Raid kills 22 Taliban, Al Qaeda: U.S. civilians die in Afghan battle

CNN ^ | 10/28/03 | Jamie McIntyre/Elise Labott

[Coop]

KABUL, Afghanistan -- At least 22 fighters from the ousted Taliban regime and al Qaeda network were killed in an aerial assault by U.S.-led forces in southeastern Paktika province, according to Reuters..

Air support was called in on Tuesday after a group of Taliban and al Qaeda fugitives fired rockets and heavy machine-guns on a base used by U.S.-led troops and their Afghan allies in Shkin, near the Pakistan border, on Saturday, said Paktika province govenor Mohammad Ali Jalali.

[Dog]

This is several different battles in that general area since the end of last week..

[Coop]

is there really a difference anymore?

Yep. The Taliban haven't hit the U.S. homeland.

[Aaron0617]

Reporting now on Fox.

They were 2 CIA contractors killed hunting top al qaeda terrorists. Before joining the CIA they were members of the special forces.

Prayers to all.

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

Thanks for that !

I am back watching the local fires here in SoCal!

[cgk]

Thanks for the ping... BTTT. Sending prayers to families!

[Coop]

They were 2 CIA contractors killed hunting top al qaeda terrorists.

Really? Did they definitely say "Al Qaeda"?

[Toskrin]

is there really a difference anymore?

I imagine at this point most Taliban wish they'd never heard of Osama bin Laden or al Qaeda...

[Coop]

Update from Fox News:

Two CIA contractors participating in operations to root out top Al Qaeda terrorists and members of the deposed Taliban were killed several days ago in eastern Afghanistan, intelligence officials told Fox News.

William Carlson, 43, of Southern Pines, N.C., and Christopher Glenn Mueller, 32, of San Diego, were "tracking terrorists operating in the region" of Shkin, a village in eastern Afghanistan, when they were killed Saturday, the CIA said in a statement.

Both were veterans of military special operations forces, the CIA said.

"William Carlson and Christopher Mueller were defined by dedication and courage," CIA Director George J. Tenet said in a statement. "Their sacrifice for the peoples of the United States and Afghanistan must never be forgotten."

The pair was working for the CIA's Directorate of Operations, which conducts clandestine intelligence-gathering and covert operations.

The CIA statement says the agency consulted with the dead officers' families and decided their names could be released without compromising ongoing operations.

They are the third and fourth CIA operatives that the agency has acknowledged have been killed in the line of duty since the Sept. 11 attacks.

The first, paramilitary officer Johnny Micheal Spann (search), was killed during an uprising of Taliban and Al Qaeda prisoners in northern Afghanistan on Nov. 25, 2001.

The second, Helge Boes, died in a training accident in eastern Afghanistan, on Feb. 5, 2003.

The agency did not provide particulars on the ambush or the two operatives' mission.

The region they were operating in is part of the remote mountainous region along the border of Afghanistan and Pakistan, where Usama bin Laden is thought to be hiding. It is also a stronghold for Al Qaeda, Taliban and other anti-U.S. fighters.

When asked if the men were directly hunting for Laden, one source told Fox News: "We can't talk specifically about who they were hunting down ... but, they were definitely after top bad guys."

[Peach]

Would I like to be a fly on the wall when these operations are discussed. Someday in the distant future, books will be written about a lot of these operations.

[Dog]

Hunting OBL???

[Peach]

Thought it was interesting this AP article named the CIA guys killed in Afghanistan today. Seems it barely gives the agency enough time to notify their families and would compromise other agents working with them.


WASHINGTON -- Two contractors working for the CIA were killed in an ambush in Afghanistan, the agency said Tuesday.

William Carlson, 43, of Southern Pines, N.C., and Christopher Glenn Mueller, 32, of San Diego, were "tracking terrorists operating in the region" of Shkin, a village in eastern Afghanistan, when they were killed Saturday, the CIA said in a statement.

Both were veterans of military special operations forces, the CIA said.

"William Carlson and Christopher Mueller were defined by dedication and courage," CIA Director George J. Tenet said in a statement. "Their sacrifice for the peoples of the United States and Afghanistan must never be forgotten."

The pair was working for the CIA's Directorate of Operations, which conducts clandestine intelligence-gathering and covert operations.

The CIA statement says the agency consulted with the dead officers' families and decided their names could be released without compromising ongoing operations.

They are the third and fourth CIA operatives that the agency has acknowledged have been killed in the line of duty since the Sept. 11 attacks.

The first, paramilitary officer Johnny Micheal Spann, was killed during an uprising of Taliban and al-Qaida prisoners in northern Afghanistan on Nov. 25, 2001.

The second, Helge Boes, died in a training accident in eastern Afghanistan, on Feb. 5, 2003.

The agency did not provide particulars on the ambush or the two operatives' mission.

The region they were operating in is part of the remote mountainous region along the border of Afghanistan and Pakistan, where Osama bin Laden is thought to be hiding. It is also a stronghold for al-Qaida, Taliban and other anti-U.S. fighters.
Copyright © 2003, The Associated Press

[Coop]

Hunting OBL???

I doubt he'd set foot in Afghanistan. It could simply be their general mission was to track him, the Doc and others, but it involved many tactical operations in order to capture/kill/track various terrorists.

[Aaron0617]

Thought it was interesting this AP article named the CIA guys killed in Afghanistan today. Seems it barely gives the agency enough time to notify their families and would compromise other agents working with them.

I wish they didn't release any of this. Maybe they should've 'hidden' this as 2 soldiers KIA in Afganistan.

Because now the Taliban/Al Qaeda, if they didn't know it before, know we have small teams in Pakistan hunting for them. Now they know what to look out for.

I would not have disclosed their mention.

[Aaron0617]

mention = mission

[EternalVigilance]

Prayers for the families of these American heroes.

[csvset]

Intelligence sources said a search of his house uncovered some compact discs, maps, a lap top computer, hand grenades and other weapons.

Authorities arrested three Yemenis suspected of being al Qaeda operatives in Karachi, the sources said. They identified the three as Youswaf bin Zavi, Jawad al Bashir, and a man whose name was given only as Shaban.

They said satellite phones, pistols, and foreign currency were recovered.

With any luck this will lead to yet more captures and or extermination of AQ types.

[Freemeorkillme]

Coordinated attack gone fubar? Perhaps. Perhaps, not.

Thank both these brave warriors deep in enemy territory. They paid the ultimate price to keep the fight on the enemies turf not ours.

WAKE up you "pull-the-troops-out" kinds!

[FlyVet]

10 suspected enemy fighters were killed by Afghan army troops

Bump for that, any time an Afghani or an Iraqi takes on some responsibility for their own freedom.

[csvset]

Where exactly was this raid??

[Coop]

know we have small teams in Pakistan hunting for them.

This happened in Afghanistan. But I guarantee you Al Qaeda already knew these assets were around. They've lost too many terrorists to them.