NATO drone strike kills up to 50 militants in eastern Afghanistan

ASADABAD, Afghanistan, Aug. 18 (Xinhua) -- About 50 militants were killed on Saturday afternoon when a NATO pilotless plane carried out an attack in Afghanistan's eastern province of Kunar, the police said.

"The drone targeted four suspected vehicles in Shinallai area of Chapa Dara district at around 1 p.m. local time Saturday, killing 50 militants, including 13 insurgent's local commanders," police chief of the district, Najibullah Khan, told Xinhua.

Khan said a Taliban shadowy police chief for the district named Hattiqullah and another Taliban leader named Turabi were among the killed.

The Taliban insurgent group, which launched in May this year's spring offensive against Afghan and NATO forces, has yet to make comments.

Districts of Kunar. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The Kunar province bordering Pakistan, has seen increasing militancy despite continued military operations there.

Separately, a soldier with the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) lost his life in an insurgent attack in southern Afghanistan on Friday, the ISAF confirmed Saturday.

Currently over 130,000 NATO-led ISAF troops have been serving in Afghanistan since the Taliban regime was toppled in late 2001.

In another development, militants killed the head of a district prison in the country's southern province of Helmand Saturday afternoon.

"Head of Gereshk district's prison, Ismail Khan, was killed when a sticky bomb attached to his vehicle went off near the prison compound at around 1 p.m. local time shortly after he get in his car," police chief of the district, Guli Khan, told Xinhua.

Earlier, Saturday a bomb explosion hit the vehicle of a local elder named Mohammad Ali, killing his driver and injuring four anthers including Ali in Nahrin district of northern Baghlan province.

from XINHUA
2012-08-18 18:52:13

Posted in: Afghanistan, Drones, International Security Assistance Force, ISAF, NATO, Pakistan, Taliban