US, NATO set to launch massive assault against Taliban-led militants

[SwineHunter]

Two Canadian soldiers die in explosion


Two Canadian soldiers die in explosion

MCpl. Kristal Giesebrecht, 34, is shown in this undated handout.

By Bill Graveland, The Canadian Press
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KANDAHAR, Afghanistan - Canada's death toll in Afghanistan has hit another tragic milestone with the death of two soldiers Saturday west of Kandahar city. Master Cpl. Kristal Giesebrecht, 34 and Pte. Andrew Miller, 21 were attached to a unit that was on its way to deal with a mine that had been found in the doorway of a home when the vehicle they were in detonated an improvised explosive device.

Giesebrecht and Miller were both medical technicians attached to the 1st Battalion, The Royal Canadian Regiment Battle Group. The incident occurred at 11 a.m. local time about 20 kilometres southwest of Kandahar City. "Although we cannot say for certain that these medical personnel were targeted deliberately, it is for certain that the threat to Afghans stemming from the influence of out of area fighters at this time of year is very serious," said Brig.-Gen Jonathan Vance, the commander of Task Force Kandahar.

The latest death brings to 150 the number of Canadian Forces members to die as part of the Afghanistan mission since it began in 2002. "Medical Technicians are indispensable to the work being done by Canadian and Afghan soldiers. They participate in every Canadian Forces patrol and operation," said Vance. "It is because of their dedicated and skilful work, often under fire, that many Canadian, Coalition, and Afghan soldiers and civilians are alive today."

A third soldier was injured in the blast and airlifted to the Role 3 Hospital at Kandahar Airfield where he is listed in stable condition. Giesebrecht becomes the third Canadian woman to be killed in a combat situation. Trooper Karine Blais of Les Mechins, Quebec was hit by a roadside bomb blast in a district north of Kandahar in April, 2009. The 21-year-old was serving with the 2nd Battalion of the Royal 22e Regiment (also known as the Van Doos) but was a member of the 12e Regiment blinde du Canada. Both regiments are based at CFB Valcartier, Que.

The first was Capt. Nicola Goddard of 1st Royal Canadian Horse Artillery, who died May 17, 2006, in a grenade attack in the Panjwaii district west of Kandahar city. Vance said Giesebrecht was born in Wallaceburg, Ontario and was a member of 1 Canadian Field Hospital, based at CFB Petawawa. He said she was married and a fit, dedicated and fun-loving medical technician serving on her second tour in Afghanistan. "She was a mentor and an inspiration for her fellow medical technicians.

Kristal loved life to the fullest. She was a wonderful friend, always opening her heart to everyone in need," Vance said. "Kristal prided herself on her health and fitness, although she always felt the solution to any problem could be found in a box of chocolates." Pte Andrew Miller was born in Sudbury, Ontario. A member of 2 Field Ambulance, based at CFB Petawawa, he was serving on his first overseas deployment. Vance said Miller will be remembered as someone who would give his fellow soldiers the shirt off his back and was always the first to volunteer.

"Andrew was very confident in both his soldier and clinical skills. He wanted nothing more than to be part of the Health Services Unit for ROTO 9, in Afghanistan, so that he could put his skills to the test," he said. "Called Caillou by his friends - everyone acknowledged the resemblance as soon as they met him." In statements issued Saturday, Prime Minister Stephen Harper and Gov. Gen Michaelle Jean both paid tribute to the soldiers. The two soldiers "served bravely while helping to build a stable Afghanistan," Harper said as he provided condolences to their families.

"Canada stands behind you in these most difficult and trying times," Harper said. "This is a tragic loss for the Canadian Forces and all of Canada." "We recognize the valour, heroism, courage and undeniable generosity of heart of this man and woman," Jean said in a statement. "They have sacrificed everything and given their all." The two soldiers are the second and third Canadian deaths in Afghanistan in a week. Sgt. James MacNeil, 28, was killed by an IED on June 20th while on a foot patrol near the village of Nakhonay.

"It may seem to you that we are simply victims here - I assure you we are not. We take casualties, and we hurt, and such is the nature of war, but your soldiers, soldiers like Kristal Geisebrecht and Andrew Miller stand as guardians between a terrible threat and the innocents who cannot protect themselves," Vance said. "I am proud and grateful that our young men and women have the kind of soldierly courage to turn a bad day for themselves into a better future for those who need their help." IEDs have been the single biggest cause of death among Canadian troops in Afghanistan.

Ten out of the 12 Canadian deaths this year were the result of an IED blast. In all, 91 of the 150 Canadian fatalities in the eight-year-old Afghan mission came about from IEDs _ which include roadside bombs and some other type of explosives, according to the Department of Defence. Two civilians _ diplomat Glyn Berry and journalist Michelle Lang _ have also been killed in Canada's mission to Afghanistan.

 

[lauhumku]

8 militants killed in gunbattle at Afghan airport


8 militants killed in gunbattle at Afghan airport
By RAHIM FAIEZ (AP) – 2 hours ago

KABUL, Afghanistan — Eight militants were killed in a gunbattle after a suicide car bombing Wednesday at the entrance to an airport outside the eastern Afghan city of Jalalabad, airport authorities said. After the car bombing, a group of militants, using light weapons and rocket-propelled grenades, battled international forces for 30 minutes, according to information provided by the media office at the airport.

The Taliban claimed responsibility. In a text message to The Associated Press in Kabul, Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid said six suicide attackers killed 32 foreign and Afghan security forces at the airport, about 125 kilometers (78 miles) east of the Afghan capital. The militant group frequently exaggerates its claims.

Ghafor Khan, a spokesman for the provincial police chief in Nangarhar province, said that during the fighting, international forces blocked access to the area and helicopters patrolled overhead. The airport is situated on a main road on the outskirts of the city that leads to the Pakistani border. NATO said there had been an incident at the airport, but said it could not immediately provide details.

Elsewhere in the east, U.S. and Afghan forces battled hundreds of militants from an al-Qaida-linked group for a third day Tuesday in Kunar province, the U.S. military said. Two U.S. soldiers were killed Sunday in the first day of the operation. The attack in Kunar was directed against insurgents believed responsible for the roadside bombing that killed five American service members in the area on June 7, a U.S. statement said.

The militants were believed to be members of the Haqqani group, a faction of the Taliban based in Pakistan that has close ties to al-Qaida. About 600 U.S. and Afghan troops are taking part in the operation, the U.S. statement said. On Tuesday in Kabul, an Afghan man working for the United Nations was shot and killed in his vehicle near a busy traffic circle.

The Afghan U.N. employee who died was driving a white pickup truck with the blue U.N. logo painted on the side. Another Afghan member of the U.N. staff, who was in the vehicle, was not wounded, the U.N. said. The morning shooting occurred amid heavy traffic near Massoud circle, an intersection near the U.S. Embassy and an American military base. Two windows on the truck were shattered and blood was spattered inside the car.

"The circumstances of the shooting are not yet clear," a statement released by the U.N. Assistance Mission in Afghanistan said. "United Nations security teams are working with Afghan security institutions to assist investigations." U.N. officials extended condolences to the victim, who has not been identified. "The United Nations condemns violence against any of its personnel under any circumstances," the U.N. statement said.

"Those responsible for this killing should be brought to justice without delay." Mirajudin, who was at the scene of the shooting moments after it happened, said he and the passenger helped pull the driver out. "I saw that the driver was shot in his eye," said Mirajudin, who still had blood smeared on his arms. "He was bleeding from the eye and from the nose. I helped him, and we put him in an ambulance."

Copyright © 2010 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.

 

[chobolan]

New U.S. commander pushes faltering Afghan war effort


New U.S. commander pushes faltering Afghan war effort

Newly appointed U.S. and NATO forces commander, U.S. General David Patraeus, speaks with Commander of ISAF Joint Command Lt. Gen. David Rodriguez during their arrival in Kabul July 2, 2010.

By David Fox
KABUL | Fri Jul 2, 2010 3:35pm EDT

KABUL (Reuters) - The United States' top field commander arrived in Afghanistan on Friday to take charge of the faltering war, pledging to tackle the nine-year-old Taliban insurgency with a strategy he successfully pioneered in Iraq. General David Petraeus landed a day after his appointment was confirmed by the U.S. Senate and just hours after the U.S. House of Representatives approved $33 billion in funding for a troop surge he hopes will turn the tide of the war.

An amendment demanding an exit timetable from Afghanistan failed, but got 162 votes -- the biggest anti-war vote in the House on Afghanistan to date. Petraeus's appointment could be a last throw of the dice for Washington to end an increasingly costly conflict that is draining Western budgets as they emerge from one of the worst global recessions in history. A formal change-of-command ceremony will be held on Sunday. The surge will bring to 150,000 the number of foreign troops in Afghanistan just as the new strategy takes root.

It entails tackling the Taliban in their strongholds while relying on the government to simultaneously improve local governance and development. The Taliban showed on Friday just how capable they are of operating outside their traditional strongholds by launching a daring commando-style raid on the office of an American company that provides logistical support for U.S. government aid in relatively peaceful Kunduz, in the north.

A Briton, German, Filipino and two Afghans were killed in the pre-dawn attack, provincial officials said, as well as the six insurgents who mounted the raid. Also on Friday, the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) that Petraeus now commands said two service members had died after separate insurgent attacks in the south and east.

TURN THE TIDE
Petraeus, who wrote the U.S. army's field guide on waging a counter-insurgency, used the tactics to help turn the tide of the Iraq war and the strategy was introduced to Afghanistan earlier this year by former commander General Stanley McChrystal. McChrystal was sacked last week after he and some aides disparaged senior administration officials in a magazine profile.

While Petraeus has pledged to continue with the same strategy, he told NATO chiefs in Brussels on Thursday that some operational tactics would be reviewed -- including air strikes on suspected Taliban hideouts. The issue came to a head last year after a series of air attacks killed scores of civilians -- including 140 in one incident -- but McChrystal's arrival was credited with vastly reducing collateral damage.

Petraeus said on Thursday that any tactics that raised the possibility of more soldiers being killed needed to be reviewed. More than 1,800 foreign troops have died in Afghanistan since the Taliban were overthrown in 2001 -- including more than 100 last month, the bloodiest since the war began. "I have a moral imperative as a commander ... to bring all force that is available when our troopers -- and, by the way, our Afghan partners -- are in a tough position," he told NATO chiefs.

The last two weeks have thrown an especially harsh light on the war effort, with new reports of corruption in President Hamid Karzai's government and the change in command of foreign forces. Doubts have also been raised over the commitment of the government to push governance and development alongside the military drive, and also the ability of Afghan forces to take over responsibility for security. At the same time, Karzai has been wooing the Taliban with a series of modest peace overtures, all have which have been rejected by the hardline Islamist movement, which insists all foreign forces must leave before they will end the insurgency.

(Additional reporting by Susan Cornwell in Washington; Editing by Nick Macfie)

 

[lauhumku]

Taliban attack U.S. aid company, five killed


Taliban attack U.S. aid company, five killed

Afghan policemen and soldiers stand next to a building which was attacked by Taliban insurgents in Kunduz July 2, 2010.

U.S. soldiers keep watch at the compound of a building which was attacked by the Taliban insurgents in Kunduz July 2, 2010.

By Mohammad Hamed
KUNDUZ | Fri Jul 2, 2010 10:20am EDT

KUNDUZ Afghanistan (Reuters) - Taliban suicide bombers and gunmen stormed a U.S. contracting company office in northern Afghanistan Friday, killing five people including three foreigners and wounding 24 others, a senior official said. The pre-dawn attack happened in relatively peaceful Kunduz province when insurgents attacked the newly opened offices of Development Alternatives Inc. (DAI), provincial governor Mohammad Omar told Reuters.

In a statement, President Hamid Karzai said the raid was the work of "foreign paymasters" -- a veiled reference to Pakistan and the links Afghanistan says Islamabad has with the Taliban. One British citizen was killed during the fierce five-hour gunbattle that ensued, along with a German national and a Filipino, while two Afghans also died, Omar said. "Our security forces managed to rescue around eight American workers inside the compound," he said.

The latest attack comes as newly-appointed U.S. and NATO forces commander General David Petraeus was due to arrive in the country to oversee the fight against the Taliban and try to reverse the insurgency's momentum. Earlier, NATO said a western soldier died in a separate insurgent attack in eastern Afghanistan.

According to its website (www.dai.com), the company is one of USAID's principal service providers and specializes in post-conflict reconstruction, local government, agribusiness and natural resource management. At least one of the bombers blew himself up in front of the gate to allow other fighters to push inside, triggering a fierce five-hour gunbattle with security guards and police who surrounded the building, Omar said.

BRAZEN ATTACKS
The raid in Kunduz follows a similar pattern of brazen attacks by insurgents elsewhere in the country, with Taliban fighters trying to seize government or foreign-linked buildings before going down with guns blazing and suicide vests. Afghan police and security guards battled insurgents for most of the morning before the attackers were killed, Omar said. Foreign workers fled to the roof of the five-story building for safety as the battle continued in floors below.

International troops helped Afghan security forces ferry wounded civilians to a nearby military base for emergency care, a coalition military spokeswoman said in a statement. A Taliban spokesman, Zabihullah Mujahid, said at least six suicide bombers and fighters were involved in the attack in a province mainly patrolled by German forces under NATO-command.

Violence in Afghanistan is at its worst despite the presence of some 150,000 foreign and over 100,000 Afghan troops and police. More than 100 foreign troops died in Afghanistan last month, the deadliest since the overthrow of the Taliban in 2001. Insurgents have managed to infiltrate remote villages and districts in the province as they seek to push their reach and influence beyond traditional strongholds in the south ahead of a looming "surge" offensive by U.S.-led coalition forces.

(Additional reporting by Hamid Shalizi in Kabul; Writing by Rob Taylor; Editing by Miral Fahmy)

 

[Cao Pi]

US drone attack kills militants and destroys compound in North Waziristan


Latest update: 15/07/2010

US drone attack kills militants and destroys compound in North Waziristan

A compound used by Islamist insurgents was destroyed and at least 10 militants were killed in a US drone attack on Thursday in the Taliban stronghold of North Waziristan in Pakistan’s tribal belt, officials said. By News Wires (text)

AFP - US missiles destroyed a compound used by Islamist fighters in Pakistan's tribal belt on Thursday, killing at least 10 militants in the first such attack for two weeks, officials said.

A US drone fired at least two missiles into the compound in the village of Sheerani Mada Khel in the district of North Waziristan, a Taliban and Al-Qaeda-linked stronghold heavily targeted in a covert US drone war this year.

"At least 10 militants were killed," a senior security official told AFP on condition of anonymity. Another security official said up to 14 militants were killed when three missiles slammed into the compound.

The area, 40 kilometres (25 miles) from Miranshah, the main town in North Waziristan, is a stronghold of Pakistani warlord Hafiz Gul Bahadur.

He is reputed to control up to 2,000 fighters in the region who stage attacks over the border against foreign forces stationed in Afghanistan. It was not immediately clear whether there were any high-value targets among the dead. Neither could officials confirm their nationalities.

The missiles were fired at around 6:30 pm (1330 GMT) and militants quickly surrounded the site, barring access to local residents, officials said.

US forces have been waging a covert drone war against Taliban and Al-Qaeda-linked commanders in Pakistan's northwest tribal belt, where militants have carved out havens in mountains outside direct government control.

Washington has branded the rugged tribal area on the Afghan border a global headquarters of Al-Qaeda and the most dangerous place on earth.

The US military does not, as a rule, confirm drone attacks, but its armed forces and the Central Intelligence Agency operating in Afghanistan are the only forces that deploy pilotless drones in the region.

Thursday's strike was the first drone attack in Pakistan's tribal belt since six militants were killed in South Waziristan on June 29.

Around 960 people have been killed in more than 100 drone strikes in Pakistan since August 2008, including a number of senior militants. However the attacks fuel anti-American sentiment in the conservative Muslim country.

Waziristan came under renewed scrutiny when Faisal Shahzad, the Pakistani-American charged over an attempted bombing in New York on May 1, allegedly told US interrogators he went there for bomb training.

The United States has been increasing pressure on Pakistan to crack down on Islamist havens along the Afghan border.

Pakistani commanders have not ruled out an offensive in North Waziristan, but argue that gains in South Waziristan and the northwestern district of Swat need to be consolidated to prevent their troops from being stretched too thin.

 

[lauhumku]

Bombing kills 9, wounds 40


Jul 18, 2010
Bombing kills 9, wounds 40

<!-- by line --> <!-- end by line --> BAGHDAD - A SUICIDE bomber killed nine people and wounded 40 on Sunday in an attack targeting anti-Qaeda militiamen in a former insurgent hotspot west of Baghdad, the defence and interior ministries said. 'A suicide attacker blew himself up at 8:30am (0530 GMT) at an office of the Sahwa,' an interior ministry official said, referring to the Sunni Arab militia that with US backing took up arms against Al-Qaeda in late 2006.

'A soldier was among those killed and there were 40 people, including two soldiers, wounded,' he added. A defence ministry official confirmed the death toll in Sunday's attack in Al-Balassim neighbourhood, part of Radwaniyah, a largely Sunni district, 25 kilometres (16 miles) from the Iraqi capital.

The US military began recruiting for the Sahwa (Awakening) militia, also known as the Sons of Iraq, among Sunni Arab tribesmen and former insurgents almost four years ago, turning the tide in the war against Al-Qaeda in Iraq. Control of the Sahwa passed to Iraq in October 2008, and their wages - said to have been cut from US$300 (S$413) under US leadership to US$100 - have been paid, often late, by the Shiite-led government.

Baghdad has promised to incorporate 20 per cent of the Sahwa into the police and military and find civil service jobs for many of the rest, but the process has been slow and is fraught with risks. In the past six months many Sahwa fighters and members of their families have been killed in revenge attacks. -- AFP

 

[SwineHunter]

Taliban stage daring jail break


Taliban stage daring jail break

reuters, 18/07 07:52 CET

HERAT, Afghanistan (Reuters) – Taliban guerrillas staged a series of raids in western Afghanistan Sunday, blowing up the gate of a jail and freeing 23 insurgent prisoners, officials said. Ousted in a U.S.-led invasion in 2001, the Taliban have made a comeback in recent years, dealing heavy losses to Afghan and foreign forces and carrying out brazen attacks on key locations, including in the capital.

Insurgents attacked four police posts leading to the centre of Farah town early Sunday, said Mohammad Younus Rasooli, the governor of western Farah province, bordering Iran. “They kept the police preoccupied and the same time blew up the gate of Farah’s jail, which resulted in the escape of 23 prisoners,” Rasooli told Reuters by phone.

Four of the inmates were immediately arrested because they had suffered wounds in the escape, he said, adding seven more were captured. A policeman was killed during the incident, which lasted several hours, he said. A spokesman for the Taliban, Qari Mohammad Yousuf, confirmed that members of the movement were behind the attacks.

(Reporting by Sharafuddin Sharafyar; writing by Sayed Salahuddin; Editing by David Fox)

 

[SwineHunter]

UK troops may start leaving Afghanistan in 2011 - PM

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A Royal Navy pilot sits ready in his GR9 Harrier aircraft at the start of a mission to provide air support to British troops in Helmand province, Afghanistan November 19, 2007.

WASHINGTON | Wed Jul 21, 2010 8:50pm IST

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Britain could start withdrawing troops from Afghanistan as early as next year, British Prime Minister David Cameron said on Wednesday. Britain has said it wants to pull the bulk of its 9,500-strong force out of the war zone within five years, in line with an international aspiration to give Afghans full control of their security by the end of 2014.

The United States, which has committed the bulk of foreign troops deployed in Afghanistan, hopes to start bringing soldiers home from July 2011. Asked in an interview with BBC radio whether Britain could match that, Cameron said: "Yes, we can but it should be based on the conditions on the ground."

"I mean, the faster we can transition districts and provinces to Afghan control, clearly the faster that some forces can be brought home," he said during a visit to Washington. "I don't want to raise expectations about that because that transition should be based on how well the security situation is progressing."

The new prime minister, in charge of a Conservative-Liberal Democratic coalition that took power in May, said the public should be clear that, by 2015, Britain would not have "combat troops or large numbers" in Afghanistan. Cameron visited the Arlington military cemetery on Wednesday where he laid a wreath and met 20 British veterans. In London, Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg confirmed the timetable for the withdrawal of British combat troops.

"We do not wish to see British troops in a combat role in Afghanistan by 2015," Clegg told parliament. "No timetable can be chiselled in stone but we are absolutely determined, given how long we have been in Afghanistan, given that we are six months into an 18-month military strategy, embarking on a new political strategy, that we must be out in a combat role by 2015," he added.

Cameron discussed Afghanistan and exit strategies with U.S. President Barack Obama on Tuesday in his first visit to the White House as prime minister. Both men are under strong domestic pressure to bring troops home but have also said they are determined to succeed in their mission to stabilize the country.

"Victory in this war is being able to hand over to an Afghan government and an Afghan army and police force that are capable of securing their own country," Cameron said in an interview with Britain's GMTV, also screened on Wednesday.

(Reporting by Matt Falloon; Editing by Alison Williams)

 

[yellow people]

US targets Afghan Taliban leaders with sanctions


US targets Afghan Taliban leaders with sanctions
by LOLITA C. BALDOR

updated <abbr style="display: inline;" class="dtstamp updated" title="2010-07-22T23:13:26">7/22/2010 7:13:26 PM ET</abbr>

WASHINGTON — The Obama administration targeted key leaders of Afghanistan's Taliban with new financial sanctions Thursday in a move that could complicate relations with Pakistan and Afghan efforts to reconcile with insurgents.

The action by the Treasury Department will freeze the militants' assets, ban travel and trigger an arms embargo. It follows similar action by the United Nations earlier this week, and comes after calls from Gen. David Petraeus, the top military commander in Afghanistan, and Sen. Carl Levin, D-Mich., chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, for sanctions against Afghan insurgent commanders operating in Pakistan.

Taken together, the U.S. and U.N. sanctions prohibit any financial transactions of the terror leaders in U.N. member countries, putting additional pressure on Pakistan to take broader actions against the Taliban militants. U.S. officials have been urging Pakistan to crack down on the al-Qaida-linked Haqqani network, saying Islamabad's reluctance to move into group's base in North Waziristan is hampering the Afghan war effort.

Pakistan has been moving cautiously, but has been slow at times to take on militants that Islamabad does not believe pose a direct threat. Pakistan has had historic relations with some of the Afghan insurgents and analysts suggest that Islamabad perceives them as useful allies in Afghanistan when international forces withdraw.

The Afghan government, meanwhile, has been pushing to try and talk with some insurgent factions, hoping to turn them away from violence. U.S. officials warn, however, that reconciliation is unlikely to succeed until the militants' momentum on the battlefield is reversed. Three financial kingpins were targeted with sanctions, including a key member of the Haqqani network, which directs operations against U.S. and coalition forces in Afghanistan from safe havens in Pakistan.

Among those sanctioned Thursday was Nasiruddin Haqqani, an emissary for the Haqqani Network and brother of Sirajuddin Haqqani who leads the group with his father, Jalaluddin. Others sanctioned included Gul Agha Ishakzai, the head of the Taliban's financial commission and Amir Abdullah, the former treasurer to captured Taliban leader Mullah Abdul Ghani Barader.

The sanctions placed on the three leaders as terrorists would deprive them of the assets they need to fund their terror operations, said Adam J. Szubin, director of Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control. "We will continue to aggressively work to expose and dismantle the financial networks of terrorist groups in support of the president's goal of a stable Afghanistan," he said.

According to officials, Ishakzai is the head of the Taliban's financial commission, has collected money for suicide attacks in Kandahar, Afghanistan, and has been involved in the disbursement of funds for Taliban fighters. He has served as a main financial officer and close adviser to Taliban leader Mullah Mohammad Omar.

Abdullah has reportedly traveled to Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Libya and the United Arab Emirates to raise money for the Taliban and facilitate meetings and communications with key leaders. Nasiruddin Haqqani has collected funds for the Haqqani group, including from al-Qaida. Last week, Gen. David Petraeus, the top military commander in Afghanistan, urged officials to add commanders from the Haqqani network to the terrorist list.

At the time, administration officials said a review was under way, largely accelerated after the May 1 failed Times Square bombing. The man who has pleaded guilty in the New York incident, Pakistani-born American Faisal Shahzad, said he trained with the Pakistani Taliban to build bombs, then returned to the U.S. to launch an attack that would avenge attacks on Muslims by U.S. forces overseas.
___

AP National Security Writer Robert Burns contributed to this report.
Copyright 2010 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.

 

[yellow people]

US drone kills 11 militants in Pakistan: official


US drone kills 11 militants in Pakistan: official
24/07/2010, by AFP

A US Predator unmanned drone armed with a missile is seen on the tarmac.

A US drone Saturday fired four missiles into a compound used by Islamist fighters in Pakistan's northwestern tribal belt, killing at least 11 militants, security officials said. The missiles targeted the compound in Dwasarak village, about 40 kilometres west of Wana, the main town in South Waziristan district, a senior Pakistani security official who wished to remain anonymous told AFP.

"Two US drones fired four missiles, 11 militants have been killed in this attack," he said. Two intelligence officials, one in Wana and one based in Peshawar, also confirmed the attack. South Waziristan, considered a militant stronghold, was the scene of a major Pakistani offensive last year.

 

[yellow people]

Four US soldiers killed in bomb attack in Afghanistan


Four US soldiers killed in bomb attack in Afghanistan <!--Headline END --> <!--Author START--> <!--Author END-->
Saturday, 24 Jul, 2010 <!--Date Start--><!--Date End-->
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<!-- IMAGE 608x325E --> <!-- IMAGE CAPTION START-->
IEDs are the main cause of foreign soldiers’ deaths, according to military officials. –Photo by Reuters <!-- IMAGE CAPTION END-->

<!-- BODY TEXT --> KABUL: Four US soldiers were killed Saturday in a Taliban-style bomb attack, Nato said, as the death toll of foreign soldiers in the Afghan war climbed closer to the 2,000 mark. Nato’s International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) said the four died following an attack involving an improvised explosive device, or IED, the main weapon deployed by the Taliban in their insurgency.

An ISAF spokeswomen confirmed the four were Americans. The incident took place in southern Afghanistan, where the war is at its fiercest, an ISAF statement said. The deaths bring to 396 the toll of foreign soldiers killed in the war so far this year, compared to 520 for all of 2009. An AFP tally based on that kept by the icasualties.org website puts the number of soldiers to have died since the Afghan insurgency began in 2001 at 1,964, with 1,204 of them Americans.

IEDs are the main cause of foreign soldiers’ deaths, according to military officials, who say the payload of the crude home-made bombs is rising as the Taliban insurgents adapt to the greater defences of the foreign forces. The US and Nato have almost 150,000 troops in Afghanistan, with the surge of an extra 30,000 Americans ordered by US President Barack Obama almost fully deployed, most of them in the southern hotspots of Kandahar and Helmand.

Obama has said he wishes to start drawing down US forces in the middle of next year, and Britain, which has the second largest combat contingent in the country, is eager to pull out within five years. A conference in Kabul this week of Afghanistan’s international backers endorsed a plan for the country’s own forces to take over security responsibilities by the end of 2014, so international combat troops can leave.

Afghanistan’s army and police are being trained by their international counterparts, with plans to reach a combined force of 300,000 by later this year. President Hamid Karzai made the pledge in his inauguration speech in November last year, when he began his second term as president, won in an election marred by massive fraud, mostly in his favour. His promise that Afghan security forces would be competent enough to work alone to secure the country from the Taliban onslaught has been met with some scepticism that numbers are more important than the ability to meet targets.

Washington’s top military officer, Admiral Mike Mullen, expressed concerns on Friday about sanctuaries in Pakistan for extremist groups blamed for attacks on Afghan targets. Speaking to reporters in New Delhi during a regional tour, Mullen described the Haqqani network, believed to be based in Pakistan’s North Waziristan tribal district, as “the most lethal network” faced by US-led coalition in Afghanistan.

Pakistan has long faced charges that it provides safe havens for goups such as the Haqqani, which fund, staff, plan and carry out attacks in Afghanistan. The Afghan government has called on Pakistan to take action against the groups, which it has said operate with impunity from Pakistani soil, with the tacit support of the state intelligence agency and elements of the military.

Two US lawmakers this week proposed a bill calling for the withdrawal of US troops from Pakistan, where they said they were conducting covert operations against the militant groups. “We have known that US forces have been operating in secret inside the territories of Pakistan without congressional approval,” Democratic representative Dennis Kucinich said Friday, pointing to reports the United States was stepping up its presence there.

Joining Kucinich on the bill was Ron Paul, a Texas Republican who failed in a bid for the presidency in 2008. Paul said the US military had “significantly increased” its operations in Pakistan, without providing figures. The Pentagon says only a small number of US soldiers operate in Pakistan, mostly Special Forces tasked with training Pakistani troops along the Afghan border. Those US forces are not officially engaged in combat operations. —AFP

 

[yellow people]

Gen. McChrystal retires in military ceremony


Gen. McChrystal retires in military ceremony
by ANNE FLAHERTY

updated <abbr style="display: inline;" class="dtstamp updated" title="2010-07-24T07:45:45">39 minutes ago

</abbr>Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates, left, awards the Distinguished Service Medal to Gen. Stanley McChrystal as he is honored at a retirement ceremony at Fort McNair in Washington, Friday, July 23, 2010. His wife Annie stands at right. McChrystal's illustrious career came to an abrupt end when he resigned as the top U.S. commander in Afghanistan after he and his staff were quoted in a Rolling Stone magazine article criticizing and mocking key Obama Administration officials. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

WASHINGTON — After 34 years in the Army, Gen. Stanley McChrystal left behind legions of admirers and the prospect his reputation as a ferocious fighter would one day eclipse the costly comments that appeared in Rolling Stone. "Over the past decade, arguably no single American has inflicted more fear, more loss of freedom and more loss of life on our country's most vicious and violent enemies than Stan McChrystal," U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates said during an emotional retirement ceremony Friday, marking the end of the general's career.

Before a crowd of a few hundred friends, family and colleagues on the Fort McNair parade grounds under an oppressively hot July sun, McChrystal said his service didn't end as he hoped. But he regretted few decisions he had made on the battlefield, cherished his life as a soldier and was optimistic about his future. "There are misconceptions about the loyalty and service of some dedicated professionals that will likely take some time, but I believe will be corrected," he said.

McChrystal, the former commander of U.S. forces in Afghanistan, was fired last month after the magazine published an article titled "The Runaway General" that quoted scathing remarks he and his aides made about their civilian bosses. McChrystal complained President Barack Obama had handed him "an unsellable position" on the war. The general's closest advisers mocked other government officials, including Vice President Joseph Biden, as fools who were ignorant of the complexities of war. "Biden? Did you say, 'Bite me?'" one aide is quoted saying.

Soon after the article was published, McChrystal was sent packing. In his 18-minute farewell tribute before the VIP-studded crowd, McChrystal made light of the episode. He warned his comrades in arms: "I have stories on all of you, photos of many, and I know a Rolling Stone reporter." Wearing his own Army combat uniform for the last time, the four-star general received full military honors, including a 17-gun salute and flag formations by the Army's Old Guard.

Senior military and defense officials, including Gates, have said they agreed with Obama's decision to fire McChrystal but were disappointed by the loss of a gifted colleague. McChrystal was a seasoned special operations commander who made his reputation hunting down members of al-Qaida in Iraq, and helping turn around the course of that war. Last year, he was picked as top commander in Afghanistan to replace Gen. David McKiernan, who was removed from his post by an Obama administration anxious to chart a new course in the war.

The White House is allowing McChrystal to keep his four stars in retirement, even though Army rules would have required him to serve another two years at that rank.
___

Associated Press writer Kimberly Dozier contributed to this report.

 

[Cao Pi]

Taliban: 'US Troops Captured Near Kabul'


Breaking News
4:57pm UK, Saturday July 24, 2010

Taliban: 'US Troops Captured Near Kabul'

<!-- SHARE --> <script src="http://static.ak.fbcdn.net/connect.php/js/FB.Share" type="text/javascript"></script> <!-- end SHARE --> Afghan insurgents have captured two US soldiers and are holding them in southern Logar province, a Taliban official has claimed.

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Local radio stations have broadcast appeals reportedly from the US offering a $20,000 (£13,000) reward for information leading to their safe release, Reuters news agency has reported. "Early this morning two coalition personnel went missing," the broadcast said. They are believed to have been captured by insurgents somewhere in Logar province.

"They may have been separated from one another or may be in the process of being moved to another location." A Taliban spokesman said three ISAF servicemen had been captured but one had died. "Coalition forces are offering $20,000 (£13,000) reward for any information that leads to the successful return of these two," the statement said, without identifying the men.

"Coalition forces are offering $20,000 (£13,000) reward for any information that leads to the successful return of these two," the statement said, without identifying the men. Violence in Afghanistan has risen sharply since a reinforcement brought to 150,000 the number of foreign forces facing the Taliban and two other insurgent groups.

 

[yellow people]

Taliban say they're holding U.S. soldier and second killed


Taliban say they're holding U.S. soldier and second killed

A pamphlet, appealing for information about one of two U.S. soldiers who went missing from their base, is seen in Kabul July 25, 2010.

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KABUL | Sun Jul 25, 2010 9:10am EDT

KABUL (Reuters) - The Taliban said on Sunday they were holding prisoner one of two U.S. soldiers who strayed into territory controlled by the insurgents, and that the other had been killed. The Taliban leadership would decide later on the fate of the captive, Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid told Reuters by phone from an undisclosed location.

The two U.S. servicemen were reported missing on Friday after failing to return in a vehicle they had taken from their compound in Kabul, the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) said. "We have the body of the dead soldier and the other one who is alive. We have taken them to a safe place," Mujahid said.

His account was disputed by a provincial official in Logar, a short but dangerous drive south of the capital, who said U.S. forces had recovered a body. Speaking on condition of anonymity, the official said the soldier now captive was likely to have also been injured. They had ended up in a Taliban-held part of the province and liquor had been found in their vehicle, he said.

ISAF scrambled helicopters and planes to look for the pair after they went missing, but officials have declined to give anything but scant details since, prompting speculation that the two had been acting outside the chain of command. ISAF's 150,000 troops in Afghanistan rarely move outside their bases unless on heavily armed patrols or convoys on predetermined routes.

Leaflets depicting photos of the two soldiers were distributed in Logar on Sunday. "Now this soldier needs the help of Afghanistan's people and return him to his dear ones," read one leaflet. Announcements on local radio stations offered a $20,000 reward for information leading to a rescue.

The only other ISAF service member believed held by the Taliban is Idaho National Guardsman Bowe Bergdahl, whose capture in June last year triggered a massive manhunt. His captors have issued videos of him denouncing the war, in what the U.S. military has called illegal propaganda. Last month was the deadliest of the nine-year war in Afghanistan for foreign troops, with more than 100 killed.

(Reporting by Sayed Salahuddin; editing by David Fox)

 

[yellow people]

Pakistan secretly helping Taliban: report


Pakistan secretly helping Taliban: report

<script type="text/javascript"> Reuters.utils.addLoadEvent(function() { Reuters.utils.loadScript('sJSON','/assets/multimediaJSON?articleId=USTRE66O1G220100726&setImage=300&view=100&startNumber=1') }); </script> By Adam Entous and Jonathon Burch
Mon Jul 26, 2010 2:07am EDT

KABUL/WASHINGTON - (Reuters) - Pakistan was actively collaborating with the Taliban in Afghanistan while accepting U.S. aid, new U.S. military reports showed, a disclosure likely to increase the pressure on Washington's embattled ally. The revelations by the organization Wikileaks emerged as Admiral Mike Mullen, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, warned of greater NATO casualties in Afghanistan as violence mounts over the summer.

It also came as the Taliban said they were holding captive one of two U.S. servicemen who strayed into insurgent territory, and that the other had been killed. The reported capture will further erode domestic support for America's nine-year war. Documents leaked by Wikileaks said representatives from Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence met directly with the Taliban in secret strategy sessions to organize militant networks fighting U.S. soldiers.

The White House condemned the leak, saying it could threaten national security and endanger the lives of Americans. Pakistan said leaking unprocessed reports from the battlefield was irresponsible. U.S. national security adviser Jim Jones said the leak would not affect "our ongoing commitment to deepen our partnerships with Afghanistan and Pakistan".

The revelations were contained in more than 90,000 classified documents which U.S. officials focused on the period leading to the launch of President Barack Obama's Afghan strategy last December, when he authorized deployment of 30,000 additional troops. Violence in Afghanistan is at its highest of the 9-year-old war as the thousands of extra U.S. troops step up their campaign to drive insurgents out of their traditional heartland in the south.

"As we continue our force levels and our operations over the summer ... we will likely see further tough casualties and levels of violence," Admiral Mullen told reporters in Kabul on Sunday. The United States has repeatedly urged Pakistan to hunt down militant groups, including some believed to have been nurtured by the ISI as strategic assets in Afghanistan and against arch rival India. Islamabad says it is doing all it can to fight the militancy, adding it was a victim of terrorism itself.

MISSING US SOLDIERS

Two U.S. servicemen were reported missing on Friday after they failed to return in a vehicle they had taken from their compound in Kabul, the NATO-led force said. A spokesman for the NATO-led force declined to comment on the Taliban's announcement it was holding one of the men, both from the U.S. Navy. The Navy described both men as still missing. "We have the body of the dead soldier and the other one who is alive.

We have taken them to a safe place," said Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid by telephone from an undisclosed location. Rumors circulated in local and international media about the fate of the missing men and how they had managed to stray into an insurgent-controlled area in Logar province, a short but dangerous 100 km (60 miles) drive south of the capital. One provincial official said alcohol was found in their vehicle.

Last month was the deadliest for foreign troops since 2001, with more than 100 killed, and civilian deaths have also risen as ordinary Afghans are increasingly caught in the crossfire. The only other foreign soldier believed held by the Taliban is Idaho National Guardsman Bowe Bergdahl, whose capture in June last year triggered a massive manhunt. His captors have issued videos of him denouncing the war, in what the U.S. military has called illegal propaganda.

(Additional reporting by Alister Bull in Washington; Writing by Sanjeev Miglani; Editing by Ron Popeski)

 

[yellow people]

The Dogs of War


The Dogs of War

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July 25 - Military working dogs on the front lines in Afghanistan. Deborah Lutterbeck reports.

 

[yellow people]

Wikileaks Afghanistan: What do the leaks really tell us?


Wikileaks Afghanistan: What do the leaks really tell us?

The release of the 'war logs' cannot be compared to the Vietnam Pentagon Papers – not least because Nato's Af-Pak strategy has evolved since the period the documents describe, says Con Coughlin.

By Con Coughlin
Published: 8:51AM BST 27 Jul 2010

Comrades in arms:the logs record links between Pakistani intelligence and the Taliban fighters Photo: AP

When, at the height of the Vietnam War in the 1970s, a disaffected Pentagon analyst published explosive details about how the White House was running the campaign, US military commanders soon found themselves being forced into ordering a humiliating retreat from the war zone.

The Pentagon Papers, which were leaked to the New York Times in 1971 by Daniel Ellsberg, a Democrat-supporting defence expert, lifted the lid on how successive presidents going back to Harry Truman had deliberately misled the American public on the conduct of the war.

<!-- BEFORE ACI --> The papers revealed how the White House had intentionally expanded military action by authorising the carpet bombing of Cambodia and Laos, while insisting it had no desire to seek "a wider war". Even though most of the deception played on the American public had been undertaken by Democrat presidents, particularly Lyndon B Johnson, it was left to the Republican Richard Nixon to implement the withdrawal strategy.

Now anti-war campaigners opposed to the Nato-led mission in Afghanistan are desperately hoping that history is about to repeat itself following publication of tens of thousands of secret Pentagon documents relating to the Afghan war. The extracts, which are drawn from US military and intelligence report logs and have been published on the anti-war website Wikileaks, provide some disturbing reading.

They show how nearly 200 civilians have been killed by Nato troops, while there has been a steep increase in Taliban attacks on coalition forces. A "secret" Special Forces unit has been created to "capture or kill" key Taliban commanders, and US forces are increasingly using unmanned Reaper drones to attack Taliban targets by remote control from a base in Nevada.

The Taliban, meanwhile, has acquired heat-seeking surface-to-air missiles, and has caused significant civilian casualties through the increased use of roadside bombs. The insurgents have also received valuable support from Pakistan's ISI intelligence service, which is supposed to be Washington's most important regional ally.

But, hang on a minute, you might well say. There is very little that is new in this material. The reason, after all, that the Pentagon Papers had such a dramatic impact on the course of the American involvement in Vietnam is that they contained hitherto unknown details about a major political deception.

The "logs of war", on the other hand, have succeeded in generating much publicity without actually telling us anything we did not already know about a war that is proving to be immensely complex and challenging for all those attempting to bring it to a successful conclusion. The material does, admittedly, add some uncomfortable detail to aspects of the campaign.

One of the Nato mission's greatest shortcomings has been the unacceptably high civilian casualty rate, the result of what the military categorises as "blue on white" incidents. The battle for hearts and minds among the Afghan civilian population is not going to be won if those same civilians are the unwitting targets of Nato air strikes.

Last week's as yet unconfirmed missile strike by a Nato helicopter in Helmand, which killed at least 45 civilians, is the latest example of how careless military conduct alienates the local population. Now we learn that Polish troops fired mortars at an Afghan village in revenge after one of their number was injured by a roadside bomb, while in separate incidents American and French troops fired at school buses after they feared they were about to be attacked by suicide bombers.

Arguably the most controversial allegations, though, concern the alleged links between the Taliban and Pakistan's ISI. The Taliban was established by the ISI in the 1990s to counter the growing influence of its deadly rival India in neighbouring Afghanistan, and there has been much criticism of Pakistan over persistent reports that the ISI has continued to maintain its links with the Taliban, even after Nato began to deploy in force to southern Afghanistan in the summer of 2006.

The intelligence files published by Wikileaks provide further particulars of Pakistan's continued support for the Taliban, including covert ISI plots to train legions of suicide bombers, smuggle anti-aircraft missiles into Afghanistan, assassinate President Hamid Karzai and even poison beer supplies destined for Western troops.

Pakistan's problematic relationship with its former protégés in the Taliban leadership remains an important issue for the Obama administration, which feels that it deserves a better return on the $1 billion a year of aid it provides to Islamabad. But then, like so many of the "revelations" in the Wikileaks material, the tensions in this crucial strategic relationship are well-documented, and they conveniently overlook the fact that both sides have made radical changes to the level of cooperation that now exists between the two countries.

Washington's decision at the start of the Obama presidency to see the conflict as affecting Pakistani interests as much as those of Afghanistan – the "Af-Pak strategy" – has helped to make Islamabad feel more closely involved in the Nato mission, rather than just being a wary onlooker. The Pakistanis, for their part, have also raised their game dramatically during the past few years under President Asif Ali Zardari.

Their military has suffered far greater casualties than Nato in its recent campaign against Taliban militants, and while Islamabad clearly needs to do more, it is at least moving in the right direction. The improvement in Washington's relations with Pakistan, moreover, must be seen as part of a wider reappraisal of Nato's mission objectives undertaken by General Stanley McChrystal, the former US commander of Nato forces.

The McChrystal doctrine, which was formally adopted by President Barack Obama at the end of last year, places far more emphasis on working to rehabilitate Taliban fighters, rather than simply killing them. New rules of engagement, specifically designed to reduce civilian casualties, place severe restrictions on the ability of Nato forces to defend themselves even when under attack.

But there is little mention of these fundamental changes from the anti-war campaigners, whose aim in publishing the Afghan war logs is to turn public opinion in the US and Europe irrevocably against the campaign.

The carefully orchestrated publicity campaign, where details of the military logs were published simultaneously in the US, Britain and Germany, is aimed at further undermining public support for the conflict at a time when politicians on both sides of the Atlantic are discussing how long they are prepared to allow their forces to undertake combat operations.

Both David Cameron and Mr Obama have already indicated that they want to start scaling down their military commitment to Afghanistan next year, while the revelation in yesterday's Der Spiegel that US forces were using German bases in northern Afghanistan to attack the Taliban will undoubtedly increase public pressure on Berlin to reduce its involvement.

As one senior Washington official commented yesterday: "They want publication of this material to have the same effect on public support
for the Afghan war as the Abu Ghraib pictures had on the Iraq conflict." For that to happen, the release of the war logs will need to become one of the defining moments in the history of the Afghan conflict. Otherwise they will simply fade into obscurity.

Yesterday Julian Assange, the founder of Wikileaks who organised the international publicity blitz, said that by publishing the material he wanted to change the way people regarded the war. In an interview in Der Spiegel, he said: "I enjoy crushing bastards. The most dangerous men are those who are in charge of war. And they need to be stopped."

He said he believed that "thousands of war crimes" had been committed in Afghanistan, and called on governments to bring prosecutions where there was sufficient evidence. Mr Assange is clearly a man with a mission, which is to wreck the entire Nato campaign in Afghanistan, with all the implications that will have for Western security. Whether or not he succeeds will depend on how public opinion responds to his project and how much the leaks can, as he claims, "shift political will".

 

[yellow people]

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[yellow people]

Body of 'snatched' US sailor found in Afghanistan


Body of 'snatched' US sailor found in Afghanistan

One of two U.S. sailors missing in Afghanistan since last week has been confirmed dead and his body recovered, a Nato spokesman said.

Published: 10:33AM BST 27 Jul 2010
<!-- COMMENTS DISABLED IN SECTION PROPERTIES -->

A U.S. soldier chats with a motorist during a search for the two missing U.S. Navy personnel at a check pointPhoto: AP

The search continues for the other missing sailor, said Lt Col Todd Breasseale, a spokesman for Nato and US forces in Afghanistan.

The two Navy sailors went missing on Friday in the eastern province of Logar, after an armoured sport utility vehicle was seen driving into a Taliban-held area. Nato officials were unable to say what they were doing in such a dangerous part of eastern Afghanistan.

<!-- BEFORE ACI --> The Taliban have said previously that they killed one of the two men in a firefight and captured the other. Jim Kerr, a Colorado legislator from the south-Denver suburb of Littleton, said the Navy sailor killed was his wife's nephew, Justin McNeley, 30.

He said the family learned of his death on Monday. He said McNeley's mother is in Kingman, Arizona, but declined to give her name. Mr Kerr told The Denver Post that McNeley, a non-commissioned officer and father of two sons, was due to return to the US in August. The Taliban have said the captured sailor is in a "safe place" where he will not be found.

The message also mentions Spc. Bowe Bergdahl, the only other US service member known to be in Taliban captivity. Spc. Bergdahl of Hailey, Idaho, disappeared June 30, 2009, in Paktika province, also in eastern Afghanistan. That area is heavily infiltrated by the Haqqani network, which has deep links to al-Qaeda.

He has since appeared on videos posted on Taliban websites confirming his captivity. David Rohde, the New York Times reporter, was also kidnapped in Logar province while trying to make contact with a Taliban commander. He and an Afghan colleague escaped in June 2009 after seven months in captivity, most of it spent in Taliban sanctuaries in Pakistan.

Hundreds of fliers, with reprinted photos of the two missing sailors, have been distributed throughout Logar province where Nato troops were stopping vehicles, searching them and those inside. The fliers say a $20,000 reward is being offered for information leading to the sailors' location.

 

[yellow people]

Wikileaks Afghanistan: Osama bin Laden timeline


Wikileaks Afghanistan: Osama bin Laden timeline

Classified US documents leaked by the whisteblower website Wikileaks show multiple intelligence reports on the whereabouts of Osama bin Laden.

By Heidi Blake and Peter Hutchison
Published: 10:40AM BST 27 Jul 2010

Osama Bin Laden had requested a satellite dish to be installed in his hideout in Kandahar. Photo: AFP/Getty Images

Here is a timeline of various references to the al-Qaeda chief in the war logs and of reported appearances elsewhere.

October 2001 – January 2004: Series of videotapes aired in which Osama bin Laden praises 9/11 attackers and warns of attacks against America

2004: An Isaf threat report states: "Three well-trained terrorists have been assigned by Osama bin Laden to conduct a suicidal attack against [Hamid] Karzai [the Afghan president]".

October 2004: Al-Jazeera airs tape in which Bin Laden justifies 9/11 attacks just days before US Presidential election.

December 2004: Bin Laden calls on Iraqis' to boycott January's election.

19 November 2005: Isaf reports that Bin Laden's security coordinator, Dr Amin al-Haq, and the leader of the XX group Hezb-e-Islami, flew to North Korea from Iran. While there, they reportedly struck a deal with the North Korean government for remote-controlled rockets to be used against American aircraft. They returned on December 3, 2005, according to the report. The intelligence was never followed up in the war logs.

January 2006: Bin Laden says new attacks are being planned on the US in audio tape.

June 2006: Bin Laden appears in fourth video message of the year and praises Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the leader of al-Qaeda in Iraq, who was killed earlier that year.

August 2006: A threat report from the International Security Assistance Force (Isaf), disclosed in the war logs, claims Bin Laden was attending regular Al Quaida recruitment meetings on the border between Pakistan and Afghanistan.

2007: An intelligence report in the war logs claims Bin Laden has died at a ghospital in Peshawar.

2007: A report in the war logs claims an insurgent called Abdullah won favour for his skill in making improvised explosive devices and was presented with an Arab wife by Bin Laden as a reward.

September 2007: Bin Laden appears in a video, posted on an Islamist website, for the first time in three years. he calls for Americans to embrace Islam.

2008: Dr Amin al-Haq, Bin Laden's security coordinator, was picked up in Lahore by Pakistani security forces. Said initially to be "under interrogation" at an undisclosed location, he has since disappeared from view.

June 2009: Audio message claiming to be Bin Laden is aired by al-Jazeera. In it the al-Qaeda chief accuses Barack Obama of fuelling hatred of American in Pakistan.

November 2009: US Senate report concludes that American forces had Bin Laden "withing their grasp" in 2001 and should have caught him.

December 2009: Taliban detainee in Pakistan claims contact said he met Bin Laden earlier that year. Analysts say claim is possible and CIA follow new lead.