Dude! Talk about the happiest place on earth!

The commander of NATO forces in Afghanistan congratulated that country’s Ministry of Interior today for finding and destroying a stockpile of about 236.8 metric tonnes of hashish.
“The Afghan National Police Special Task Force has made a huge step forward in proving its capability in curbing the tide of illegal drug trade in this country,” said General David McKiernan, ISAF commander. “With this single find, they have seriously crippled the Taliban’s ability to purchase weapons that threaten the safety and security of the Afghan people and the region.”

The hashish found weighed about as much as 30 double-decker London buses and had an estimated regional wholesale value of $400 million. ISAF officials estimate that the Taliban would have pocketed about $14 million from the sale of the drugs.

The Ministry of Interior’s Afghan National Police Special Task Force received a tip in the morning of June 9 about a possible stockpile of drugs located about 40 kilometres from the Pakistan border in the Spin Buldak District of the Kandahar Province. The Special Task Force found the drugs hidden in multiple trenches, and by the evening, they had destroyed all 236.8 metric tonnes by setting fire to the trenches.

“We, here at the Ministry of Interior of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, note the continuing improvements and professionalism of our Afghanistan National Police,” said Lieutenant General Ab-Hadi Khalid, Minister of Interior’s first deputy minister, during a press conference June 11. “It is due to the education and training they are receiving through the help of the international community.”

General McKiernan said, “The international community will continue to support the Afghan forces with more of the same training and support that helped them achieve such success in this mission.”

The Minister of Interior also reports that in a separate recent counter-narcotics operation in the Helmand Province, the Afghan National Police seized about 5,108 kilograms of opium, which has an estimated value of $30 million, and arrested 13 drug dealers.

“The Afghan National Police have many reasons to be proud this day,” General McKiernan added.

ISAF

Operation Sawlat al-Fursan, or Charge of the Knights, lead by the 1st Iraqi Army Division, a battalion from the 14th IA Division, and two Iraqi National Police battalions, continued searching and clearing operations in Abu Al Khasib of Basra, Iraq May 31.

The Iraqi Army led the sweep from early May 31 to early June 1. Two Iraqi National police battalions followed as a support component searching for criminal elements and weapons caches.

The National IP detained one suspect and discovered a cache of 52 AK-47 assault rifles and one sub-machine gun.

Coalition Forces from the U.S. Marine Corps and United Kingdom Military Transition Teams remain with the IA in a supporting role to enable assets, if necessary.

The operation, which began March 25 in Basra, continues to bring the surrounding area to normalcy with infrastructure support missions focusing on canal clearing operations, substation repair and construction, and road repairs.

MNF-I

Iraqi Army Soldiers and Iraqi National Policemen, conducting operations in the Sadr City district of Baghdad, discovered weapons caches May 31.

National Policemen from 34th Brigade, 1st National Police Division, discovered an explosively formed projectile at approximately 8 a.m.

At approximately 9 a.m., Iraqi Army Soldiers with the 3rd Brigade, 1st IA Division, seized one EFP, two PKC light machine guns and one rocket-propelled grenade launcher.

In separate events, at approximately 9 a.m., Soldiers with the 34th Brigade, 9th IA Division, seized a number of EFPs, RPGs and rifles.

Iraqi Soldiers also with the 34th BDE, 9th IA Div., discovered a weapons cache at approximately 10 a.m. The cache consisted of 17 AK-47 assault rifles, one RPK machine gun, three rifles, one anti-tank mine, two 155 mm rounds and two small machine guns.

At approximately 11 a.m., Iraqi Soldiers from 34th BDE, 9th IA Div., seized another weapons cache consisting of six 81 mm and 82 mm mortar tubes, and more than 100 81 mm and 82 mm mortar rounds.

MNF-I

Follow the links:

Iraqi Army Soldiers find multiple IEDs in Sadr City

Iraqi Army Soldiers found multiple improvised explosive devices and other munitions during the initial stages of Operation Peace in Sadr City May 20.

Iraqi Special Operations Forces detain terrorist in Baghdad

Iraqi Special Operations Forces detained a terrorist in the al-Ghazaliya area of Baghdad May 20.

MND-B Soldiers stop IED emplacers in New Baghdad

Multi-National Division – Baghdad Soldiers killed 11 criminals in an ongoing operation in eastern Baghdad, May 21.

Iraqi National Police discover large cache

Iraqi National Police discovered a large weapons cache in the Kadamiyah district of Baghdad May 21.

Tip leads MND-C Soldiers to huge cache

A local sheik, informed by a Sons of Iraq member, gave a tip to Coalition forces, leading them to a huge munitions cache approximately 13 kilometers south of Baghdad May 21.

Acting on intelligence reports, Iraqi Security and Coalition forces initiated a combined operation to search for weapons caches at a psychiatric hospital in eastern Baghdad April 24.

Officials from 8th Brigade, 2nd National Police Division, took the lead as Multi-National Division – Baghdad Soldiers from 2nd Battalion, 30th Infantry Regiment, set an outer cordon for the operation at a psychiatric hospital in the Ubaydi neighborhood of the New Baghdad district.

The NP found nothing significant to report at the hospital; however, while searching the neighborhood, they did recover three rocket rails.

During the joint operation, the NP and U.S. Soldiers were attacked by four improvised explosive devices, two mortar attacks; they recovered two IEDs and were involved in four small-arms fire engagements.

Iraqi Security and Coalition forces killed an IED triggerman at 2:40 p.m.

Also, an air weapons team killed three Special Groups criminals when they attacked the patrol at 10:30 a.m.

Six NPs were wounded and no U.S. Soldiers were seriously injured in the operation.

MNF-I