ANP Patrolmen engage the enemy from their patrol vehicle
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TALEBAN IED LAYERS BUSTED IN JOINT OPERATION
Another victory has been scored in the battle against indiscriminate roadside bombs in Afghanistan, as British soldiers and Afghan policemen worked together to tackle insurgents believed to be involved in manufacturing and laying the deadly munitions.
Operation ZAMARY ATTAL 3 lasted just a few hours but saw five men suspected of being involved in manufacturing improvised explosive devices (IEDs) taken into custody and a number of other insurgents who dared to attack the joint force defeated on the battlefield.
The operation involved British troops from The Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders, 5th Battalion The Royal Regiment of Scotland, who are based in desert, east of Helmand’s provincial capital Lashkar Gah. It saw Delta Company of the Canterbury-based battalion, commanded by Major Nick Wight-Boycott (33) from Burntisland, Fife, work together with policemen from 2nd Kandak Afghan National Police, led by Colonel Adbul Sattar.
The forces probed into a contested area close to the Delta Company base on Route 601 - a key route which brings trade and commerce from Gereshk to Lashkar Gah and joins Helmand with its neighbouring province of Kandahar. The ANP are the most visible form of governance in this rural area and it is critical to the success of Delta Company’s mentoring mission that they are seen by the local people as the force that protects them.
The aim of the operation was to search an area where NATO intelligence sources had suggested IED facilitation was taking place. Dealing with any suspected IED-related activity is always a priority for the Afghan police and British troops because of the indiscriminate threat these devices present to all – local civilians, British soldiers and Afghan forces alike.
The patrol set off in the early hours of the morning while the temperature was well below freezing and there was little ambient light, renderi
The Police have discovered and defused 20 kg of explosive material in Afghanistan’s northern Sari Pul province, a local official said on Monday.
The contraband placed in two cans was discovered in Gul Tapa area, a suburban of provincial capital Sari Pul city and thus a possible subversive attack has been foiled.
Sayed Naqibullah Darman, Director of Planning and Operations of provincial police department has said.
He also called upon the local people to help police in ensuring peace and security in the province.
Police also discovered and seized an assault rifle in Sangcharak district of Sari Pul province recently, the official added.
The Afghan caretaker government has vowed to collect arms and ammunition from anyone outside security organs.