Airstrike Kills Haqqani Leader, Associates

Compiled from International Security Assistance Force Joint Command News Releases

WASHINGTON, Oct. 5, 2011 – A combined Afghan and coalition security force killed a senior Haqqani terrorist network leader and two of his associates with a precision airstrike in the Musa Khel district of Afghanistan’s Khost province yesterday, military officials reported.

Dilawar, who was known by only one name, was a principal subordinate to Haji Mali Khan, Afghanistan’s top Haqqani network leader, officials said, noting that he was killed exactly a week after Khan was captured.

Dilawar operated along the Afghanistan-Pakistan border between Khost and Paktia provinces, where he actively coordinated numerous attacks against Afghan forces and facilitated the movement of weapons, officials said. He also facilitated the movement of foreign fighters and was associated with both al-Qaida and the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan.

Prior to Khan’s capture by a combined Afghan and coalition security force, he worked closely with Dilawar, planning attacks throughout the area, including an ambush on Afghan forces in Paktia last month.

No civilians were harmed during the airstrike that killed Dilawar, officials said.

ISAF Joint Command officials said the Haqqani network and its safe havens remain a top priority for Afghan and coalition force. Security forces have conducted more than 530 operations to disrupt Haqqani network activities in eastern Afghanistan, officials said, resulting in the death of 20 network leaders and the capture of more than 1,400 suspected Haqqani insurgents.

In other operations around Afghanistan yesterday:

-- A combined Afghan and coalition security force killed two armed insurgents during an operation in search of a Taliban leader in Helmand province’s Kajaki district. The leader is responsible for moving explosives and narcotics throughout the region. The security force confiscated weapons and detained five additional suspected insurgents.

-- In Kandahar province’s Ghorak district, a combined force detained several suspected insurgents during a search for a Taliban leader who plans and executes attacks against Afghan forces.

-- A combined force in Helmand’s Kajaki district detained several suspected insurgents while searching for a Taliban leader who attacks Afghan forces and assists other Taliban leaders in executing direct-fire and roadside-bomb attacks.

-- In Wardak province’s Chak-e Wardak district, a combined force killed an insurgent who threatened them with an assault rifle during a search for a Taliban leader responsible for financial and logistical support of enemy fighters in the region. Several suspected insurgents were detained during the operation.

-- A combined force captured a Taliban facilitator and several other suspected insurgents in Nangarhar province’s Bati Kot district. The facilitator conducted attacks targeting Afghan forces and served as a liaison between local fighters and senior Taliban leadership.

-- In Paktia province’s Zurmat district, a combined force detained two suspected insurgents during a search for a Taliban leader who builds and stores roadside bombs and other weapons and manages insurgent fighters during attacks against Afghanistan security forces in the province’s Zurmat and Gardez districts. The force seized assault rifles, pistols and grenades.