AFP: Afghan troops and ISAF repulse Taliban from Khak-i Safid district

HERAT, Afghanistan, Nov 5, 2007 (AFP) – Taliban extremists briefly captured a third district in western Afghanistan early Monday but were driven out by Afghan forces and their international allies, officials said.

Taliban fighters in about 40 vehicles stormed into Khaki Safed district in the province of Farah around 1:30 am and took the administration headquarters, police and government officials said.

“Government authorities, police and the governor made a tactical withdrawal of the district administration centre,” said General Ekramuddin Yawar, police commander for western Afghanistan.

“Later Afghan police, army and ISAF (International Security Assistance Force) went back to the district and retook control at 3:30 am,” he told AFP.

Farah province, which borders Iran, had its Gulistan and Bakwa districts seized by Taliban rebels last week after intense fighting.

Yawar said the rebels had fired some rockets at the district administration building, which was slightly damaged, but there were no casualties to the government forces.

The Farah government spokesman, Mamnoon Rashidi, said it took 90 minutes for troops to take back Khaki Safed.

“Bakwa and Gulistan are in Taliban hands now. The forces are getting ready to retake control of those districts as well,” he said.

The Taliban, in government between 1996 and 2001, have previously overrun several districts in remote parts of Afghanistan but have been easily ejected with the help of the international forces on which the country relies.

They have, however, held the district of Musa Qala, close to Gulistan, since February and the area is considered a Taliban base.

President Hamid Karzai said at the weekend that the capture of remote districts was a result of the weaknesses of his own security forces.

The head of the Farah provincial council, Abdul Kader Daqiq, said his province had warned Kabul that the security forces were not capable of withstanding the Taliban.

“There are not enough police in these places and the army is not doing anything,” he said. “There is an emergency situation in Farah and the government should be careful.”

Farah is a strategic province in Afghanistan because of its border with Iran, across which opium and weapons are smuggled. A key road linking southern and western Afghanistan also runs through the province.

Reuters: Taliban capture third district in Farah

By Sharifuddin Sharafiyar
Reuters
Monday, November 5, 2007; 4:59 AM

HERAT, Afghanistan (Reuters) – Taliban insurgents have captured a third district in western Afghanistan, local officials said on Monday, defying Western assertions the rebels are unable to mount large military offensives.

The hardline Islamist Taliban relaunched their insurgency two years ago to topple the pro-Western Afghan government and eject the 50,000 foreign troops, expanding their operations further from the mainly Pashtun south where they are strongest.

Western forces say the Taliban’s greater reliance this year on suicide and roadside bombs is a result of heavy battlefield casualties they and Afghan troops have inflicted on the rebels and the insurgents’ inability to hold ground.

But in the last week, the Taliban have captured three districts in the western province of Farah, bordering Iran, forcing lightly armed Afghan police to flee and defying Afghan and foreign forces to retake the lost ground.

First, Taliban rebels captured the Farah district of Gulistan a week ago, then on Wednesday took nearby Bakwa. On Sunday, the insurgents seized Khak-e Sefid without a fight.

“Khake-e Sefid district fell into Taliban hands yesterday without any resistance from Afghan forces,” Qadir Daqiq, a Farah provincial council member told Reuters. A provincial official who declined to be named also confirmed the report.

Taliban forces had been building up around Khak-e Sefid for some days, a Western security analyst said. The rebels in Farah have been receiving arms through a Taliban leader based close to the Iranian border, he said on condition of anonymity.

“There are many Iranians and Pakistanis fighting among the Afghan Taliban,” Farah provincial police chief Abdulrahman Sarjang told Reuters.

POLICE MORALE LOW

Afghan and Western officials have often said the Taliban’s ranks are reinforced with foreign fighters, but have said they have no proof of any assistance at an official level.

Poor morale among Afghan police meant that up to 38 officers had defected to the Taliban in the last week in Farah, the security analyst said, and those that remained were unwilling or unable to put up much of a fight.

“As soon as the Taliban attacked in numbers they did their best to make a tactical withdrawal — they basically got out of there as quick as they could,” he said. “Their motivation is not there to fight.”

Local residents have complained that NATO-led troops, under Italian command in western Afghanistan, have not helped Afghan forces to retake the districts.

“The residents are complaining that foreign forces do not assist Afghan troops to retake the districts,” Maolavi Yahya, district chief of neighboring Delaram told Reuters. “They have been complaining for a week now.”

As fighting in Afghanistan drags on, frustration is growing among ordinary Afghans that their government and its Western backers have not provided security six years after Afghan and U.S.-led forces toppled the Taliban in 2001 for not handing over al Qaeda leaders in the wake of the September 11 attacks.

NATO commanders admit they have a limited window in which to defeat the Taliban and provide much-needed development before the Afghan public turns against their presence and public opinion in the West, frustrated by growing casualties, calls for the troops to be withdrawn, handing victory to the insurgents.

(Additional reporting by Hamid Shalizi and Jon Hemming in Kabul)

AFP: Another District in Farah falls to Taliban

November 2, 2007

HERAT, Afghanistan (AFP) — Taliban fighters have overrun a second district in western Afghanistan, a district governor said Friday, warning the rebels could be planning to sweep into his own area.
The police and administration heads of the strategic Bakwa district in Farah province had fled after days of attacks by scores of rebels, the official said, after the militants late Monday took the adjacent Gulistan district.
Taliban insurgents have previously overrun several districts in remote parts of Afghanistan, including Bakwa, but are easily ejected by the international militaries here to aid the country’s own weak security forces.
They have, however, held the district of Musa Qala, close to Gulistan, since February and the area is considered a Taliban base.
Bakwa police had made a “tactical withdrawal” to Delaram district after a new Taliban attack late Thursday, said Delaram governor Yahya Riadth.
“Taliban have control over Bakwa district now and the police and district governor have retreated to our district,” he said.
Riadth warned his district, bordered by both Bakwa and Gulistan, could also be attacked.
“The government needs to reinforce our district urgently otherwise we have intelligence reports that the Taliban will attack us from both districts they have captured,” he said.
Bakwa district governor Mawlawi Janan said the district administration centre was burnt down in Thursday’s assault, which police said earlier was carried out by about 100 Taliban.
Officials had been forced to “temporarily” move elsewhere, he said, without confirming his whereabouts.
Farah police chief Abdul Rehman Sarjang said one policeman was killed and one wounded in the heavy fighting in Bakwa overnight. “An unknown number of Taliban were also killed and wounded,” he said.
Bakwa police chief Mohammad Hashim said the withdrawal had been on the orders of authorities but was not significant. “We are ready to take back the district,” he told AFP.
The main road to Iran, one of Afghanistan’s most important trading partners, runs through the volatile district, which has seen a surge in Taliban-linked violence in the past few months.
NATO-led and Afghan security forces were preparing a fresh attempt to regain control of Gulistan, police said.
The Taliban were in government between 1996 and 2001, when they were driven from power for harbouring Al-Qaeda after the 9/11 attacks.
The hardliners have regrouped to wage an insurgency that is focused on southern and eastern Afghanistan but has gained footholds in other parts of the country, such as Bakwa.
The violence has claimed at least 5,000 lives this year, with most of the dead rebel fighters, according to a tally of tolls released by various officials.
In other attacks linked to the insurgency, a remotely detonated bomb blew up a police vehicle near the border with Pakistan, killing three policemen and wounding three more, Kunar province police chief Abdul Jalal Jalal told AFP.
Elsewhere in the same mountainous province, Taliban militants attacked a police post overnight and killed a policeman and wounded another, Jalal said.
A suicide attacker blew himself up in the eastern town of Sharan, wounding four civilians, most of them taxi drivers, Paktika province deputy police chief Farooq Sangari said.
“The suicide bomber has been torn into pieces and only his head is remaining,” he said.
The target of the blast was unclear as there were no security convoys in the area. There was no immediate claim of responsibility but the Taliban have carried out scores of such attacks this year.

Milan Il Sole: “Italian Soldiers Engaged in Battle; They Are Fighting 400 Jihadis From Helmand”

Italian Report Details Battle Between Afghan Forces, ‘Jihadis’ in Farah Province

[Report by Gianandrea Gaiani: "Italian Soldiers Engaged in Battle; They Are Fighting 400 Jihadis From Helmand"]

The Taliban have entered in great numbers the sector of Western Afghanistan that is controlled by NATO troops under Italian command. On Monday [ 29 October], around 400 jihadis coming from the southern province of Helmand entered Gulistan District, in Farah Province, the hottest of the four provinces entrusted to NATO’s Regional Western Command, led by Alpine Regiment General Fausto Macor.

According to Abdol Rehman Sarjang, the Gulistan chief of police, the Taliban joined local guerrillas in order to take over the district capital, where “they shot at the local population, killing seven.” Yousuf Ahmadi, a Taliban spokesman, has confirmed the conquest of the district, which has 55,000 inhabitants, 80% belonging to the Pashtun ethnic group, while the rest are Tajiks.

Sarjang reported that his officers suffered three losses, but that they killed or injured around 20 Taliban before withdrawing because of the enemy’s greater numbers. “We have had to make a tactical withdrawal,” but the officer confirmed that Afghan and NATO troops are fighting to “regain total control of the district.” This statement could confirm the involvement of the Italian troops deployed in Farah along with 200 US soldiers from the Provincial Reconstruction Team and a Green Berets division — special forces that are, however, under the command of Enduring Freedom.

Precisely in order to oppose Taleban advances, since last year the Italian command has deployed around 100 infantry soldiers from the Rapid Reaction Force and some special forces detachments. So far, no official Italian source has given any information regarding the operations that are under way. According to leaks, Italian troops are not directly involved in the clashes for the time being, but they are thought to be supporting an Afghan Army battalion and the police divisions engaged in the fighting.

The vehicles available include three CH-47 transport helicopters, two unmanned Predator recognition aircraft (which are able to maintain a systematic surveillance of the land for longer) and five Mangusta fighter helicopters (two of which were recently moved from the airport in Herat to the base in Farah).

If the figures given by the police are confirmed, the Taliban offensive under way in Gulistan is the largest in the sector under Italian command. For this reason it seems unlikely that Italian and allied troops are not involved in the fighting, particularly given the weakness of the government’s troops and the fact that Italian and American military advisors train Afghan battalions and accompany them into action.

Gulistan District was previously occupied by the Taliban, who were kicked out of there after heavy fighting in September 2005. This follows the usual tactic of taking control of a district and then withdrawing when allied reinforcements arrived. This is with the exception of Musa Qala, in Helmand [Province], which has been in the hands of Mola Omar’s men for a year now.

[Description of Source: Milan Il Sole-24 Ore (Internet Version-WWW) in Italian -- leading financial and economic daily. OSC EUP20071031058009 31 Oct 07]

Il Giornale: “No Vehicles for Italian Soldiers: This Is How the Budget Helps the Taliban”

Italian Commentary Fears Effects of Defense Budget Cuts on Afghanistan Mission

[Commentary by Fausto Biloslavo: "No Vehicles for Italian Soldiers: This Is How the Budget Helps the Taliban"]

This time the wall of silence surrounding the armed forces and our most difficult missions abroad has been broken. This was ensured by General Fabrizio Castagnetti, the army’s chief of General Staff, who denounced the shortcomings of the new budget. “If we go on like this, we risk not being able to replace the vehicles that the Taliban blow up,” the top officer said, referring to the worrying cuts planned for the defense budget.

A few hours later, at the NATO summit in Noordwijk, The Netherlands, there came another blow for the Prodi government’s low profile policy on Afghanistan, which is dictated by his governing majority’s pacifist blackmail. The NATO secretary, the Dutchman Jaap de Hoop Scheffer, wants all member countries to rotate on the front line against the Taliban in the hostile southern and eastern parts of Afghanistan. So, sooner or later, Italian soldiers will also be involved in the bloodiest part of the mission.

For the time being, given the dark forecasts for the budget, it will already be a success if we continue to be fully operational in Afghanistan. Gen Castagnetti, speaking in Turin yesterday morning at the opening of the academic year of the army’s practical school, opened up a can of worms. It will be the army, with its 7,000 men engaged abroad, that will suffer most from the cuts. Thinking about Afghanistan, the general’s quip must have been spontaneous: “If we go on like this, we risk not being able to replace the vehicles the Taliban blow up.”

The latest of these are the Puma armored vehicles, which have fallen prey to several ambushes in the Musay Valley, on the outskirts of Kabul. There are still too few of the new Lince vehicles — which, according to the soldiers on the ground, are better equipped to survive bomb ambushes. Furthermore, according to the magazine Analisi Difesa, there are no funds to purchase either additional towers for the Pumas or the second version of the vehicle, to which further armor can be added.

The remark by General Castagnetti was not only a quip, because there are reportedly problems with the replacement parts for the five Mangusta attack helicopters, which have been operational for only a few months in Herat. In Afghanistan, vehicles are affected by wear and tear more than elsewhere. The ceremony in Turin was also attended by Defense Undersecretary Marco Verzaschi — who was kind enough to agree about the lack of funds. Despite belonging to the ruling coalition that will present a budget of blood and tears for our soldiers, he pointed out the following: “For the third year in a row, cuts are expected for the Armed Forces. These cuts limit training, education, and safe vehicles.”

Castagnetti also pointed out that if the security package — which is being blocked at the Council of Ministers by tit-for-tat vetoes — is not approved swiftly, “there is a risk of thousands of people being left without permanent employment, young people who, after they have ended their stint of voluntary enrolment, need to be sent home.” He was referring to the section in the package that reintroduces the so-called “transit,” that is, the possibility for army volunteers to join the police.

The informal meeting of NATO defense ministers — including Arturo Parisi [Italian defense minister] — which was held yesterday in The Netherlands poured cold water on the ultra-pacifist expectations held by fringes in our government. Jaap de Hoop Scheffer said that he “would like to see more rotation” of troops on the hottest fronts of the Afghan conflict. In the south and east, only Dutch, British, Canadian, and American soldiers are fighting on the front line. De Hoop Scheffer would like the other allies, too, to share the responsibility, on rotation, for the most difficult and bloody part of the ISAF mission.

Italy and Germany do not even want to hear about it, but the issue will come to the fore at the NATO conference called for November, aimed at sending more troops to the “hot” areas, too.

[Description of Source: Milan Il Giornale (Internet Version-WWW) in Italian -- right-of-center daily owned by the Berlusconi family. OSC EUP20071025058006 25 Oct 07]

Radio sahar: Policeman, one other man shot dead in Herat

Excerpt from report by Afghan female-orientated community Radio Sahar on 30 October

[Presenter] A number of unidentified armed men have killed a policeman in Herat. The policeman was the former head of the crime prevention office in Chesht-e Sharif District. Security officials say an investigation has been launched into the case. Hami Azad has further details:

[Correspondent] The policeman and his colleague were shot dead by a number of unidentified armed men. A doctor at Herat provincial hospital said both had been shot ten times. [Passage omitted: surgeon and eyewitnesses' remarks on the incident.]

This is not the first assassination attempt in Herat. Several people have been killed by unidentified armed men since the beginning of this year.

[Description of Source: Herat Radio Sahar in Dari -- local independent radio station in Herat run mainly by women. OSC IAP20071030950080 1230 GMT 30 Oct 07]

Radio Sahar: Missiles fired at airport in Herat

Text of report by Afghan female-orientated community Radio Sahar on 30 October

[Presenter] Provincial security officials have reported that government opponents fired a number of missiles at Herat airport last night. It is said that the missiles targeted a police training site, but caused no damage.

[Correspondent] Gen Rahmatollah Safi, commander of the Border Brigade No 4, says that six missiles were launched at Herat airport on Monday night [29 October]. He says, however, that the attack has caused no damage.

Mr Safi added that the target was the police training camp to the east of the airport.

According to the commander, government opponents are organizing these offensives to prove that the situation is unstable. The police force is said to have launched an investigation to identify the perpetrators of the attack.

A self-proclaimed local Taleban commander in Herat Province called Hekmatollah has claimed responsibility for the missile attack, adding that their target was the ISAF [International Security Assistance Force] military base at the airport.

This is the fourth time the airport has come under attack by unidentified armed men. The previous attacks did not cause any damage, either.

[Description of Source: Herat Radio Sahar in Dari -- local independent radio station in Herat run mainly by women. OSC IAP20071030950081 1230 GMT 30 Oct 07]

Slovene News Agency: Slovene troops in Herat come under rocket attack

Text of report in English by Slovene news agency STA

Herat, 30 October (STA) – Rockets have landed in the vicinity of the base in Herat in Afghanistan where Slovenian soldiers are stationed, but all of the troops are alright, STA was told on Tuesday [30 October] by army spokesman Simon Korez.

Korez told STA that as many as six rockets landed near the base, including some that hit very close to where the 60 Slovenian troops serving in the NATO-led ISAF mission are stationed.

The Slovenian soldiers were out of harms way and are performing their duties as normal, Korez added.

Slovenia has a total of 66 soldiers stationed in Afghanistan, with the majority stationed in Herat. Their task is to patrol the area in the vicinity of the base.

The western Afghan city has until now been spared most of the violence that has hit the south and east of the country.

[Description of Source: Ljubljana STA in English -- national press agency. OSC EUP20071030950052 1049 GMT 30 Oct 07]

Herat Police Chief discusses security with Hasht-e Sobh newspaper

Afghan daily interviews western province police chief on security

Text of interview in Dari by Wahid Paiman with Herat police chief, “Reporters must not exaggerate in reporting”, published by Afghan independent secular daily newspaper Hasht-e Sobh on 27 October

Social disorder and instability in Herat have featured in the headlines of reports on crimes in the country over the past two months. the increase in crime has led to Interior Ministry authorities to embark on changes in the structure of Herat’s police in a bid to improve the situation and establish security in this province.

The replacement of the Herat police chief, head of crimes branch and some other top police officials are the measures taken by the Ministry of Internal Affairs to improve the security situation in Herat.

Lately, the Herat police has reported a drop in the level of crimes in the province. However, political rivalries and wrangling are the challenges still facing Herat. Some former mojahedin have left the city for an unknown place in protest to the local ruling bodies [government departments].

Hasht-e Sobh Daily has conducted an interview with Herat Police Chief Mohammad Joma Adil.

[Hasht-e Sobh] Why do cases of abduction sometimes increase and sometimes decrease in Herat?

[Adil] the police have changed their methods to deal with robbers and abductors. They are now afraid of getting arrested. We have arrested a group of abductors with the help of the National [Directorate of] Security. They had attacked the exchange market in Herat and killed one person. We will not allow robbers and abductors to disrupt the situation.

[Hasht-e Sobh] Why are some former mojahedin are unhappy with the local government departments?

[Adil] This issue concerns them. We have not yet contacted them. It has been just a month since I came here.

We will try to remove these differences through the leadership of Herat.

[Hasht-e Sobh] Who exactly have differences and why?

[Adil] They have some complaints and differences which we are trying to address.

[Hasht-e Sobh] Passports were sold for high prices in Herat’s black market in the past. How much does a passport cost in black market now?

[Adil with a smile] Now we issue passports on demand. In the past, they were exchanged for money. But that situation has changed now. We have told all security and intelligence agencies to deal harshly with those who sell passports.

[Hasht-e Sobh] You mean no one deals in selling and buying passports in Herat now?

[Adil] We have issued instructions to intelligence agencies to deal seriously with dealers in passport. I ask people not to buy passports from black market. They should come to us, we will issue them passports.

[Hasht-e Sobh] There had been an attempt on your life recently. Who was behind the attack?

[Adil] Our patrol came under attack in Khabgah-e Dokhtaran [Girls Dormitory] area when we were on our way to the city. A gun battle ensued and the attackers fled.

[Hasht-e Sobh] It is said that you were not the prime target. Rather, it was the girls’ dormitory in the area which they wanted to attack?

[Adil] I reject this categorically. You should go and visit the area. The dormitory has not sustained any damage. There are no signs showing that the attack was aimed at the dormitory.

[Hasht-e Sobh] Still, it is a matter of concern that the girls’ dormitory is situated in a dangerous locality of Herat which has been the scene of explosions and incidents of instability. Are security officials concerned about this issue?

[Adil] We know that our enemies target such sensitive sites. We have taken measures for their safety and have deployed guards for their security.

[Hasht-e Sobh] Herat witnessed its most peaceful days during the ECO [Economic Cooperation Organization] conference, but only a day after the conference was concluded, there were incidents of instability, an example of it was the attack on yourself, why?

[Adil] They were not able to do anything because of tight security measures during the conference.

[Hasht-e Sobh] Can such measures continue to be enforced?

[Adil] We will continue our patrols.

[Hasht-e Sobh] Mr Adil, reporters complain that Herat police does not cooperate with them?

[Adil] I respect reporters. They should not be unhappy with me. Reporters do their job freely and take photos. But, I ask them to reflect the realities as they are. They should not overstate or understate them.

[Description of Source: Kabul Hasht-e-Sobh in Dari. SAP20071028950028 27 Oct 07]

Tirana ATA: More Albanian soldiers to Herat

Defense Minister Says Albania Ready To Send Military Experts to Afghanistan

Tirana, 26 October (ATA) — The Minister of Defense, Fatmir Mediu, confirmed Albania’s willingness to send military experts to Afghanistan, who will assist to enhance professionalism of the Afghan Army and Police. This is the current NATO’s and ISAF priority regarding Afghanistan.

The Press Office in the Ministry of Defense reported on Friday (26 October) that on October 24, Minister Mediu attended the meeting of defense ministers of the NATO and partner nations, that take part in ISAF mission in Afghanistan, held in Noordvijk of Holland.

Mr.Mediu stressed that “Albania will stand in Afghanistan up to completion of ISAF mission. This is a serious and constant commitment to build a democracy through peace and stability.”

He acquainted the participants with the reforms the Albanian government has implemented in the threshold of NATO summit in the coming spring in Bucharest, where our country is expected to get membership invitation in the North Atlantic Alliance.

“In Riga summit, the NATO Secretary General demanded additional contributions by the participating nations in ISAF mission in Afghanistan. Albania responded immediately to this appeal, through sending additional companies under Italian command in Herat,” said Mr.Mediu, while he announced that “actually, Albania is present in Afghanistan with three important contributions, one squad under Turkish command in Kabul, a company in Herat and the joint medical team in the framework of the Adriatic Charter under Czech command.”
[Description of Source: Tirana ATA in English -- government press agency. OSC EUP20071026005009 Tirana ATA in English 1231 GMT 26 Oct 07]