KABUL, Afghanistan — Afghan soldiers caught a senior Taliban commander at a checkpoint who was wearing a burqa, while NATO forces on Wednesday fought Taliban militants in the second day of the alliance's largest-ever offensive in Afghanistan. Mullah Mahmood, who is accused of helping the Taliban detonate homicide bombs, was caught Tuesday in Kandahar province while wearing the all-encompassing Islamic veil worn here by women, NATO said. | He was wearing crotchless lace undies, too. |
On Wednesday, Afghan and U.S.-led coalition forces arrested a suspected Al Qaeda bomb expert and five other terrorist suspects in eastern Afghanistan. The U.S.-led coalition had information indicating "a suspected terrorist with strong ties to al-Qaida" and to a group that helped militants along Afghanistan's border region was inside an eastern Afghan compound near Jalalabad, it said. "The suspected terrorist was a (bomb-making) expert and logistics officer for the Tora Bora Front, which facilitates the movement of fighters from Pakistan to Afghanistan," the U.S. said. No shots were fired and no one was hurt during the raid.
Separately, U.S.-led coalition troops detained five men suspected of involvement in anti-government activities and "known terrorist groups," in the eastern city of Khost, the coalition said without elaborating. The troops uncovered a cache of grenades and armor-piercing rounds during their search, the statement said. No injuries occurred during the raid.In southern Zabul province, Taliban militants attacked a police checkpoint and wounded four policemen Wednesday, said provincial police chief Abdul Ghafar. The militants fled after the attack, which occurred near Qalat, Zabul's capital.