Islamic State attacks Save the Children charity in eastern Afghanistan
The attack forced the charity to temporarily shut down its offices across the country.
Author Archives: Bill Roggio
Pakistan ‘condemns drone strike’ that killed Haqqani Network commander
The Pakistan government often criticizes US airstrikes that kill members of the Afghan Taliban, including Haqqani Network leaders.
US drone strike inside Pakistan targets ‘Afghan extremist’
The last five US counterterrorism strikes have all taken place inside Pakistan’s Kurram tribal agency. The Afghan Taliban, including the Haqqani Network, is known to operate inside Kurram and use it as a base to attack Afghanistan.
Pakistan pits CENTCOM commander against Trump administration
In a conversation with Pakistan’s Chief of Army Staff, the Pakistani military claimed CENTCOM commander General Joseph Votel said the idea that the Taliban uses Pakistan as a safe haven is “undermining … Pakistan’s contributions in war against terrorism” in Washington.
Pakistan frees jihadist leader behind deadly uprising
Sufi Mohammed was responsible for the Taliban uprising in Swat and the peace agreement that put jihadists in control of a significant area of Pakistan from 2007 to 2009.
Trump blasts Pakistan for its ‘lies & deceit’
If Trump is serious about hitting back at Pakistan, expect the US to ramp up drone strikes against jihadists, and not just in Pakistan’s tribal areas.
US targets Shabaab fighters, car bomb
At least 17 Shabaab fighters were killed and a suicide car bomb was destroyed in two strikes that have taken place in Somalia over the past four days.
US kills Afghan Taliban commander in drone strike inside Pakistan
Jamiuddin, was a “trusted man” within the Haqqani Network, a subgroup of the Afghan Taliban, who helped fighters move from Pakistan to Afghanistan.
Taliban features its ‘Umari Martyrdom Battalion’
The video is the latest in a series of propaganda that promotes Taliban units and the network of training camps.
US targets Taliban drug facilities in Helmand
F/A-18 Super Hornets, flown from a US Navy aircraft carrier, targeted and destroyed the Taliban drug labs in Helmand province.
US killed commander of Taliban’s ‘Red Unit’
Mullah Shah Wali, the leader of the Red Unit’s forces in Helmand , was killed in a US airstrike in the Taliban-controlled district of Musa Qala. The Red Unit has served as the Taliban’s shock troops and special forces.
Afghan official ‘happy’ Taliban controls 219 schools in Herat
“We are very happy with this work of the Taliban,” Herat’s director of education said after noting that 219 of the province’s 969 schools are controlled by the Taliban. He admitted that five districts are off limits to education officials.
Pakistan laughingly says its fight against terrorists is ‘unmatched in the world’
“Pakistan’s resolve, actions and successes in the fight against terrorism, terrorist violence and terrorists is unmatched in the world,” the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the day after Lashkar-e-Taiba leader Hafiz Saeed was freed from house arrest.
Taliban promotes gains in remote Kandahar district
The video is similar to others produced by the Taliban that highlights the group’s battlefield gains against overstretched Afghan forces.
Coalition attacks Taliban command center and drug labs
The US military and Afghan Air Force hit a Taliban command and control center and seven “drug labs” in what was described as “previously un-targeted safe havens in the South and Southwest” Afghanistan.
US military targets al Qaeda’s branch in Somalia
The US military has now targeted Shabaab forces using airstrikes at least 14 times this year. Shabaab has continued to threaten the Somali capital despite the increased US targeting.
Taliban video shows fighters entering valley after Afghan forces retreat
The Taliban released video of its forces entering the Fanduqistan Valley in Afghanistan’s central province of Parwan after Afghan forces retreated.
Taliban touts “Special Forces Unit”
While the Taliban’s “Special Forces Unit” certainly isn’t trained to the same standards and proficiency as US special operations forces, it has proven to be effective on the battlefield against its Afghan adversaries.
Islamic State suffers defeats in Iraq and Syria
The Syrian military has taken full control of Deir Ezzour, while Iraqi troops and Iranian supported militias ejected the Islamic State from Al Qaim.
SIGAR: ‘Afghan government district control deteriorated’
The Afghan government’s ability to control its territory has “deteriorated” as the Taliban has gained control of additional districts, according to SIGAR. This tracks with an analysis of Afghanistan’s districts conducted by FDD’s Long War Journal, which tracks Taliban controlled and contested districts.
Taliban fighters mass in western Afghan province
Hundreds of Taliban fighters in the western province of Farah paraded their vehicles and then stood in formation for a lengthy period of time, without fear of being targeted by Afghan or Coalition forces, to listen to an official give a speech recently.
US military hits Islamic State in Yemen
An estimated 60 Islamic State fighters are thought to have been killed in three US strikes that have targeted the group over the past two weeks.
Leader of Jamaat-ul-Ahrar emerges after reports of his death
Omar Khalid Khurasani, who was reported to have died on Oct. 19 after a US drone strike, is alive. However, he confirmed the death of Khalifa Umar Mansour, the group’s military leader who was killed in a US airstrike back in Afghanistan in July 2016.
Taliban suicide bomber kills 15 Afghan army cadets
Resolute Support, NATO’s mission in Afghanistan, claimed that today’s bombing in Kabul “shows the insurgents are desperate and cannot win.” However the Taliban has sustained offensive operations in all areas of the country and has had battlefield successes against a struggling Afghan military.
US kills influential al Qaeda-linked Pakistani Taliban leader in Afghanistan
Omar Khalid al Khurasani was closely allied with al Qaeda and its emir, Ayman al Zawahiri. In the past Khurasani has called for the imposition of sharia law, the establishment of a global caliphate, and the seizure of Pakistan’s nuclear weapons. He was killed in a drone strike in Paktia province.
Taliban overruns Afghan army camp in Kandahar
Afghan forces suffered 97 percent casualties during the suicide assault. The attack is the latest in the southern province, where the Taliban has stepped up its attacks on Afghan military outposts.
Taliban suicide assault teams kill Paktia police chief
Taliban suicide teams hit the police headquarters and a training center in the provincial capital of Gardez City. Twenty-two policemen and 20 civilians were killed and scores more were wounded.
Taliban overruns 3 districts in southern Afghanistan
Taliban forces have overrun two district centers in Kandahar and Farah provinces over the past two days. The jihadist group continues to gain ground in Afghanistan despite a change in US strategy that has reduced restrictions on local commanders to launch airstrikes against the group.
CJTF-OIR: Kirkuk a ‘misunderstanding’ attributed to ‘limited visibility conditions’
CJTF-OIR made the statement despite the fact that it was abundantly obvious that the Iraqi government sought to seize Kirkuk from the Kurdish Peshmerga, and had signaled its intentions days before.
US drones target Taliban commander in Pakistan’s tribal areas
The strike took place just days after Pakistan freed two westerners and their children from Taliban custody in the same tribal agency.