High Commissioner for  Refugees Ruud Lubbers began a four-day visit to Afghanistan. He was supposed to visit the Zahre Dasht camp for internally displaced persons (near Kandahar); however, his security could not be insured, and the visit was canceled. Friday, April 16 – The government of Nangarhar Province banned women from performing or reporting news on television and radio. Saturday, April 17 – United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees Ruud Lubbers visited with interim Afghan president Hamid Karzai and other senior Afghan officials in Kabul. Lubbers also visited Istalif and the Bagaram district. Sunday, April 18 – The Economic Cooperation Organization opened a two-day  conference in Kabul bringing together representatives from ten regional countries. The agenda included ways to improve development and promote trade, and investment opportunities. Monday, April 19 – In a raid on a compound in central Kabul, local police and ISAF forces arrested eight militants with suspected links to Hezb-i-Islami and al-Qaeda. Tuesday, April 20 – At the opening in Kabul of a three-day gathering of representatives of international donor countries, interim president Hamid Karzai announced a reduction in the size of his 30-person cabinet and a clarification of the responsibilities of each ministry. However, the plan needed  the approved of the current cabinet before taking effect. Wednesday, April 21 – In Kabul, local police and ISAF soldiers arrested four suspects, three near Kabul Stadium and one in front of the Finance Ministry. Three detonators were found in the vest of the last suspect. Over a dozen other suspects were taken into custody in a raid on a home. Thursday, April 22 – In the Ghazi Abad District of Kunar Province, a bomb exploded on a truck carrying fuel for a U.S. military base, wounding three Afghan men. Friday, April 23 – In a Panjwai District village of Kandahar Province, a  group of 50 armed men attacked aid workers of the Central Asia Development Group, setting fire to eight vehicles. No casualties were reported. Saturday, April 24 – Near the village of Dailanor, in Kandahar Province, rebels ambushed a U.S. military convoy on a road, detonating an explosion that wounded three U.S. Marines, one seriously. The Marines were part of a contingent of 2,000 Marines who arrived in Afghanistan in recent weeks. Sunday, April 25 – Interim Afghan president Hamid Karzai visited Kandahar for the first time since there was an attempt on his life there on September 5, 2002. A man with  a grenade near the travel route was apprehended by local police. Monday, April 26 – Top diplomats of NATO's North Atlantic Council visited Kabul for the first time since it took over command of ISAF. Wednesday, April 28 – North of Kabul, local police arrested 16 men suspected of plotting to smuggle weapons into the capital. Thursday, April 29 – Afghan Interior Minister Ali Ahmed Jalali announced that Kabul police rescued that week more than 17 children from child kidnappers. Friday, April 30 – At least five Afghan National Army soldiers were killed in an attack by rebels in Panjwai District, Kandahar Province . May. Sunday, May 2 – About 60 U.S. troops in Afghanistan strayed into Pakistan and searched the village of Alwara Mandi in a night time operation. The incursion was accidental and lasted only 25 minutes. Monday, May 3 – Ten Afghan National Army soldiers were found dead in southern Afghanistan after being abducted in two rebel raids. Five soldiers were found dead on a mountainside in Niamashien district of Kandahar Province; five soldiers were found dead in the Sur Ghogan area. Wednesday, May 5 – The U.S. sent 2,000 Marines from the 22nd MEU (SOC) to the area around Tirin Kot, 250 miles  southwest of Kabul. Friday, May 7 – Six Afghan National Army soldiers were wounded and two were killed in an attack by Taliban forces on a district building in Shah Wali Kot, just north of Kandahar. Saturday, May 8 – Four Afghan election staff workers survived the explosion of their Jeep near Grabawa, Nangarhar Province. Their driver was slightly injured. Sunday, May 9 – Two foreigners (about 30 years old and wearing Afghan clothes) were found dead in a park in west Kabul. One had been beaten with bricks or stones; the other had been strangled. One of the foreigners was carrying a  Swiss passport. Monday, May 10 – Interim Afghan president Hamid Karzai visited Herat to negotiated with Ismail Khan regarding disarmament. Karzai traveled via a U.S. C-130 military transport plane and was guarded by U.S. bodyguards. Tuesday, May 11 – In Kabul, an ISAF peacekeeper was slightly injured by a rocket fired into the ISAF main base. Wednesday, May 12 – In Kabul, a 17-year-old Afghan man was killed and another injured when their motorcycle with three people aboard struck a trailer towed by a Canadian army truck. The motorcycle attempted to pass a convoy of Canadian military vehicles headed for the  airport. Saturday, May 15 – Near Girishk in Helmand Province, rebels attacked a U.S.-led coalition combat patrol, killing one U.S. soldier (Chief Warrant Officer Bruce E. Price) and wounding two others. Two men were detained; they were allegedly brothers of Mullah Abdul Ghafoor. Monday, May 17 – In Islamabad, Pakistan, finance ministers of Pakistan and Afghanistan and the deputy secretary of the United States Department of Treasury John B. Taylor met to review economic developments in the region. Tuesday, May 18 – In Doha, Qatar, an international two-day forum opened to discuss financial, technical and personnel-related aid to Afghan police. Representatives  of governmental organizations from over 20 countries were in attendance. Wednesday, May 19 – Between Shindand and Farah, rebels ambushed a police car, and killed two officers returning home from escorting U.N. staff members. Thursday, May 20 – A remote-controlled bomb destroyed a vehicle carrying election workers through the Jaji Maydan District of Khost Province, Afghanistan, injuring at least four people. Friday, May 21 – In Tani village, Khost Province, Afghanistan, three civilians were killed and two wounded in a pre-dawn attack by U.S. helicopter gunships. U.S. forces claimed they had been fired on; villagers at the scene said no U.S.  patrol had been fired on. Saturday, May 22 – The U.S. military named Brig. Gen. Charles Jacoby, deputy operational commander at the Bagram Air Base, to carry out a review of U.S. secretive Afghan. Jacoby was to carry out a top-to-bottom review and deliver a report by mid-June. Sunday, May 23 – In Kabul, a rocket-propelled grenade killed a Norwegian ISAF peacekeeper and injured another as a four-vehicle convoy was driving back from patrol. Tuesday, May 25 – Pakistani and U.S. military officials met to discuss mechanism to stop recent military incursions from Afghanistan by U.S. forces hunting  suspected al-Qaeda and Taliban fugitives in the border region. Wednesday, May 26 – Interim Afghan president Hamid Karzai enacted an election law that requires both presidential and parliamentary elections to be held through free, general, secret and direct voting. To win the race, a presidential candidate needs at least 50 percent of the vote. A presidential candidate is required to gather 10,000 voters backing the bid. Friday, May 28 – A remote-controlled explosive wounded five Afghan soldiers on a road in the Sozyan area of Uruzgan Province. Three suspects were later detained. Saturday, May 29 – Four U.S.Special Operations Soldiers were  killed when their Humvee hit a landmine in the Sorie district of Zabul Province. Three U.S. soldiers were wounded in the blast. June. Tuesday, June 1 – Haji Ajab Shah, the chief of police Jalalabad, was killed and three of his staff injured after a bomb exploded underneath his chair. Wednesday, June 2 – Afghans Fasil Ahmad and Besmillah, Belgian Helene de Beir, Norwegian Egil Tynaes, and Dutchman Willem Kwint, all workers for Doctors Without Borders killed in an ambush near Khair Khana in Badghis Province. They were the first ever fatalities for the group. Mullah Abdul Hakim Latifi, a spokesman for  the Taliban, took responsibility for the attack. Thursday, June 3 – Doctors Without Borders suspended its work in Afghanistan. Friday, June 4 – North of Spin Boldak, Afghanistan, militants exchanged fire with U.S.-led forces. There were no reports of injuries, but five militants were detained. Saturday, June 5 – In Paktia Province, a convoy of Afghan and foreign staff preparing for the elections was ambushed. There were no injuries. Sunday, June 6 – U.S. warplanes pounded dozens of insurgents hiding in caves near Tirin Kot. Monday, June 7 – A U.S. soldier was killed and two others wounded after their vehicle hit a landmine in  southeastern Afghanistan. They were taken to Kandahar airfield hospital where the one soldier died. Tuesday, June 8 – U.S.-led coalition and Afghan forces completed a week-long operation in the Daychopan District of Zabul Province. Through the course of the operation, 73 rebel fighters were killed and 13 captured. Six Afghan government forces and four coalition soldiers were wounded, and none killed. Wednesday, June 9 – Eleven Chinese aid workers from Jiangxi province were killed in their compound by a score of armed men in Kunduz, and another six were wounded. Taliban spokesman Abdul Latif Hakimi stated the Taliban were not involved . Thursday, June 10 – In Kunduz Province, police chief Mutaleb Beg announced that two suspects were detained in connection with the previous day's massacre of Chinese aid workers. Friday, June 11 – In southeast Afghanistan, eleven rockets were fired at a U.N. convoy carrying government officials. Saturday, June 12 – In Shorabak, Kandahar Province, sixty rebels clashed with fifty Afghan National Army troops for over three hours. The rebels seized the outpost building and set it on fire. Sunday, June 13 – Afghan interim president Hamid Karzai appeared on NBC's "Meet the Press" and on CNN's "Late Edition". Monday, June 14  – Afghan interim president Hamid Karzai held a press conferences with U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld beside a 9–11 memorial plaque on a section of The Pentagon's western wall. Tuesday, June 15 – Afghan interim president Hamid Karzai addressed the U.S. Congress in the House Chamber. Karzai also met with U.S. President George W. Bush. Wednesday, June 16 – In Kunduz Province, a NATO convey was bombed, killing a driver and three bystanders. Thursday, June 17 – Four suspects linked to the previous day's NATO convoy bombing were detained in Kunduz Province by Afghan officials. Friday, June 18 – In central Afghanistan, an  Afghan interpreter was killed by militant gunfire, while two U.S. soldiers and two New Zealand soldiers were wounded. Sunday, June 20 – Three rocket-propelled grenades were fired at an electoral office near Kabul. Monday, June 21 – In the Surkh Sang area of Arghandab District of Zabul Province, rebels kidnapped and beheaded an Afghan interpreter, prompting U.S.-led coalition forces and Afghan National Army soldiers to clash with the rebels, killing four of them. Naimatullah Khan, corps commander of southeastern Zabul province, initially stated that the Afghan soldiers avenged the interpreter's murder by beheaded the four rebels, but later retracted the  statement. Three rebels were arrested. Tuesday, June 22 – Seven rocket-propelled grenades were fired at a U.S. military base in Khost, slightly wounding two soldiers and three Afghan interpreters. Wednesday, June 23 – Near Spin Boldak, five members of the Afghan National Army were killed and two others were seriously wounded when their vehicle hit a landmine. Thursday, June 24 – In Kunar Province, two U.S. Marines were killed and another was wounded. Friday, June 25 – In Uruzgan Province rebels kidnapped sixteen passengers of a bus and then killed them. Saturday, June 26 – In Afghanistan, a bomb planted in a minibus carrying  workers to voter registration sites from Jalalabad to the Shinwar District exploded, killing two Afghan U.N. election workers, and injuring three. Taliban spokesman Abdul Latif Hakimi claimed responsibility. The driver left the vehicle just before the explosion. He was caught by police shortly thereafter. Tuesday, June 29 – Afghan National Army troops in Char Cheno District, Uruzgan Province, killed three rebel fighters. Wednesday, June 30 – Bombs hidden in fruit carts exploded at two separate security checkpoints in Jalalabad, killing four and injuring 23. July. Thursday, July 1 – Carmela Baranowska, an Australian journalist reported missing in Helmand Province, called her employer to  say she was not being held hostage. She had not been seen nor heard from since June 28. At the time she was filming her documentary Taliban Country. Saturday, July 3 – Police in Mazari Sharif made a large drug seizure and then accused regional military commander Mohammad Atta of being involved in the illegal trade. Sunday, July 4, 2004 – In a ceremony in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Afghan interim president Hamid Karzai accepted the Philadelphia Liberty Medal. Monday, July 5 – In the Karteh Parwan district of Kabul, local security forces arrested three Americans, including Jonathan Idema, and four Afghans after police raided  an illegal jail. Tuesday, July 6 – Afghan interim president Hamid Karzai and members of a U.N.-sponsored electoral commission met in Kabul, but failed to finalize on a date for the national and parliamentary elections. Thursday, July 8 – In Khogyani District, Nangarhar Province, a landmine blast killed a female election worker and wounded at least two other people. Friday, July 9 – The Afghan Joint Electoral Management Body announced that Afghanistan's presidential elections would take place on October 9, 2004, and parliamentary would take place elections in the Spring of 2005. Sunday, July 11 – A bomb exploded in Herat, killing six  and injuring 34. Wednesday, July 14 – Afghan interim president Hamid Karzai signed a decree to get full cooperation from militia commanders with the Afghan Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration Program (DDR). The decree stated that those who participate in activities against the DDR process will be considered disloyal and rebellious and will face severe punishment. Thursday, July 15 – The United Nations removed its 17-person staff via helicopter from Ghor Province after its election office there was attacked by protesters. The mob had been protesting a checkpoint conflict that took place in Chaghcharan in which government troops killed two local militiamen . Friday, July 16 – In the Spin Aghbarqa area in Zabul Province, rebels attacked a convoy of U.S. and Afghan National Armysoldiers on patrol along the Kandahar-Kabul highway, triggering a shootout that killed an Afghan Army soldier and an insurgent. Saturday, July 17 – U.S. troops captured Taliban leader Ghulam Mohammed Hotak in Wardak Province. Sunday, July 18 – An estimate 700 people spent nine hours demonstrating in front of government offices in Maydan Shahr, chanting for the release of Taliban leader Ghulam Mohammed Hotak. Monday, July 19 – In a village in Nawbahar District, Zabul Province, five suspected Taliban were caught by  U.S. and Afghan National Army soldiers. Tuesday, July 20 – Afghan interim president Hamid Karzai promoted three powerful warlords: General Atta Mohammad was made governor of Balkh province; General Khan Mohammad was made police chief of Kandahar Province; General Hazrat Ali was made police chief of Nangarhar Province. Wednesday, July 21 – Eleven Afghan security personnel were killed in an ambush on their vehicle in Helmand Province. Thursday, July 22 – Rebels killed a local security chief and 10 of his followers in an ambush in Helmand Province. Friday, July 23 – In Kandahar, a remote-controlled bomb exploded a U.S. military convoy passed , wounding between one and four soldier. Monday, July 26 – A bomb exploded near a U.S. military vehicle 35 miles east of Qalat, Zabul Province, injuring three American soldiers traveling in an armored Humvee. Tuesday, July 27 – Afghan interim president Hamid Karzai formally declared his candidacy for the October 9 presidential elections. He dropped from his ticket Defense Minister Mohammed Fahim and replaced him with Ahmad Zia Massood. Karzai named Karim Khalili his choice for second vice president. Wednesday, July 28 – At a mosque being used as a voter registration site in Ghazni Province, a bomb killed six, including two United  Nations staff workers. Thursday, July 29 – In Brussels, the European Commission approved an extra €9 million to help fund the October 7 presidential elections in Afghanistan. Saturday, July 31 – The United States government warned its citizens that the security situation in Afghanistan remained critical and that there was a general threat to all Americans visiting the nation. August. Sunday, August 1 – A three-day battle began between Afghan National Army and U.S. troops and militants near Zhawara, Khost Province. Coalition ground forces were assisted by U.S. B-1 Lancer, A-10 Thunderbolt II and helicopter gunships. Between 10 and 70 rebels  were killed; at least one Afghan soldier was killed. Wednesday, August 4 – Two Afghans, a field officer and his driver, working for Malteser Germany, a Catholic relief agency, were killed by gunmen in Zormat. As a result of the attack, Malteser suspended its operations in Afghanistan. Thursday, August 5 – As part of the Combatant Status Review Tribunals at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, with hands bound and feet chained to a metal ring in the floor, an Afghan detainee pleaded for his freedom before the first U.S. military review tribunal partially opened to observers. Friday, August 6 – A convoy of ten U.S.  vehicles east of Daychopan, Zabul Province, was ambushed by about ten rebels who fired rocket propelled grenades. One Humvee was struck, injuring five soldiers. Saturday, August 7 – Two U.S. soldiers and their Afghan interpreter were killed when their Humvee struck a landmine positioned along their route in Ghazni Province. A third soldier was wounded. Tuesday, August 10 – Afghan election officials released the list of approved presidential candidates for the October 7 election; the list of seventeen included Hamid Karzai, Yunus Qanooni, Mohammed Fahim and Abdullah Abdullah. Wednesday, August 11 – Mullah Janan, a Taliban military commander, was killed while leading an  ambush on a U.S.-Afghan military convoy in Laghman Province. Thursday, August 12 – A U.S. UH-60 Black Hawk crashed in Khost Province, killing at least one soldier and injuring fourteen. Four personnel were seriously injured and evacuated to the hospital at Bargam Air Base. Tuesday, August 17 – U.S. warplanes bombed the forces of Amanullah near Herat. Khan's forces were engaged in fighting the militia backing Herat Province governor Ismail Khan. Amanullah agreed to a cease-fire. Wednesday, August 18 – 18-year-old Friba Razayee became the first woman ever to compete for Afghanistan at the Olympic Games. She competed in  judo against Spain's Cecila Blanco. Thursday, August 19 – A bomb exploded in a U.N.-run voter registration building in Farah. Several security personnel were injured. Saturday, August 21 – Three people were killed and two others critically wounded when their pickup truck tried to run a checkpoint in Ghazni Province. An infant in the vehicle was unhurt. Monday, August 23 – Afghan interim president Hamid Karzai began a two-day visit in Pakistan, meeting first with Pakistan president Pervez Musharraf. Friday, August 27 – Pashtun warlord Amanullah was brought by Afghan authorities from Herat to Kabul and held under arrest. Saturday, August 28  – In Zabul Province, U.S. and Afghan National Army soldiers captured 22 Taliban suspects. Sunday, August 29 – Georgia's 16th mountain battalion, commanded by Captain Shavleg Tabatadze, traveled to Germany for a two-week training before they embark on a 100-day mission in Afghanistan. Monday, August 30 – NATO troops detained a man on the grounds of Kabul Airport and found traces of explosives on his hands. They then turned him over to local authorities. Tuesday, August 31 – In Nangahar Province, security forces arrested two men, Afghan Hesmatullah and Pakistani Shahzada Gul, distributing Taliban leaflets calling for a holy war against  U.S.-led coalition forces and the government. September. Wednesday, September 1 – The Asian Development Bank pledged US$600 million to Afghanistan over the next three years. Thursday, September 2 – Afghan Foreign Minister Abdullah visited India and met with Natwar Singh and prime minister Manmohan Singh to discuss a US$400 million Indian aid package for Afghanistan. Friday, September 3 – A jeep packed with explosives detonated at a roadside in the Jaikhoja area of Kandahar, killing one person and seriously injuring two others in a passing taxi. Tuesday, September 7 – In northern Afghanistan, ten humanitarian workers were injured in an attack by  demonstrators. Thursday, September 9 – In Uruzgan Province, rebels attacked a U.S. patrol vehicle with rocket-propelled grenades, machine guns and small arms fire, wounding one soldier. Saturday, September 11 – In Herat, dozens of supporters of Ismail Khan gathered outside his home after he was replaced as provincial governor, and began chanting slogans against the United States and Afghan president Hamid Karzai. Shots were fired by U.S. and Afghan security forces after their convoy was pelted with stones. Two people were killed, four injured and four arrested. Sunday, September 12 – In Herat, hundreds of demonstrators, protesting the previous day's dismissal  of Ismail Khan, ransacked and set fires at United Nations offices. At least seven people died and dozens more wounded. All US Special Forces fled the city. All violence was suppressed by 3rd and later 2d Brigade of the Central Corps (ANA) led by New Hampshire Army National Guard advisors (later reprimanded for their success by the U.S. Army). Follow on forces were able to enlarge the central defensive bubble in the city that disrupted the "riots". Many of these riots were led by external national forces. Later in the day, Khan appeared on television and called for his supporters  to exercise restraint. Interim president Hamid Karzai chose Mohammed Khair Khuwa to replace Kahn. Monday, September 13 – The United Nations withdrew dozens of its staff members from Herat, Afghanistan a day after mobs ransacked its offices. Tuesday, September 14 – In Herat, Afghanistan, two men in a four-wheel-drive vehicle shot and killed a militiaman loyal to his ousted predecessor, Ismail Khan. Wednesday, September 15 – In Kabul, an Afghan court sentenced Jonathan Idema and Brent Bennett to 10-year prison terms and Edward Caraballo to an 8-year term for participating in torture, kidnapping and running a private jail. Their  four Afghan accomplices were sentenced to between one and five years in prison. Thursday, September 16 – A rocket fired on but missed a helicopter carrying Afghan interim president Hamid Karzai as it prepared for landing in Gardez, where Karzai planned to open a school. The helicopter returned to Kabul without touching down in Gardez. Police later captured three suspects who confessed to firing the rockets. Friday, September 17 – Afghan National Army forces searching for three missing elders kidnapped from the Maruf district in Kandahar Province, found two of them dead and the third wounded. All had multiple gunshot wounds. The  survivor had injuries to the throat and stomach and was taken to the U.S. military base in Kandahar. The elders had been working to register voters. Saturday, September 18 – In Helmand Province, four gunmen riding two motorcycles ambushed the car of a militia commander, killing him and wounding two of his guards. Sunday, September 19 – Afghanistan held an auction of capital notes to allow its banks to determine a market-driven interest rate. The two winning banks were Millie Bank and Pashtany Bank. Monday, September 20 – Afghan interim vice-president Nehmatullah Shahrani survived an assassination attempt when a remote controlled  roadside bomb exploded next to his convoy in Kunduz Province. Tuesday, September 21 – In New York, Afghan interim president Hamid Karzai attended the opening of the United Nations General Assembly. Wednesday, September 22 – About 130 paratroopers the U.S. 82nd Airborne Division left from Fort Bragg, North Carolina to Afghanistan to help provide security for the October elections there. Friday, September 24 – The Asian Development Bank approved a loan to Afghanistan of US$5 million and a guarantee of US$10 million to provide political risk guarantees to eligible investors and financiers. Saturday, September 25 – former Camp X-Ray prisoner and  Taliban leader Maulvi Abdul Ghaffar was among three rebel fighters killed during a raid in Char Cheno District, Uruzgan Province. Sunday, September 26 – Iran announced that since March 20, more than 30,000 Afghan refugees had left the city of Isfahan to return to their country. Tuesday, September 28 – Afghan General Abdul Rashid Dostum held a rally in Shiberghan for his presidential campaign bid and outlined his campaign issues. Wednesday, September 29 – Afghan interim president Hamid Karzai inaugurated the Afghan National Museum in Kabul. Thursday, September 30 – In Orgun, two Afghan National Army soldiers were killed and seven wounded in a  land mine attack on their convoy. October. Friday, October 1 – In Pakistan, hundreds of Afghan refugees, including women, lined up at special voting registration centers near Quetta and Peshawar. Saturday, October 2 – Afghan presidential candidate Yunus Qanuni held a rally in Kandahar. Sunday, October 3 – Afghan interim president Hamid Karzai visited Germany, where he met Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer and accepted a prize from the private organization Werkstatt Deutschland. Tuesday, October 5 – Afghan interim president Hamid Karzai flew to Ghazni to speak to a crowd of about 5,000. While airborne, his helicopter was escorted by a U.S. AH-64 Apache and  an A-10 Thunderbolt II. Wednesday, October 6 – In Badakhshan Province, an assassination attempt on vice-presidential candidate Ahmed Zia Massood killed one person and injured five others, including the former provincial governor. Thursday, October 7 – In Moscow, Russia, Russia and France signed an agreement on military transits to Afghanistan via Russia. Signing for Russia was Sergei Lavrov, Minister of Foreign Affairs, and for France, Jean Cadet, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to Russia. Friday, October 8 – In London, England, the trial began for former Afghan warlord Zardad Khan. Saturday, October 9 – In Afghanistan's first-ever direct presidential election, Hamid Karzai  was elected President of Afghanistan. Monday, October 11 – The Czech Republic voted to donate surplus weaponry (including submachine gun ammunition, hand grenades and signal rockets) to the Afghan National Army. Tuesday, October 12 – In Vienna, Austria, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime hosted a meeting of United Nations officials and international policy-makers to address the heroin problem arising from Afghanistan.