Afghan national army soldiers, advised by coalition forces, killed 20 armed militants in Kajaki District, Helmand province, April 1.

In a continuous effort to deny militant freedom of movement, the ANA-led force conducted a combat reconnaissance patrol in an area of known militant presence. While conducting a dismounted patrol, the combined elements were attacked by dozens of armed militants with small-arms and rocket-propelled grenade fire. The ANA-led force returned fire, causing the enemy to withdraw to secondary fighting positions.

The ANA and coalition forces positively identified the enemy fighting position as the militants regrouped. Once the combined elements ensured there were no non-combatants in the area, a precision strike was called to neutralize the enemy.

Twenty militants were killed in the engagement. No ANA, coalition forces or non-combatant injuries were reported.

“The ANA soldiers and coalition forces work side-by-side in pursuit of militants who are quickly losing their ability to operate in Helmand province,” said Col. Greg Julian, U.S. Forces-Afghanistan spokesperson.

DVIDS

Afghan and coalition forces killed 12 militants March 27, during a raid of a militant location to further degrade bomb-making and facilitation networks in northern Helmand province.

In Nahr Surk District, Helmand province, approximately 125 km west of Kandahar, Afghan and coalition forces targeted a compound housing militants. When the assault force arrived at the targeted location, militants positioned south of the compound immediately began attacking the force using small-arms fire. The forces returned fire and called for supporting fire to diminish the threat of the militants who were concealed in a line of trees and maneuvering in a field, resulting in four enemies killed.

Having eliminated the immediate threats, the assault force proceeded to the target, meeting resistance from militants located inside buildings on the compound.

Aware that women and children may be inside, Afghan forces called out for non-combatants to exit the buildings, but none complied. The assault force attempted to clear one building where two militants had barricaded themselves behind women and children. When the assault force encountered the armed militants, they killed them without harming the non-combatants.

As they continued to clear the compound, the force began receiving small-arms fire from multiple barricaded shooters inside another building. The assault force proceeded to clear the rest of the compound without incident.

Nine women and 20 children were protected despite the militants using a common Taliban tactic of placing innocent civilians in harm’s way. One child received a minor injury during the engagement and received immediate care from a coalition medic with no further treatment required.

DVIDS

Vital new medical equipment donated by Estonia was delivered this week to the recently refurbished Bost Hospital in Lashkar Gah, Helmand province in southern Afghanistan.

The life-saving equipment and supplies were delivered to Kandahar Airfield and then transported by Afghan convoy to the outskirts of Lashkar Gah with the protection of the Estonian infantry company who operate out of the Helmand Provincial Reconstruction Team base.

The hospital was built and equipped in 1965, and despite being one of the few provincial hospitals equipped to standards required by the Afghanistan Ministry of Public Health, it still struggles with the lack of equipment and trained personnel.

“This equipment, donated by Estonia, will provide a big boost to the capability of the hospital,” said Dr. Argo Parts, of the Estonian Special Mission to Afghanistan. “The equipment will help to provide the operating rooms and the Intensive Care Unit of the hospital with an all-important oxygen provision system, which will ultimately save lives.”

ISAF

ISAF is aware of an incident that took place in the area of Nad-i-Ali, Helmand province this morning where ISAF forces, operating in support of an ANA operation, came under heavy and sustained fire from a clearly identified compound.

After sustained contact from the enemy from numerous positions, and having exhausted all other means of extracting themselves from the area, they called for close air support.

Two targeted air strikes were carried out as a last resort to enable the joint patrol to leave the area safely.

An investigation is ongoing. ISAF can confirm that 2 people were killed and 6 others injured. These individuals were brought to an ISAF base in Nad-i-Ali after the incident. The cause and status of these casualties has yet to be established and is subject to investigation.

After initial medical treatment, the 4 most seriously injured casualties were taken to the ISAF hospital at Camp Bastion. The 2 others remained at the ISAF base. Of the 4 taken to the ISAF hospital, 2 have since been detained. The 2 less seriously injured casualties, who stayed at the ISAF base in Nad-i-Ali, have also been detained.

Spokesman for Governor Ghulab Mangal, Daoud Ahmadi, said: “Taliban fighters have always ruthlessly used religious places, public buildings and civilian houses as their bases, which causes civilian casualties.

“Their actions are contrary to Islamic rules and Afghan behaviour.”

ISAF

Afghan army commandos and their coalition partners killed four militants while simultaneously protecting nearly 90 civilians in an early morning operation today in western Afghanistan, military officials reported.

The combined forces were conducting a raid on a compound, targeting a Taliban commander in Farah province’s Dowlatabad village when they received fire from several enemy fighting positions. The combined forces quickly returned fire and also established a security perimeter to protect the civilians, who included 30 children, officials said.

The exchange of fire resulted in the deaths of four enemy fighters who local residents confirmed were Taliban militants.

During the search for more militants, commandos discovered a fully operational explosive device in a local mosque. Commandos removed the bomb and destroyed it. The detonation caused minor damage to the mosque’s exterior wall, for which the commandos provided compensation to village elders. The operation also uncovered numerous small arms weapons and bomb-making materials.

No Afghan, coalition or civilian casualties resulted from the operation, officials said.

In other news from Afghanistan, Afghan and coalition forces killed 10 militants near Highway 1 in the Nahr Surkh district of Helmand province yesterday. The forces were conducting a security patrol when they were attacked by militants with small-arms and machine-gun fire. They returned fire, killing the 10 militants.

During the engagement, an Afghan soldier was shot in the back. He was treated on site and transported to a nearby Coalition medical facility. No other Afghan or coalition forces or civilians were injured during the engagement, officials said.

Also yesterday, Afghan and coalition forces killed four armed militants and detained eight others yesterday during an operation in Kapisa province in which an Afghan woman and child were injured when the insurgents used them as human shields, officials said.

In the Tagab district, coalition forces provided medical care to the Afghan woman and child, whom the forces believe lived with the militants. The two were injured when one of the militants detonated a hand grenade. They are recovering at a military hospital, officials said.

The operation targeted the Hizb-e-Islami Gulbuddin terrorist network, which is known to plan and coordinate attacks against civilians and coalition forces, including an attack in August that killed 10 French soldiers, officials said.

As the force attempted to search the compound, they received a large volume of small-arms fire and hand grenades from militants barricaded in a section of the compound. Coalition forces responded with small-arms fire and killed them.

A search of the compound revealed multiple AK-47 assault rifles, hand grenades and other military equipment, which were destroyed to prevent future use. The force detained three suspected militants as a result of the operation.

In Khowst province, Afghan and coalition forces captured a targeted Haqqani terrorist network operative and five other suspects during a combined operation in the Mandozai district. The wanted man is a suspect in roadside and suicide bombings, officials said. Troops searched the compound without incident.

DVIDS