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| Afghanistan |
| 82nd On The Hunt in Afghanistan |
| 2003-03-20 |
| About 1,000 U.S. troops launched a raid on villages in southeastern Afghanistan today, hunting for members of al Qaeda in the biggest U.S. operation here in just over a year. The operation began with an airborne assault southeast of Kandahar. Helicopters ferried troops from the Army's 82nd Airborne Division to the remote, mountainous area as the hunt for Osama bin Laden and his terrorist organization intensified. At Bagram air base, a statement said: "The White Devils of Coalition Task Force 82 began Operation Valiant Strike with an air assault at 6 a.m. this morning." The White Devils are a unit in the 82nd Airborne. "Valiant Strike will consist of offensive operations south east of Kandahar." In Kandahar, a military spokesman, Lt. Cory Angell, said the operation was not timed to coincide with the start of a U.S.-led war against Iraq. "There is no connection between the two," he said. Angell declined to say how many troops were involved, but said it was at least as big as an operation carried out in the southern Helmand Valley last month. Radio transmissions had been detected coming from caves above the villages. There have been several raids on both sides of the Afghanistan-Pakistan border in the weeks since authorities captured Khalid Sheik Mohammed. Authorities have said some of the subsequent arrests came as a result of Mohammed's capture. In southern Afghanistan, there have been increased attacks on Afghan government posts in recent weeks. The authorities have blamed remnants of Taliban and al Qaeda as well as Islamic militants loyal to of Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, a guerrilla leader and former Afghan prime minister labeled a terrorist by the United States. Also in southern Afghanistan, gunmen identified as Taliban guerrillas ambushed an Afghan government post, killing three Afghan soldiers, a security official said today. The soldiers were ambushed early Wednesday at Sherabik post, near the Pakistani border, and their throats slit by attacking , said Abdul Razzak Panjshiri, security chief of the Afghan town of Spin Boldak. Five Taliban attackers were arrested, he said. Soon to be deceased attackers. |
| Posted by:Steve |
| #3 Oh, He(c)k, we're coming for you very, very soon! |
| Posted by: Anonymous 2003-03-20 15:26:12 |
| #2 Actually, I think it was Geraldo trying to get his hooker and bar tab expenses into Fox HQ before he goes into the hills to hunt Osama. |
| Posted by: tu3031 2003-03-20 09:45:53 |
| #1 CNN is reporting that the "radio signals" were actually Al Queda operatives trying to resubmit there March Madness bracket picks. The chief of communications who was picked up last weekend was carrying all the picks,as well as the "points pot", and now morale is seriously low. "What if BYU has to change regional brackets... Even Allah won't be able to sort this out!" |
| Posted by: Capsu78 2003-03-20 09:39:20 |