Re: Two British troops killed in major Afghan push - Two American soldiers in Helmund
nkdatta8839
wrote:
> As the American push in Afghanistan begins, account has been opened
> for death of US and British soldiers. They have admitted that so far
> four NATO soldiers and 16 Afghan soldiers have been consigned to
> hell:
>
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/31724629/ns/world_news-south_and_central_asia
26 killed in Pakistan helicopter crash
Military blames technical problem; Taliban claims aircraft shot down
NBC News and news services
updated 9:04 a.m. PT, Fri., July 3, 2009
ISLAMABAD - A military helicopter crashed in northwestern Pakistan on
Friday, killing 26 security personnel, a Pakistan military official
said.
The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said a technical
problem led to the crash, although the Taliban claimed it shot down
the chopper, NBC News reported.
Earlier, Pakistan's army spokesman Maj. Gen. Athar Abbas said a
helicopter had crashed in the northwest, but gave no details on
casualties.
The crash of the MI-17 army helicopter happened about 12 miles from
the main city of Peshawar at the border of Orakzai and Khyber.
Earlier Friday, U.S. missiles struck a training facility operated by
Pakistani Taliban leader Baitullah Mehsud and a militant communication
center, killing 17 people and wounding 27 others, intelligence
officials told The Associated Press.
The two attacks by drone aircraft took place in South Waziristan, a
Mehsud stronghold close to the Afghan border where Pakistani troops
are gearing up for a military offensive, two officials said on
condition of anonymity.
The drone attacks were the latest in a string of more than 40 believed
to have been be carried out by the United States against militant
targets in the border area since last August. Washington does not
directly acknowledge being responsible for the attacks, which kill
civilians as well as militants.
Most Pakistanis criticize the drone attacks, and Islamabad officially
protests them as violations of its sovereignty. Still, most experts
believe the government secretly approves of them and likely provides
the United States with intelligence.
Missile strikes
In one attack Friday, two missiles struck an abandoned seminary in the
village of Mantoi that was being used by militants from Mehsud's group
for training, the officials said. In the other strike, one missile hit
an insurgent communications center in the nearby village of Kokat
Khel, they said.
In total, 17 people were killed and 27 others were wounded, they said.
However, Maulvi Noor Syed, an aide to Mehsud, told The Associated
Press that three Taliban fighters died in the strikes.
"We lost only three mujahedeen (holy warriors) in today's American
missile attack," Syed said. "These attacks cannot cause any damage to
us."
Access to the rugged, dangerous region is strictly controlled, and the
death toll could not be independently verified.
The drone attack came as U.S. Marines in neighboring Afghanistan
pushed deeper in the southern Helmand province, a day after 4,000
Marines launched a major anti-Taliban offensive. Pakistan said it
moved troops to the stretch of its border opposite Helmand to stop
militants fleeing the American assault.
The United States wants Pakistan to crack down on militants on its
side of the border, believing it essential to stabilizing Afghanistan
eight years after the invasion that ousted the Taliban there.
Ramping up pressure
Also Friday, U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano met
government officials in the Pakistani capital, Islamabad. She
discussed topics of "mutual interest" with them, a U.S. Embassy
spokesman said.
The Pakistani military launched an offensive in the Swat region close
to the border in early May and is currently gearing up for operations
in South Waziristan to eliminate Mehsud, who has been blamed for a
string of deadly suicide attacks across the country that have killed
more than 100 people in the past month.
In neighboring North Waziristan on Friday, Pakistani warplanes bombed
suspected militant hide-outs, killing at least four insurgents and
wounding seven others, two more intelligence officials said. Those
airstrikes hit targets where Taliban fighters killed 16 government
troops in an ambush earlier this week, the officials said, also
speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to
speak to the media.
The U.S. appears to be ramping up the pressure on Mehsud, who is
viewed in Islamabad with growing alarm. Last week, the Taliban leader
narrowly escaped a strike on a funeral for militants killed in an
earlier drone attack. Eighty people died in the strike, although
Mehsud escaped unharmed.
> AFP
> GARMSIR, Afghanistan (AFP) — Two British soldiers and two police
> officers were killed in southern Afghanistan as thousands of troops
> have moved into Taliban strongholds ahead of August polls, officials
> said on Sunday. Afghan, US, British and Danish ...
> Two US troops die in base attack far from Helmand offensiveChristian
> Science Monitor
> 2 British Soldiers Killed, 16 UN Personnel Abducted in
> AfghanistanFOXNews
> Two British soldiers killed during anti-Taleban offensive in ...Times
> Online
> The Associated Press -Xinhua -Aljazeera.net