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BAGHDAD, July 14, 2009 – U.S. forces apprehended a wanted man suspected of being the leader of a bomb-making cell during a July 12 civil affairs mission west of Baghdad. Civil affairs officers from C Troop, 150th Armored Reconnaissance Squadron, went to the man’s house July 12 to pay for damages to his front door caused during a previous attempt to capture the known criminal. The man attempted to flee through a field behind his house, but surrendered to pursuing C Troop soldiers, who transferred him to Iraqi army custody. The suspected criminal admitted he is a member of an...

WASHINGTON, July 13, 2009 – A joint Afghan and coalition force detained a suspected militant after searching a compound last night in Afghanistan’s Ghazni province as part of an ongoing effort to disrupt the flow of foreign fighters into the region. The force targeted a compound near the village of Jahangir Kalay, southwest of Ghazni, after receiving intelligence indicating militant activity. Elsewhere, International Security Assistance Force servicemembers responded to an insurgent homemade-bomb attack that killed four Afghan National Policemen in the Charkh district of Afghanistan’s Logar province July 11. ISAF troops responding to the scene secured the site. A wounded...

WASHINGTON, July 9, 2009 – Iraqi forces, aided by coalition advisors, arrested suspected terrorists, including an insurgent cell leader, in operations in Iraq yesterday, military officials reported. Members of an Iraqi Emergency Response Brigade, along with coalition advisors, arrested a suspected key leader of an insurgent cell in Ladafiyah. The suspect is believed to be tied to terrorist activities against coalition and Iraqi security forces in the area. Elsewhere, the Iraqi National Police Justice Battalion, with coalition advisors, arrested a suspected terrorist in Salahuddin province. The suspect is believed to have emplaced roadside bombs and supplied terrorists in the province...

WASHINGTON, July 8, 2009 – Afghan and coalition forces detained suspected militants and destroyed homemade bombs in operations in Afghanistan today and yesterday, military officials reported. In Ghazni province, Afghan and coalition forces detained suspected militants last night during operations aimed at disrupting Haqqani terrorist activities, including attacks on coalition bases by a key Haqqani commander, assassination attempts of Afghan government officials and the flow of foreign fighters and weapons into the region. The forces assaulted three compounds south of Ghazni city. In one of the compounds, the forces engaged a suspected militant who did not comply with instructions to...

WASHINGTON, July 6, 2009 – Iraqi forces, aided by U.S. soldiers and coalition forces, arrested several suspected terrorists in operations in Iraq over the past five days, military officials reported. Iraqi soldiers, aided by U.S. soldiers, detained a wanted insurgent July 4 in Hawijah in Kirkuk province. Mahdi Saleh Khalil is believed to be associated with vehicle-bomb detonations June 30 and April 15, both in Kirkuk city, that killed 37 people and wounded 114 Iraqi civilians. Elsewhere, the Beiji special weapons and tactics team, aided by coalition advisors, arrested a suspected terrorist July 3 in Salahuddin province. The man is...

WASHINGTON, July 2, 2009 – Iraqi forces, aided by coalition advisors, detained an alleged senior leader of a terrorist group along with other suspected terrorists June 29 and 30 in operations in Iraq, military officials reported. In June 30 operations: -- The Emergency Response Brigade and coalition advisors arrested a suspected senior leader in Taji, north of Baghdad. The leader is believed to be responsible for organizing sophisticated operations against coalition forces in the area. -- In Baghdad, the Emergency Response Brigade, along with coalition advisors, arrested an alleged terrorist during an Iraqi-led operation. The man is believed to be...

KABUL, Afghanistan -- The U.S. military said today that insurgents have capture an American soldier in eastern Afghanistan. Spokeswoman Capt. Elizabeth Mathias said the soldier went missing Tuesday.

WASHINGTON, June 30, 2009 – Iraqi forces, aided by coalition advisors, arrested suspected terrorists June 28 in operations in Iraq, military officials reported. Iraqi special operations forces and coalition advisors arrested a suspected terrorist in Baghdad. The suspect is believed to be the low-level commander of an insurgent group responsible for coordinating a local resident’s murder and an attack against Iraqi army forces. Elsewhere, Iraq’s 7th Regional Commando Battalion, assisted by coalition advisors, arrested two suspected terrorists in Ninevah province. One of the men is suspected of being a financier for a terrorist cell, and the other is believed to...

WASHINGTON, June 29, 2009 – Coalition and Iraq forces detained nearly two dozen suspected militants during recent operations in Iraq, military officials said. During June 27 operations: -- Combined forces arrested seven suspected terrorists with warrants during an operation in the Ninewa province. They are suspected of operating in a terrorist cell, which conducts attacks against Iraqi civilians and security forces in the area. -- Coalition and Iraqi troops arrested five suspected terrorists with warrants during an intelligence-driven raid in Baghdad. The suspects are allegedly responsible for conducting improvised explosive device attacks, kidnapping Iraqi citizens and murder. -- In a...

WASHINGTON, June 29, 2009 – Coalition and Afghan forces detained more than a dozen suspected militants and seized weapons and drugs in recent operations in Afghanistan, military officials said. During two June 27 operations in the Musa Khel district of Khost province, Afghan and coalition forces targeted a key commander in one operation and searched a compound in another. Coalition forces used precision air strikes in a remote area of the district, targeting a key Haqqani commander responsible for planning militant attacks against coalition forces, officials said. Intelligence sources indicated his location in the mountainous district, about 30 miles northwest...

WASHINGTON, June 25, 2009 – Iraqi forces arrested a suspected terrorist and U.S. and Iraqi forces seized a massive weapons cache in Iraq in recent days, military officials reported. In Anbar province yesterday, the Iraqi special weapons and tactics team in Qaim arrested a man who is suspected of smuggling materials and foreign fighters into Iraq and is believed to be responsible for the deaths of police officers in Ramana, Iraq. Elsewhere, Iraqi security forces and Multinational Division Baghdad soldiers seized a massive weapons cache June 23 near Tarmiyah, north of Baghdad. The cache contained 26 grenades, 35 rocket-propelled grenades,...

WASHINGTON, June 24, 2009 – Iraqi forces and coalition advisors arrested suspected terrorists, including a senior leader, in operations in Iraq in the past five days, military officials reported. Yesterday, Iraqi police from the Basra special weapons and tactics team, aided by coalition advisors, arrested a suspected terrorist during an Iraqi-led operation in southern Iraq. The man is suspected in the development and use of roadside bombs and indirect-fire attacks against Iraqi and coalition forces in Maysan province. Southwest of Baghdad, the Emergency Response Brigade, an elite police force, and coalition advisors arrested three suspected terrorists June 22 in Amariyah....

WASHINGTON — An Iraqi Police Special Weapons and Tactics Team (SWAT) from Nasiriyah and U.S. advisors arrested two suspects, including a violent extremist leader, during an operation conducted in Fadhiliyah, Sunday. The extremist leader, Walid Abbass, is linked to several acts of violence committed in Dhi Qar province, including several assassination attempts on local officials and a rocket attack that struck a mosque in Ur last month. In other recent operations in Iraq: An Iraqi SWAT team accompanied by Coalition forces advisors killed a suspected former leader of a criminal network during an operation in Basrah province, June 20. As...

WASHINGTON, June 22, 2009 – An Iraqi police special weapons and tactics team from Nasiriyah and U.S. advisors arrested two suspects, including a violent extremist leader, during an operation conducted in Fadhiliyah, Iraq, yesterday. The extremist leader, Walid Abbass, is linked to several acts of violence committed in Dhi Qar province, including several assassination attempts on local officials and a rocket attack that struck a mosque tower in Ur last month. In other recent operations in Iraq: -- An Iraqi SWAT team accompanied by coalition forces advisors killed a suspected former leader of a criminal network during an operation in...

WASHINGTON, June 18, 2009 – Afghan and coalition troops captured seven suspected militants and seized a supply of heroin during separate operations in Afghanistan yesterday, officials said. Yesterday evening, Afghan and coalition forces detained five suspected Haqqani militants in a village east of Gardez in eastern Afghanistan’s Paktia province. The Haqqani network operates out of Pakistan’s federally administered tribal area. The network targets the government of Afghanistan and its security forces as part of its goal to expel coalition and NATO forces from Afghanistan. Also yesterday, Afghan commandos, assisted by coalition forces, uncovered a drug cache and captured two known...

WASHINGTON, June 17, 2009 – Coalition and Iraqi security forces yesterday captured a suspect wanted in connection with armor-piercing bomb attacks in northwestern Baghdad's Kadamiyah district, military officials reported. Forces caught the suspect in an early morning raid and are holding him for questioning. In other Iraqi operations, the Tal Afar special weapons and tactics team, alongside coalition advisors, arrested three suspects June 15 in northern Iraq. The suspects allegedly are responsible for attacks on security forces in and around Mosul. Officials said Iraqi security forces are increasing their capabilities in leading such operations. (Compiled from Multinational Corps Iraq releases.)

WASHINGTON, June 15, 2009 – Coalition and Afghan forces detained a suspected Taliban leader and provided medical aid to a wounded civilian in recent operations, military officials said. Afghan and coalition forces captured an area Taliban commander and a suspected associate in a June 13 operation to disrupt Taliban activities in northern Paktika province. The suspect is tied to numerous attacks against coalition forces in the area, military officials said. The wanted Taliban leader was wounded from debris when forces gained entry into the compound, officials said. Medical specialists treated his wounds, and he was evacuated for further medical treatment....

WASHINGTON, June 15, 2009 – Coalition and Iraq forces detained a dozen suspects and seized weapons during recent operations in Iraq, military officials said. Combined forces arrested a suspected criminal on a warrant June 12 in northwest Baghdad's Kadhamiyah district. The man is suspected of participating in criminal activities throughout the district, military officials said. The suspect was transferred to a secure facility for further questioning. In a separate operation that day, Iraqi police and coalition advisors arrested a suspect on a warrant in Basra. Military officials said the suspect’s capture will reduce his group’s ability to mount effective attacks...

Yemeni authorities have arrested the financier of Al-Qaeda operations in the country and in neighbouring Saudi Arabia, an official said Sunday, as cited on the defence ministry news website. "The arrested man is named Hassan Hussein bin Alwan, a Saudi national, and he is the financier for attacks launched by Al-Qaeda organisation in Yemen and Saudi Arabia," the unnamed security official told September Net website. "He is considered one of the most dangerous members of Al-Qaeda," he added.

One of the country's most-wanted men is now in custody in the United States after being arrested in Miami. St James gangster Omar Oneil Lewis, better known as 'King Evil', was held by members of the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) team and the Lauderhill Police Department after an extensive investigation. King Evil was added to the local police most-wanted list after he was implicated in the June 2008 murder of Richard Reid in a nightclub in Montego Bay, St James. The 33-year-old is accused of stabbing Reid multiple times. He is also linked to several other violent...

WASHINGTON, June 12, 2009 – U.S. and Afghan forces detained four suspected insurgents and rescued a kidnapping victim in recent operations in Afghanistan, military officials reported. The suspects were detained today in Khost province. U.S. and Afghan troops were targeting a man they believed was connected to the Haqqani terrorist network. The joint force detained him, along with the others, without confrontation. An assault rifle and belts and vests of ammunition were confiscated, officials said. In Helmand province’s Washer district June 10, coalition forces found a man tied and gagged inside a truck as they were establishing security for a...

WASHINGTON, June 12, 2009 – U.S. and Iraqi forces captured an alleged insurgent leader and found three weapon stockpiles in recent operations in Iraq, military officials reported. The suspect was arrested by Iraqi police June 10 in Kirkuk. A warrant for his arrest was issued by the Iraqi government for allegedly purchasing weapons and bombs to fight coalition forces. The man is believed to be responsible for at least 10 murders in the area, officials said. The weapons caches were discovered by U.S. soldiers and Iraqi troops June 9 in Taji, just north of Baghdad. The joint force found 44...

WASHINGTON, June 11, 2009 – Iraqi and U.S. forces arrested three people in northern Iraq who are suspected of emplacing roadside bombs and coordinating attacks against coalition forces, military officials reported. One suspect was arrested in Mosul on June 9 by the city’s special weapons and tactics unit. Ninevah province’s Operations Investigative Court issued a warrant for the suspect’s arrest for allegedly emplacing roadside bombs and facilitating various attacks on coalition forces in the province, officials said. In Diyala province June 4, Baqubah’s emergency response force and U.S. troops arrested two people. The Central Criminal Court of Iraq issued the...

Unbelievable! [T]he Obama Justice Department has quietly ordered FBI agents to read Miranda rights to high value detainees captured and held at U.S. detention facilities in Afghanistan, according a senior Republican on the House Intelligence Committee. “The administration has decided to change the focus to law enforcement. Here’s the problem. You have foreign fighters who are targeting US troops today – foreign fighters who go to another country to kill Americans. We capture them…and they’re reading them their rights – Mirandizing these foreign fighters,” says Representative Mike Rogers, who recently met with military, intelligence and law enforcement officials on a...

WASHINGTON, June 5, 2009 – Afghan and coalition security forces seized weapons and drugs and captured seven suspected militants during two operations in southern Afghanistan yesterday. Afghan forces, advised and assisted by coalition forces, uncovered a significant drug and weapons cache during operations in Oruzgan province’s Shahidi Hasas district. A search yielded 200 pounds of black-tar heroin, 100 50-pound bags of ammonium nitrate, homemade explosives, numerous bomb-making materials, three machine guns and small arms, along with Afghan National Police and Afghan National Army uniforms. A number of women and children were discovered in the area and escorted to safety. No...

WASHINGTON, June 4, 2009 – Coalition and Iraqi forces detained more than 20 suspects during several recent operations in Iraq’s capital city and the country’s Diyala province. Early June 1, U.S. soldiers working with Iraqi soldiers and police executed warrants and arrested two wanted men in northwestern Baghdad’s Ghazaliya neighborhood. The forces confiscated assault rifles from the men and moved them to secure locations for further questioning. On May 31, Multinational Division Baghdad soldiers and Iraqi police executed an arrest warrant on a Ghazaliya man who is believed to be responsible for an attack on coalition forces using a bomb...

WASHINGTON, June 4, 2009 – Afghan and coalition forces detained four suspected militants in Khost province overnight during an operation to capture a key Haqqani terrorist network leader in eastern Afghanistan. In the province’s Sabari district, a combined force searched a rural compound after credible intelligence sources indicated the wanted man was located near Zambar village. After entering the targeted compound, Afghan forces called for all occupants to come out, and without incident, forces detained the targeted man and three of his suspected associates. A search of the compound revealed an AK-47 assault rifle and a magazine. On June 2,...

WASHINGTON, June 3, 2009 – Afghan army commandos, assisted by coalition forces, were attacked today during a clearing operation in Afghanistan’s Kapisa province, and a combined force in Khost province detained three suspected militants yesterday. In the Kapisa operation, the combined element was searching an area known for enemy activity in the province’s Yakdan Valley region when it came under heavy small-arms fire from a nearby compound. The forces used small-arms and mortar fire to help neutralize the enemy. Air strikes were called to defuse the enemy and cut off their retreat routes. Two militants were killed during the engagement....

WASHINGTON, June 2, 2009 – Iraqi and coalition forces captured 45 suspected militants and killed one during operations May 31 in Kirkuk, Iraq, military officials said. Combined forces killed the suspected terrorist and wounded another while attempting to arrest them during an operation in Kirkuk. Both of the men were believed to be terrorist cell leaders involved in multiple kidnappings, murders and car bombings targeting Iraqi forces in Kirkuk province. After moving toward the targeted building with an arrest warrant, the security forces received rifle fire that wounded one Iraqi soldier. Combined forces returned fire, killing one of the individuals...

The self-described leader of an al-Qaida front group issued a new audio tape this weekend, deepening the mystery surrounding the identity of the insurgent leader whom the Iraqi government claims to have in custody and whose very existence the U.S. once questioned. The man purporting to be Abu Omar al-Baghdadi, the head of the Islamic State of Iraq, issued the usual litany of militant rhetoric against the West in the 40-minute tape that was posted Saturday on militant Web sites. He criticized Pope Benedict XVI's recent trip to the Middle East, including Israel, condemned the Pakistani army's offensive against the...

SAO PAULO (Reuters) - Brazil's federal police have arrested a high-ranking al Qaeda operative in Sao Paulo and are keeping him under tight security, a local newspaper reported on Tuesday. The suspect is allegedly a chief of international communications for al Qaeda, according to the report in Folha de S.Paulo, Brazil's largest daily newspaper. The report did not give the suspect's name or say when he was taken into custody, nor did it provide a source for the information. The arrest was surrounded by secrecy with the federal police disguising it as part of an investigation into neo-Nazi groups in...

BANAI BABA ZIARAT, Pakistan – A Pakistani flag now flies over army troops dug in on a strategic ridge that until two days ago was held by the Taliban, a base where militants trained fighters, built tunnels and equipped caves with electricity and air vents. The takeover of the highest Taliban stronghold in the Swat Valley by troops who stormed up its jagged, rubble-strewn slopes is evidence of the success of Pakistan's month-old army offensive. The action has been welcomed by the United States, which fears the nuclear-armed country is capitulating to the militants. ... Several residents pointed to the...

WASHINGTON, May 19, 2009 – Coalition and Iraqi forces detained a suspect and seized weapons in Iraq, and a U.S. commander refuted charges against American troops in the past three days, military officials said. During a joint operation in Baghdad’s Mansour district yesterday and May 17, troops detained a suspected criminal on a warrant and discovered nearly 30 mortar rounds of various sizes. Military officials said the suspect was held for questioning and that an explosive ordinance team moved the weapons for further investigation. Also on May 17, a senior U.S. commander in Mosul appeared on a local television talk...

WASHINGTON, May 18, 2009 – Iraqi and coalition forces found a weapons cache and detained six suspects in operations in Iraq the week of May 11. On May 16, U.S. soldiers and Ameriyah police officers found the weapons stockpile in northern Baghdad’s Muhalla district. The cache, containing mines, small rockets, an 82 mm mortar tube, rusted rocket-propelled-grenade rounds, warheads and rounds of 7.62 mm ammunition, was safely secured by an explosive ordnance disposal team. In Baqouba on May 12, Iraqi emergency response forces worked with coalition forces advisors to arrest two suspected criminals with warrants issued by the major crimes...

BAGHDAD — Iraqi and Coalition forces targeted a Syrian-based al-Qaeda in Iraq (AQI) network operating in Iraq and other AQI network cells, Friday and Saturday. Near Tall al Hawa, approximately 83 km northwest of Mosul, an Iraqi and Coalition team conducted an operation targeting the Syrian-based al Qaeda-linked foreign terrorist facilitator, Sa’ad Uwayid Ubayd al-shammari, aka Abu Khalaf. The U.S. Treasury Department has recently frozen all of Abu Khalaf’s bank accounts and financial assets found in the United States. This terrorist is believed to be responsible for facilitating the main pipeline of suicide bombers, as well as the flow of...

According to reports out of Kabul, the Taliban announced that they have waterboarded three U.S. soldiers taken prisoner. The Taliban commander asserted that waterboarding is not torture and does not violate the Geneva Convention or U.S. law. He assured everyone that a medical officer monitored all waterboarding sessions to insure that no permanent damage was done to the soldiers. In addition, he said they were careful to follow the directions on waterboarding in a SERE training manual they found posted on the internet. In support of his assertion that waterboarding is not torture, the Taliban commander cited legal analysis produced...

ABOARD USS GETTYSBURG AT SEA, May 14, 2009 – Ships from Combined Task Force 151 prevented a piracy attack in the Gulf of Aden, which resulted in the apprehension of more than a dozen suspected pirates aboard an alleged "mothership" yesterday. The South Korean destroyer ROKS Munmu the Great and guided missile cruiser USS Gettysburg responded to a distress call from the Egyptian-flagged motor vessel Amira, which reported being attacked about 75 nautical miles south of Mukalla, Yemen. Several assault rifle rounds and a rocket-propelled grenade round struck the Amira, causing little or no damage. A rope was thrown from...

TIKRIT — Iraqi Special Operations Forces, with Coalition advisors, arrested ten suspected terrorist cell members during a combined operation in Diyala province recently, based on warrants issued by the Central Criminal Court of Iraq. Within two hours time, the 8th Regional Commando Battalion successfully conducted their mission against a violent terrorist cell operating in the Hamrin Dam area, leading to the capture of the suspected terrorist cell leader and nine of his associates. According to Iraqi intelligence sources, the detained individuals were suspected of conducting numerous acts of murder, kidnapping and roadside bomb attacks against Iraqi Security Forces and innocent...

WASHINGTON, May 12, 2009 – Afghan and coalition forces captured two drug traffickers, seized about a half ton of opium, and captured three other suspects in separate overnight operations in Afghanistan. In the Musa Qaleh district of Helmand province, Afghan forces, advised by coalition forces, detained the drug traffickers and opium early today. The combined forces found nearly 1,000 pounds of black-tar opium during a search of a suspected militant’s home. A suspected drug trafficker and an armed accomplice were found in the house and detained without resistance. The suspected trafficker is believed to have ties with people who use...

WASHINGTON, May 11, 2009 – An American soldier suspected in involvement in the shooting deaths of five U.S. servicemembers today in Baghdad is in U.S. custody, defense officials said. The incident occurred around 2 p.m. local time at the U.S. military base Camp Liberty in the Iraqi capital. Defense officials characterized the killings as an unexpected tragedy. “Any time we lose one of our own, it affects us all,” said Army Col. John Robinson, Multinational Corps Iraq spokesman. “Our hearts go out to the families and friends of all the servicemembers involved in this terrible tragedy.” Pentagon spokesman Bryan Whitman...

WASHINGTON, May 11, 2009 – Coalition and Iraqi forces detained one suspect and uncovered a weapons cache in operations last week, military officials said. During a combined mission in northwest Baghdad's Mansour district May 7, troops detained a man suspected of downing a coalition forces helicopter in 2007 and supporting al-Qaida in Iraq activities in the Iraqi capital. In a separate operation May 7, Iraqi security forces and coalition forces discovered a weapons cache in the Adhamiyah district of northern Baghdad. The stockpile included various mortars and other military equipment. A coalition forces explosive ordnance disposal team secured and disposed...

BAGHDAD — Coalition and Iraqi forces swept up weapons and insurgents during three days of operations in Iraq this week, military officials said. During operations May 5 in southern Iraq’s Maysan province, Iraqi forces found a weapons cache containing more than 300 munitions and various military equipment. Troops discovered the contraband inside a house in the city of Amarah. The Iraqi Security Forces are partnered with the 1st Cavalry Division’s 2nd Battalion, 7th Cavalry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, in Maysan in efforts to rid the region of illegal weapons and criminal activity. In the Mansour and Abu Ghraib districts...

WASHINGTON, May 7, 2009 – Coalition and Iraqi forces swept up weapons and insurgents during three days of operations in Iraq this week, military officials said. During operations May 5 in southern Iraq’s Maysan province, Iraqi forces found a weapons cache containing more than 300 munitions and various military equipment. Troops discovered the contraband inside a house in the city of Amarah. The Iraqi security units are partnered with the 1st Cavalry Division’s 2nd Battalion, 7th Cavalry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, in Maysan in efforts to rid the region of illegal weapons and criminal activity. In the Mansour and...

KABUL, May 6, 2009 – Afghan and coalition forces detained six suspected militants in Afghanistan’s Logar province during an operation early this morning to disrupt extremist activity in eastern Afghanistan. The combined force, acting on intelligence information, searched several compounds in a village in the province’s Baraki Barak district that is known to be a Taliban sanctuary. Forces detained six suspects believed to be connected to a foreign-fighter network operating in the eastern Afghan province. All adults and children on the compounds followed the instructions of the Afghan forces, resulting in the detention of the suspects without incident, officials said....

WASHINGTON, May 4, 2009 – U.S. forces captured two suspected terrorists during operations in Baghdad May 1 and 2, according to Multinational Corps Iraq officials. In the Adhamiyah district of Baghdad, coalition forces detained a suspect during an early early morning raid May 2. The troops were acting on a warrant issued by the Iraqi government. The suspect was wanted in connection with the manufacture and distribution of improvised explosive devices. He was detained by soldiers with 5th Cavalry Regiment, attached to 1st Cavalry Division’s 1st Brigade Combat Team. Once in custody, he was turned over to Iraqi security forces...

Fourteen suspected Somali pirates have been captured in separate operations by a French frigate and the Seychelles coast guard. French commandos on the frigate Nivose caught 11 suspects some 900 kms (560 miles) off the Somali coast, the French Defence Ministry says. The Nivose is reported to have alerted the Seychelles authorities to help them capture the other three. Somali pirates are currently holding nearly 20 ships for ransom. On Saturday a Greek-owned ship with a Ukrainian crew was hijacked by Somali pirates south-west of the Seychelles, a seafarers' group says. On the same day a Portuguese warship thwarted an...

WASHINGTON, April 23, 2009 – Afghan and coalition forces killed two militants and captured seven others in overnight operations in Afghanistan. Afghan National Army commandos disrupted a Taliban network in Helmand province’s Nadi Ali district last night when they detained four armed militants and confiscated a large cache of bomb-making materials. The commandos found and destroyed more than 40 pounds of homemade explosives, rocket-propelled grenades, mortar rounds and pressure plates used to manufacture bombs. Women and children in the compound were moved to a secure location while the commandos destroyed the cache. Earlier this week in the same area, coalition...

WASHINGTON, April 17, 2009 – Coalition and Afghan forces killed eight militants and detained five in recent operations throughout Afghanistan, U.S. military officials reported. In operations today: -- Afghan soldiers, assisted by coalition forces, killed two militants in Farah province’s Khaki Safed district. The combined patrol came under machine-gun, small-arms and rocket-propelled grenade fire from five to seven militants. Shortly thereafter, 20 to 30 fighters joined in from established firing positions. The Afghan and coalition forces pursued the militants on foot. Most abandoned their fighting positions, but two were killed and several others were wounded as the combined elements cleared...

French naval forces have detained 11 suspected pirates after raiding a pirate "mother ship" in the Indian Ocean, French military officials said Wednesday. The French forces had been responding to a distress call from a Liberian cargo ship that was being attacked by pirates using rocket-propelled grenades and small-arms fire. A French military helicopter reached the scene, then reportedly followed the two small pirate skiffs back to a 30-foot boat apparently being used as a base for the pirates. French forces from the Nivose — part of a European Union anti-piracy task force — then raided the larger boat, seizing...

WASHINGTON, April 16, 2009 – Coalition and Afghan forces detained two suspected insurgents and discovered weapons in recent operations throughout Afghanistan, U.S. military officials reported. In Konar province’s Asmar district today, coalition and Afghan troops detained a man and his accomplice allegedly connected to a bomb-making network. They are believed to be associated with a terrorist network and operations in Konar province and across the border in Pakistan. In operations April 11, U.S. and Afghan forces discovered several weapons caches throughout the country, disrupting a number of planned insurgent attacks. -- In Khowst province, Afghan-led forces discovered a 5-pound roadside...