Photos from the Front Line

Unstable Ordnance

A U.S. soldier organizes unstable ordnance for destruction at the demolition range on Forward Operating Base Salerno in Afghanistan's Khost province, Sept. 2, 2012.

Leatherneck Ceremony

U.S. Marine Corps Sgts. Vincent Laughlin, left, Joshua Williams, center, and Cpl. Valentino Nevarez prepare for the raising of the flag during a 9/11 remembrance ceremony on Camp Leatherneck, Afghanistan, Sept. 11, 2012. Laughlin, Williams and Nevarez are assigned to Ist Marine Expeditionary Force Headquarters Group.

Dusty Patrol

U.S. Marines begin a patrol from Forward Operating Base Shamsher in Afghanistan's Helmand province, Sept. 6, 2012. The Marines, assigned to 1st Battalion, 7th Marine Regiment, Regimental Combat Team 6, conducted the patrol to disrupt the flow of lethal and illicit aid by the enemy in the area.

Dempsey: ‘Extraordinarily Dissatisfied’ With Pakistani Action Against Haqqani Network

By Claudette Roulo

American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON  – The Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen. Martin E. Dempsey joined Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta today in expressing unhappiness with Pakistan’s progress in battling the Haqqani network’s use of safe havens in Pakistan.

Pakistan is working to battle other threats within the federally administered tribal area, or FATA, Dempsey told reporters.

“Although we are extraordinarily dissatisfied with the effect that Pakistan has had on the Haqqani [network], we are also mindful that they are conducting military operations, at great loss … elsewhere,” Dempsey said.

During a news conference earlier today in Kabul, Panetta said the United States was reaching the limits of its patience with Pakistan following an attack on Forward Operating Base Salerno in Khost province, Afghanistan, earlier this week. One contractor and dozens of service members were wounded in the attack, attributed to the Haqqani network.

Regional Command East, which includes Khost and Logar provinces, has seen an uptick in activity, largely due increased activity by the Haqqani network, Dempsey said.

A report of civilian deaths following an airstrike in Afghanistan’s Logar province is under investigation, Dempsey said. The strike followed a call for assistance from troops who came in contact with the enemy.

Dempsey said two wounded civilians came forward immediately following the airstrike saying they were wounded by the attack. U.S. troops who searched the area found no other injured or dead, he added, but an Afghan provincial leader said further searches found civilian casualties.

“We do our very best to avoid civilian casualties,” Dempsey said. “This investigation will try to determine if there were civilian casualties and then we will take the appropriate actions.”

The Haqqani network is as big a threat to Pakistan as it is to Afghanistan and the United States, Dempsey said. He added that the U.S. will continue to work with Pakistan to find common ground on ways to deal with the cross-border threat posed by the Haqqani network and other groups.

In addition to the recent activity by the Haqqani network, Dempsey said al-Qaida remains a threat in Pakistan, particularly within the FATA, and to a lesser extent within Afghanistan. Coalition efforts have been very successful in eliminating al-Qaida leaders, though others continue to take their place, he added.

Dempsey cited the June 4 death of Abu Yahya Al-Libi, al-Qaida's second in command, as an example of those successes, calling it a significant loss for the terror group.

“He had longstanding credibility and he had operational skills that are tough to grow overnight, and so that will be something that affects … the al-Qaida network globally, not just in south Asia,” Dempsey said.

“Most of those who 10 years ago we began tracking are no longer a part of al-Qaida, they’re no longer part of any organization,” Dempsey said. “We are at war with al-Qaida and … we will pursue them wherever we find them,” he said.

Army Casualty

The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Enduring Freedom.

Pfc. Vincent J. Ellis, 22, of Tokyo, Japan, died June 4, in Landstuhl, Germany, from wounds suffered June 1, on Forward Operating Base Salerno, Afghanistan, when enemy forces attacked his unit with improvised explosive devices and small arms fire.  He was assigned to the 1st Squadron, 40th Cavalry Regiment, 4th Airborne Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division, Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska.

For more information the media may contact the U.S. Army Alaska public affairs office at 907-384-1542.

Afghan-led, Coalition-supported Force Detains Taliban Leader

Compiled from International Security Assistance Force Joint Command News Releases

WASHINGTON – An Afghan-led, coalition-supported security force detained a Taliban leader and several suspected insurgents in the Kandahar district of Afghanistan’s Kandahar province today, military officials reported.

The leader directed the placement of improvised explosive devices and coordinated the delivery of weapons and explosives to insurgents throughout the district, officials said.

The security force also confiscated several AK-47 rifles and other weapons.

In other Afghanistan operations today:

-- A combined force detained a Taliban leader and two suspects in the Zharay district of Kandahar province. The detained insurgent leader was responsible for attacks against Afghan and coalition forces and transported explosives and weapons to insurgents throughout the province.

-- A combined force detained several suspects during a search for a Haqqani leader in the Khost district of Khost province. The Haqqani leader is suspected of planning the attack against Forward Operating Base Salerno on June 1. He is also an explosives expert suspected of building the vehicle-born IEDs that the insurgents detonated at the Salerno gate.

-- A combined force detained several suspects during a search for a Haqqani leader in the Pul-e ‘Alam district of Logar province. The Haqqani leader supplies insurgent fighters with weapons and executes attacks against Afghan and coalition forces.

In Afghanistan operations yesterday:

-- In the Waygal district of Nuristan province, a combined force called in an airstrike that killed several insurgents.

-- A combined force requested airstrike killed two Taliban leaders in the Wali Muhammad Shahid Khugyani district of Ghazni province. One deceased insurgent was the senior Taliban leader in the Wali Muhammad Shahid Khugyani and Ghazni districts. He led an improvised explosive device cell and conducted attacks against coalition and Afghan forces throughout the region. The second deceased Taliban leader directed the placement of IED’s against coalition and Afghan forces throughout the district.

-- A combined force killed three insurgents and detained six others in the Charkh district of Logar province.

Combined Force Detains Several Insurgents

Compiled from International Security Assistance Force Joint Command News Releases

WASHINGTON, June 4, 2012 – An Afghan and coalition security force detained several insurgents during a search for a Haqqani facilitator in the Khost district of Afghanistan’s Khost province today, military officials reported.

The facilitator is an explosives expert, officials said, who builds bombs for insurgents to use against Afghan and coalition forces.

The sought-after insurgent leader is linked to the vehicle-born explosive device used during a June 1 attack against Forward Operating Base Salerno, in Khost, officials said.

Also today, a combined force called in an airstrike that killed several insurgents during a search for a Taliban leader in the Zurmat district of Paktiya province. The leader plans and conducts roadside bombings and other attacks against Afghan and coalition troops throughout the Gardez district. He is also an explosives expert who supervises the construction of remote controlled improvised explosive devices and other types of bombs. The security force recovered a machine gun, multiple AK-47 rifles, a rocket-propelled-grenade launcher, an RPG round, and several magazines of ammunition.

In June 3 operations:

-- A combined force discovered a drug cache containing 699 pounds of hashish in the Panjwa’i district of Kandahar province.

-- A combined force called in an airstrike that killed several insurgents during an operation to detain an Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan facilitator in the Argo district of Badakhshan province. The security force recovered five AK-47 rifles, three RPG launchers, several RPG rounds and multiple grenades.

-- In the Shah Wali Kot district of Kandahar province, a combined force detained several suspects during a search for a Taliban leader. The leader conducts roadside bombings and other attacks against Afghan civilians, Afghan security forces and coalition troops. He also manages the construction of explosive devices and their distribution to insurgents.

-- A combined force detained two suspects during a search for a Haqqani leader in the Sharan district of Paktika province. The leader plans and conducts roadside bombings, suicide attacks and other operations against Afghan and coalition troops. He also recruits and supplies insurgents with suicide vests, weapons, ammunition and other equipment.

In June 2 operations:

-- The International Security Assistance Force confirmed the rescue of four civilians who were being held by insurgents in northern Afghanistan. Ms. Helen Johnston, Ms. Moragwe Oirere, and two Afghan civilians were kidnapped on May 22, 2012, in Badakhshan province, Afghanistan. Ms. Johnston and her colleagues are employees of Medair, a humanitarian non-governmental organization based near Lausanne, Switzerland. “First, I would like to thank the Afghan Ministry of the Interior and Minister Mohammadi for their tremendous support throughout this crisis. Second, this morning’s mission, conducted by coalition forces, exemplifies our collective and unwavering commitment to defeat the Taliban,” said Marine Corps Gen. John R. Allen, ISAF commander. “I’m extremely grateful to the Afghan authorities and proud of the ISAF forces that planned, rehearsed, and successfully conducted this operation. Thanks to them, Ms. Helen Johnston, Ms. Moragwe Oirere, and their two co-workers will soon be rejoining their families and loved ones.”

-- A combined force detained a Haqqani leader and several other insurgents and seized an AK-47 rifle and several magazines of ammunition in the Sabari district of Khost province. The insurgent leader planned and coordinated the June 1 attack on Forward Operating Base Salerno.

-- In the Nad ‘Ali district of Helmand province, a combined force detained a Taliban facilitator and one additional insurgent. The facilitator provided weapons, ammunition and explosives to insurgents for attacks against Afghan and coalition troops.

-- A combined force detained several suspects during a search for a Taliban leader in the Panjwa’i district of Kandahar province. The sought-after insurgent leader controls a large number of insurgents and conducts attacks against Afghan and coalition forces throughout the district.

-- A combined force killed two insurgents during an operation to detain a Haqqani leader in the Muhammad Aghah district of Logar province. The Haqqani leader controls a large number of insurgents and conducts roadside bombings and other attacks against Afghan and coalition forces in Kabul City and the Muhammad Aghah district.

-- In the Wali Muhammad Shahid Khugyani district of Ghazni province, a combined force detained two suspects while searching for a Taliban leader. The insurgent leader plans and conducts attacks against Afghan and coalition forces throughout the district. He also supplies insurgents with weapons, ammunition and equipment.

-- A combined force killed several insurgents during an operation to detain a Taliban leader in the Murghab district of Badghis province. The insurgent leader is responsible for planning and conducting attacks and roadside bombings against Afghan and coalition forces throughout the district. He also provides weapons, ammunition and explosives to insurgents. The security force recovered multiple AK-47 rifles, grenades, and magazines with ammunition.

In June 1 operations:

-- A combined patrol discovered a weapons cache containing three shoulder-fired, surface-to-air missiles, three anti-tank mines, 423 RPGs, 118,600 7.62 mm rounds, 30 rifles and other ordnance in the Tarin Kot district of Uruzgan province. The cache’s contents were destroyed.