| Submit your comments on this article |
| Afghanistan |
| Drone Strikes Kill 16 in Afghanistan |
| 2010-01-12 |
| The United States military said Tuesday that it had killed 16 insurgents in two airstrikes using “unmanned aerial vehicles,' or drones, which are highly unusual in Afghanistan and more frequently associated with attacks on militants in neighboring Pakistan. In a statement, the American command in Kabul said the attacks began early Monday with a strike on an suspected safe house at Now Zad in Helmand Province, one of the most contested areas in the growing battle between the American-led coalition and Taliban insurgents. The attack killed 13 militants, the statement said. A second operation in the Nad Ali district of Helmand killed three insurgents, the command said. On both occasions, the drones fired Hellfire antitank missiles. It was not immediately clear whether the use of drones signaled a significant tactical shift in the campaign against the Taliban after a year in which the number of allied deaths soared. |
| Posted by:tipper |