Insurgents pose as civilian casualties, as Afghan, U.S. forces inflict heavy toll on insurgents in Western Afghanistan

BADGHIS PROVINCE, AFGHANISTAN

08.15.2010

Courtesy Story

NATO Special Operations Component Command-Afghanistan

By Combined Joint Special Operations Task Force-Afghanistan Public Affairs

BADGHIS, Afghanistan – Two insurgents posed as civilian casualties and presented themselves to Afghan and coalition forces in Badghis province following an engagement where insurgents had attacked the partnered government force Aug 15.

The operation was a cordon and search mission by joint Afghan-U.S. forces that disrupted insurgent fighters and their weapons and financing network.

The action resulted in more than a dozen insurgent casualties. The two insurgents were taken into custody and their wounds were treated by coalition. No civilians were injured in the engagement.

During the combined force’s operation in and around the village of Tangi Buzbai, Bala Murghab District, the Afghan National Army soldiers from the 207th Corps assisted by a U.S. Marine Special Operations Team were attacked by an unknown number of insurgents using small-arms and machine gun fire. The Afghan-led force responded with small-arms fires and precision guided munitions from coalition air forces on the insurgent positions.

Damage assessments after the engagement confirmed more than a dozen insurgents were injured or killed during the engagement. Also discovered during the after action assessment was physical information that led to the verification that the insurgents who posed as civilian casualties had indeed been involved in the fighting.

The two men, claiming they were injured during the engagement, approached coalition forces looking to get medical treatment for their wounds, an MSOT sergeant said; however, they were positively identified by several Afghan sources as being insurgents.

“The two men matched exact descriptions given from the team leader on site during the attacks,” said Marine Sgt. Brian Kester, a Combined Joint Special Operations Task Force-Afghanistan spokesman. “The team verified with local elders, provincial and district governors, and ANA leaders, that in fact, the two men were indeed insurgents.”

The ANA soldiers and MSOT medical personnel on scene provided immediate medical treatment to the injured men, and readied them for transfer to a medical facility in the Murghab River Valley for follow-on care and continued custody.

• Date Taken: 08.15.2010
• Date Posted: 08.17.2010 01:27
• Story ID: 54687
• Location: BADGHIS PROVINCE, AF