Nawa district, which is adjacent to the provincial capital of Lashkar Gah, was under Taliban control for nine months before Afghan forces could muster the strength to mount an operation and retake it.
Combined Joint Task Force – Operation Inherent Resolve said that Iraq’s Iranian-backed militias “deserve a share of the credit for their sacrifices” in the battle to liberate Mosul, yet calls for Iraqis to unite to prevent the return of the Islamic State.
The Taliban has issued 11 official statements on Voice of Jihad where it has wrongly claimed to have killed 45 American soldiers, and Resolute Support ignored them. Yet when the Islamic State falsely claimed it killed two Americans, Resolute Support quickly jumped into action to refute it.
AFRICOM continues to describe offensive operations against al Qaeda’s branch in Somalia as “self defense strikes.” The July 4 strike in southern Somalia targeted a Shabaab “troop concentration.”
While denouncing the designation of Syed Salahuddin, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs claimed that “Pakistan has a demonstrated and longstanding commitment of combating terrorism in all its forms and manifestations.”
State’s designation focused on Syed Salahuddin’s activities in the Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir. But Salahaddin his direct ties to Paksitan’s military and intelligence services, and supports jihad in Afghanistan and India.
CENTCOM announced today that Abu Khattab al Awlaqi, al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula’s emir for the Shabwah province in Yemen, was killed along with two associates in a June 16 airstrike that targeted “terrorist compounds and attack networks in Yemen.”
A Taliban suicide bomber targeted security personnel and civilians as they lined up to collect their pay prior to the start fo Eid al Fitr. The Taliban has targeted Kabul Bank branches in the past.
The governor of Darzab confirmed that Taliban fighters overran the district just one day after Islamic State fighters attacked the administrative complex.
US Central Command said that the Iranian-made drone was shot down after it “displayed hostile intent and advanced on Coalition forces.”
Russia’s Ministry of Defense has responded by shutting down the de-confliction hotline and warning that all US aircraft would now be considered hostile targets.
The Taliban suicide team used tactics that have been perfected by multiple jihadist groups on numerous battlefields over the past decade and a half.
Today’s insider attack, also known as green-on-blue attack, is the second of its kind in the past week, and the third reported so far this year. The attack took place on a base that was overrun by Taliban fighters two months ago.
General Bajwa made the statement despite the fact that drone strikes have killed scores of top tier terrorist leaders, including mortal enemies of the Pakistan state, and Pakistani officials have passed along actionable intelligence to terrorists to avoid raids.
Haqqani Network commander Abu Bakar and two close aides from the Afghan province of Paktika were killed in the attack, the fourth drone strike recorded in Pakistan this year.
While the Taliban wants to distance itself from the May 31 suicide truck bombing that killed more than 150 people because of the problems related to civilian casualties, it also appears to want to halt the execution of Taliban prisoners.
While announcing an airstrike that targeted a Shabaab “command and logistics node” in southern Somalia, the US military warned of al Qaeda’s resurgence in the country and said it has “taken advantage of safe haven.”
The attack that killed the three soldiers will only benefit the Islamic State, an enemy of the Taliban, by temporarily halting offensive operations in Nangarhar province. There have been two recorded insider attacks so far this year.
The US military noted that it does not seek a fight against pro-Syrian regime militias, but its forces will continue to defend themselves if threatened.
Between 30 and 60 Puntland troops are reported to have been killed after Shabaab overran a base in the Galgala mountains. Fighters from al Qaeda’s branch in East Africa have successfully overrun Somali and African Union bases in the past and inflicted high casualties.
The strike against pro-Syrian government militias is the second in the past month. The US military is training Free Syrian Army-branded militias in the area to battle the Islamic State.
While the US military insists that the loss of Raqqah and Mosul will deal a “a decisive blow” to the Islamic State, the group still controls a significant amount of terrain in both Syria and Iraq.
According to the NDS, the suicide bombers trained at the Mawlawi Ahmad Madrassa in Chaman, a border town in Pakistan’s Baluchistan province. The Taliban denied it executed the attack.
The Afghan Taliban paraded its forces in the daylight without fear of being targeted after overrunning the district center of Waghaz in the southeaster province of Ghazni last month.
A Taliban video shows an Afghan military helicopter blowing up just after it lands on a remote outpost on the top of a mountain. The Taliban has infiltrated military outposts in the past and conducted similar attacks.
An official Taliban spokesman described jihad as “obligatory worship” and said that there would be no cease-fire during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.
The Pakistani Taliban said it retaliated against the Pakistani military for a US drone strike that killed Abdullah, a “master in electronics.” The US has launched at least three drone strikes in Pakistan so far this year.
The Taliban continues its offensive in Kandahar. Afghan officials report that at least 18 soldiers were killed and four more were captured during another Taliban assault on a military base in Shah Wali Kot.
Taliban fighters overran a large military base earlier this week, and launched attacks on other installations throughout the province. The fighting in Kandahar takes place as the Taliban remains on the offensive on several fronts throughout the country as part of Operation Mansouri.
The operation took place just days after the US Treasury Department listed two tribal leaders from Marib as global terrorists for supporting al Qaeda.