Posted on 10/12/2002 12:36:34 AM PDT by HAL9000
BAGRAM, Afghanistan, Oct 12, 2002 (AP WorldStream via COMTEX) -- U.S. troops have found two warehouses filled with a staggering arsenal believed to belong to a maverick Afghan commander, the military said Saturday.The smaller of the two caches found Friday filled 35 trucks and ranged from machine guns to 120mm rockets and mortar rounds, Col. Roger King said. Troops from the Army's 82nd Airborne Division were still counting the larger find.
The warehouses were found in the southeastern city of Khost after Afghan officials tipped off U.S. forces.
King said the weapons were believed to belong to Bacha Khan Zardran, a warlord who helped defeat the Taliban, but who later tried to seize control of the Khost region over the wishes of the central Afghan government. Last month, he was driven from Khost by forces allied with the government.
Some of Zardran's soldiers are still fighting with the United States against remnants of the Taliban and al Qaida in eastern Afghanistan. King was unsure how long the weapons had been stored in the warehouses.
It also wasn't clear where Zardran got all these weapons. Until his falling out with the central government, Zardran was a key U.S. ally and one of the first to join U.S. soldiers last December to fight Taliban and al Qaida.
During the Taliban's rule, Zardran lived in Pakistan, banished from his homeland by the hardline militia and threatened with arrest if he returned.
Zardran opposed the Taliban's harsh interpretation of Islam.
The arsenal "is significant in that it's got ammunition and the weapons systems that go with it, so it is more or less complete," King said.
King said the weapons and ammunition were in good condition, and that U.S. forces would "more than likely" give some of the 18,450 82mm mortar rounds, seven 82mm mortars, 1,800 rocket-propelled grenade launchers, and 30 heavy machine guns to fighters allied to local warlords. An Afghan commander, Lodin, controls the area.
Critics say handing over weapons to local warlords fortifies them at a time when the United States is trying to strengthen President Hamid Karzai's central government.
King said it took most of Friday to load the trucks and bring it to Forward Operating Base Salerno, one of the military's outposts near Khost.
He said the find is part of Operation Alamo Sweep, in which about 2,000 troops are combing the Afghan region along the Pakistani border in search of remnants of al-Qaida.
King said Friday's find also included:
- 4,162 recoilless 82mm rounds.
- 23 120mm mortar rounds.
- 75 120mm rockets.
- 930 57mm artillery rounds.
- 210 76mm anti-tank rounds.
- 150 85mm artillery rounds.
- 705 37mm rounds
- 17 boxes of detonation cord.
- 449,000 rounds of .50 caliber machine gun ammunition.
- One anti-tank gun.
- One 75mm recoilless rifle.
- Three .50 caliber miniguns.
- A 120mm mortar tube.
- 34 artillery guns of various caliber.
Copyright 2002 Associated Press, All rights reserved
- 4,162 recoilless 82mm rounds. - 23 120mm mortar rounds. - 75 120mm rockets. - 930 57mm artillery rounds. - 210 76mm anti-tank rounds. - 150 85mm artillery rounds. - 705 37mm rounds - 17 boxes of detonation cord. - 449,000 rounds of .50 caliber machine gun ammunition. - One anti-tank gun. - One 75mm recoilless rifle. - Three .50 caliber miniguns. - A 120mm mortar tube. - 34 artillery guns of various caliber.
They left out ten rounds of 5.6mm
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.