KABUL, Feb. 16 (Xinhua) -- Afghan forces raided Taliban hideout in Washir district of the southern Helmand province, killing a Taliban local commander and four Arab fighters, spokesman for provincial administration Daud Ahmadi said Tuesday.
"Troops late Monday night targeted a hideout out of Taliban rebels in Washir district, killing Mullah Sarajudin along with four Arab militants," Ahmadi told Xinhua.
According to the official, Mullah Sarajudin alias Mullah Hukmat was involved in organizing anti-government activities and arranged contact between Taliban and Arab fighters.
Taliban militants, however, have yet to make comment.
The attack against Taliban commander in Washir took place amid ongoing joint Afghan and NATO forces operation in the neighboring Marja district where, according to officials, the militants have fled without major resistance.
Photos: Crucial offensive against Taliban in Afghanistan
Related:
Taliban top military commander caught in Pakistan: report
WASHINGTON, Feb. 15 (Xinhua) -- A U.S. newspaper on Monday reported that a top Taliban commander had been caught in a secret U.S.-Pakistan joint operation in Karachi.
The report released on the New York Times website identified the Taliban commander as Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, and the capture was described as "the most significant Taliban figure to be detained since the American-led war in Afghanistan started more than eight years ago." Full story
NATO rockets kill 12 Afghan civilians
KABUL, Feb. 15 (Xinhua) -- NATO rockets killed 12 Afghan civilians on Sunday in an offensive against Taliban in southern Afghanistan.
NATO claimed responsibility for the deaths, which it said happened when two rockets missed their target and landed on a compound as troops came under fire in the the Nad Ali district of Helmand province. Full story
Offensive against Taliban leaves 27 militants, 12 civilians dead
KABUL, Feb. 15 (Xinhua) -- As the joint Afghan-NATO assault against Taliban bastion in Afghanistan's southern Helmand province entered its third day Monday, more than three dozen people have been killed and hundreds of families fled home for safer places.
Twenty-seven militants and 12 civilians have been killed and the troops have secured major parts of the restive Marjah and Nad Ali districts, according to officials. Full story
Britain's Chief of Defense Staff calls latest civilian deaths in Afghanistan "very serious setback"
LONDON, Feb. 15 (Xinhua) -- The military chief of Britain's armed forces on Monday said the latest civilian deaths in Afghanistan were "a very serious setback, but not one that cannot be overcome."
A combined force of 15,000 Afghan, American, British and other NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) troops launched Operation Moshtarak last week. Full story
Civilian casualties cast shadow on offensive on Afghan Taliban
KABUL, Feb. 15 (Xinhua) -- The NATO-Afghan joint force Sunday mistakenly fired rockets on a civilian shelter killing 12 villagers. Local analysts said civilian casualties will make the ongoing massive crackdown on the Taliban a more challenging task.
Around 15,000 servicemembers with the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) and Afghan National Army soldiers late on Friday launched the biggest ever operation on the Taliban since the United States waged the war on terror in 2001. Full story
Marja offensive a test for NATO's ability in uprooting Taliban
KABUL, Feb. 13 (Xinhua) -- The much-awaited and the ever-biggest offensive since the collapse of Taliban regime in late 2001 was launched against Taliban fiefdom in Marja district of southern Helmand province Saturday amid Taliban vow to defend tooth and nail.
Regarded as the breeding center of militancy and main stronghold of Taliban fighters in south Afghanistan, the strategically important Marja district enables Taliban to influence the neighboring Nawa, Nad Ali, Babaji districts as well as the provincial capital Lashkar Gah. Full story
Afghan, U.S.-led NATO forces launch major offensive against Taliban in Afghanistan
KABUL, Feb. 13 (Xinhua) -- The United States, British and Afghan forces have kicked off a major offensive operation against Taliban insurgents in southern Afghanistan, which is liable to prove the biggest battles in the eight-year-long war on terror in the post-Taliban country.
Operation Mushtarak, or Together, in Marjah area of Helmand province is the biggest joint military campaign of the U.S.-led NATO and Afghan forces to uproot the hardcore Taliban fighters from their main bastion in the troubled country. Full story
