Note: The following text is a quote:
http://www.defenselink.mil/news/newsarticle.aspx?id=46553
Two Terrorists Killed, 20 Suspects Detained in Iraq
American Forces Press Service
WASHINGTON, June 26, 2007 – Coalition forces killed two terrorists and detained two suspects during operations today targeting al Qaeda in Iraq leaders and their bombing network.
Coalition forces raided four buildings in different areas. Forces killed one and detained one in an operation southwest of Baghdad targeting a senior terrorist leader known to supply vehicles and other components for car bombs.
In Mosul, coalition forces targeted an al Qaeda in Iraq military commander responsible for improvised explosive device emplacements there. During the raid, the suspect was killed.
Forces raided two buildings east of Bayji searching for associates of a known al Qaeda leader. One suspect was detained there.
In other recent operations in Iraq:
— Soldiers with the 2nd Infantry Division’s 2nd Infantry Brigade Combat Team detained six insurgents during Operation Council Grove II yesterday in an eastern section of the Iraqi capital. The 2nd Battalion, 16th Infantry Regiment, based out of Fort Riley, Kan., conducted raids in the Kamaliyah neighborhood.
— Multinational Division Baghdad soldiers northwest of Taji captured three suspected insurgents believed to be responsible for several IED attacks. Soldiers from the 1st Cavalry Division’s 1st Brigade Combat Team conducted an air assault operation into a rural area northwest of Taji, capturing the three suspected insurgents and recovering small arms weapons.
— Iraqi army forces detained two suspected al Qaeda cell leaders during an operation June 24 south of Baghdad.
The two detainees are suspected of involvement in IED attacks on Iraqi and coalition forces, death squad activities against local civilians, housing foreign fighters and transporting weapons. They confiscated weapons and a large amount of currency at the scene.
— Soldiers participating in Operation Crazyhorse Thunder detained seven suspects for allegedly planting IEDs along Route Tampa, the highway leading into Baghdad, June 23. Soldiers from the 10th Mountain Division’s 1st Squadron, 89th Cavalry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, targeted a cell based in the Abu Shiekan and Abu Hillan villages believed to be responsible for setting IEDs several times a week along the highway.
(Compiled from Multinational Force and Multinational Corps Iraq releases.)
Note: The following text is a quote:
http://www.defenselink.mil/news/newsarticle.aspx?id=46548
NATO Forces Winning Battle Against Taliban in Afghanistan
By Jim Garamone
American Forces Press Service
WASHINGTON, June 26, 2007 – Though the number of insurgent attacks in Afghanistan has increased as officials predicted it would with better weather, coalition forces are winning the battle against al Qaeda and the Taliban in NATO’s Regional Command East, a U.S. official in Afghanistan said today. (Video)
“The enemy continues to use all means available to him to attack our forces and disrupt the lives of Afghan civilians,” said Army Brig. Gen. Joseph Votel, deputy commander for operations at Combined Joint Task Force 82.
Speaking via teleconference from Bagram Air Base, Votel said the enemy is using improvised explosive devices, rockets, mortars and direct action against NATO’s International Security Assistance Force and Afghan security forces.
“The insurgents use intimidation tactics to frighten the population into abandoning their support for their government and disrupt development and governance activities,” he said. “In many places, we see this insurgent tactic failing as Afghan citizens reject these efforts and, in some cases, literally fight back against the insurgents.
NATO officials expected the Taliban to launch a spring offensive, and planned to blunt that move, the general said.
“Our operations since the spring have had a significant effect on the Taliban insurgency here,” Votel said. “We continue to be focused on neutralizing insurgents and creating a security environment that will allow development and extension of the legitimate government of Afghanistan.”
Coalition and Afghan forces have killed or captured dozens of Taliban commanders and sub-commanders, leaving cells without experienced leadership or direction, he said. The forces also are controlling many areas of the region previously held by the Taliban. The security the forces provide has allowed the Afghan government and aid organizations to build roads, schools and district centers.
U.S. and Afghan forces are working closely with Pakistani forces. Votel said the coordination allows better cooperation and communication among all partners and “has successfully allowed us to interdict insurgent infiltration back and forth through the border area.”
Afghan forces are stepping in to the lead, he said. The Afghan National Army’s 203rd Corps planned and executed Operation Maiwand, an operation in Ghazni province that began June 1. “Here Afghan forces are taking the lead in clearing areas of insurgent presence, working with district and provincial leadership and providing the foundation for sustained security,” Votel said.
The security that the NATO and Afghan national security forces bring to eastern Afghanistan allows continuing relief supplies and nation-building efforts to take place.
“Over the last two months, we’ve provided seed corn to farmers and commenced building an agricultural research station to improve the ability of Afghan farmers to produce food products,” he said. “We’ve repaired four schools and built 10 other ones. We completed eight other educational projects, ranging from self-help workshops to school … equipment and supplies, in an effort to help improve the future of Afghan children.”
The security has allowed the Afghan government and aid workers to build micro-hydroelectric power plants and irrigation projects.
Most critical in the rugged terrain of Afghanistan is the more than 8,000 kilometers of roads that the task force and allies have built in the region.
“We work with the Afghan Engineer District of the Corps of Engineers here to help build those roads, identify them and get them in place,” Votel said. The roads allow the government to push supplies and aid into areas inaccessible before. The roads also allow the residents to get goods out of the region