Afghanistan — Forces Detain Insurgents, Seize Drugs, Weapons

WASHINGTON, May 21, 2010 — Afghan and inter­na­tion­al forces detained sev­er­al insur­gents and seized ille­gal drugs and weapons in recent oper­a­tions in Afghanistan, mil­i­tary offi­cials report­ed.

An Afghan-inter­na­tion­al secu­ri­ty force pur­su­ing a Tal­iban com­man­der in Kan­da­har province detained two mil­i­tants in the Zharay dis­trict last night. 

The com­bined force went to a series of com­pounds after intel­li­gence infor­ma­tion indi­cat­ed insur­gent activ­i­ty, and two men ran away as the force approached. The two men were cap­tured after a lengthy chase. They told the patrol they were Pak­istani fight­ers, and that they had rock­et-pro­pelled grenades and auto­mat­ic rifles hid­den at anoth­er location. 

In Hel­mand province last night, a com­bined force searched a small com­pound north­east of Mar­ja after intel­li­gence infor­ma­tion indi­cat­ed insur­gent activ­i­ty and detained sev­er­al sus­pects for questioning. 

In Helmand’s Now Zad dis­trict yes­ter­day, an Inter­na­tion­al Secu­ri­ty Assis­tance Force patrol found and con­fis­cat­ed 39 bags of sus­pect­ed hero­in with an esti­mat­ed street val­ue of $3 mil­lion. The drugs were confiscated. 

In Helmand’s Nad‑e Ali dis­trict yes­ter­day, an Afghan-inter­na­tion­al patrol found an assault rifle, small-arms ammu­ni­tion, five mag­a­zines and a bun­dle of elec­tri­cal wire. 

No Afghan civil­ians were harmed in these oper­a­tions, offi­cials said. 

In oth­er news from Afghanistan, an ISAF heli­copter was struck by an insur­gent-fired rock­et-pro­pelled grenade today as it pre­pared to land at a check­point in Nad‑e Ali. No one was seri­ous­ly injured, offi­cials said. The heli­copter is at a secure site and a dam­age assess­ment is under way. 

Source:
Com­piled from Inter­na­tion­al Secu­ri­ty Assis­tance Force Joint Com­mand News Releases