Two days ago, ISAF captured a “financial facilitator” for the al-Qaeda linked Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan during a special operations raid in Kunduz province (ISAF did not identify the district where the raid took place). From the ISAF press release:
An Afghan and coalition security force arrested an Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan financial facilitator in Kunduz province, Wednesday.
The arrested leader is suspected of being heavily involved in purchasing and trafficking weapons for use in attacks on Afghan and coalition forces in Kunduz province.
The security force also detained multiple suspected insurgents as a result of the operation.
The presence of IMU and al Qaeda cells has been detected in all seven of Kunduz’s districts: Aliabad, Archi, Chahar Darah, Imam Sahib, Khanabad, Kunduz, and Qal’ah-ye Zal; according to an investigation by The Long War Journal.
Special operations forces have conducted 13 raids against the IMU in Kunduz province alone so far this year. In the last reported raid, on Oct. 2, ISAF captured “a senior Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan leader and weapons facilitator” in Kunduz’s Chahar Darah district. In the previous raid, on Sept. 19 in the Qal’ah-ye Zal district, special operations forces captured Qari Yahya, the IMU’s top leader for Kunduz. Yayha was “maintaining communication and logistic ties with senior IMU and Taliban leaders” before he was captured.
The IMU has been a prime target of special operations forces in Afghanistan. So far this year, special operations forces have conducted at least 31 raids against the IMU; in Badakhshan, Baghlan, Faryab, Logar, Helmand, Kunduz, Takhar, and Wardak, or eight of Afghanistan’s 34 provinces; according to International Security Assistance Force press releases compiled by The Long War Journal.
This spring, ISAF killed the two previous IMU leaders for Afghanistan, in raids just a few weeks apart in Faryab province. [See LWJ report, Special operations forces kill newly appointed IMU leader for Afghanistan, for more information.]
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1 Comment
One can’t help but wonder if the IMU has a spy(ies?) in their midst. Whatever misgivings one may have concerning ‘spec ops’ in Afghanistan the targeting of the IMU is evidence of a capability worthy of fear, respect, & admiration.