ISAF Deputy Commander to Brief Live from Afghanistan

Lt. Gen. Adrian Bradshaw (British Army), deputy commander, International Security Assistance Force, will brief the media live from Afghanistan, at 10:30 a.m. EDT, Oct. 3, in the Pentagon Briefing Room (2E973) to provide an update on progress and transition in Afghanistan.

Journalists without a Pentagon building pass will be picked up at the River Entrance only.  Plan to arrive no later than 45 minutes prior to the event; have proof of affiliation and two forms of photo identification.  Please call 703-697-5131 for escort into the building.

Combined Force Arrests Taliban Leader

From an International Security Assistance Force Joint Command News Release

KABUL, Afghanistan, Oct. 2, 2012 – An Afghan-led, coalition-supported force arrested a Taliban leader in the Maiwand district of Kandahar province today, military officials reported.

The arrested Taliban leader is suspected of reporting directly to the senior Taliban leader for the district and was responsible for coordinating and directing improvised explosive device emplacement operations, as well as insurgent attacks throughout the region, officials said.

Officials said the detained Taliban leader also is linked to the preparation of a vehicle-borne IED attack against Afghan and coalition force assets.

The security force also detained multiple suspected insurgents and seized an IED firing device and IED-making materials, officials said.

In other operations today:

-- A combined force arrested a senior Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan leader and weapons facilitator and detained two other suspects in the Chahar Darah district of Kunduz province. The arrested IMU leader is suspected of planning and conducting IED attacks throughout Kunduz province, as well as coordinating the movement of IED-making materials for attacks on Afghan and coalition forces.

-- A combined force detained several suspects during an operation to arrest a Haqqani leader in the Pul-e ‘Alam district of Logar province. The Haqqani leader is believed to oversee the distribution of weapons to support insurgent operations throughout Logar province.

-- A combined force detained one suspectduring a search for a Taliban leader in the Sayyidabad district of Wardak province. The sought-after Taliban leader is suspected of being directly involved in multiple ambush-style attacks on coalition force convoys throughout the district.

In operations yesterday:

-- A combined force arrested a Taliban commander in the Gereshk district of Helmand province. The Taliban commander, Abdul Bari, who operated across southwest Afghanistan, is suspected of coordinating delivery of heavy machine guns and IED-making components to insurgents across central Helmand province.

-- Afghan Special Police members recovered IED-making materials and heavy weapons, including three mortars, in a coalition-supported operation in the Nerkh district of Wardak province.

DOD Identifies Units for Upcoming Afghanistan Rotation

The Department of Defense today identified two major units to deploy as part of the upcoming rotation of forces operating in Afghanistan.  The scheduled rotation involves one armored brigade combat team with roughly 1,390 personnel -- and one combat aviation brigade with roughly 1,700 personnel to rotate in winter 2012.  The deploying units include:

Brigade Combat Team:

4th Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, Fort Hood, Texas.

Combat Aviation Brigade:

1st Armored Division Combat Aviation Brigade, Fort Bliss, Texas.

DoD will continue to announce major deployments as they are approved.  For information on the respective deployments, contact the 1st Cavalry Division public affairs office at 254-287-9400 and the 1st Armored Division public affairs office at 915-744-8406.

#Warfighting: NMCB 11 Returns Home after Seven Months in Afghanistan

By Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Jonathan Carmichael, Naval Mobile Construction Battalion 11 Public Affairs

GULFPORT, Miss. (NNS) -- Sailors assigned to Naval Mobile Construction Battalion (NMCB) 11 were welcomed home by family and friends Sept. 21 after a successful seven-month deployment to Afghanistan, which began in February this year.

NMCB 11's personnel arrived in a caravan of buses at Naval Construction Battalion Center Gulfport sometime before 10 p.m., nearly two weeks after the battalion's advanced party personnel arrived.

Spouses, children, friends, family, and even some pets were on site to embrace their Seabees. Many displayed signs welcoming home their Seabee. Many Seabees who arrived home two weeks earlier came out to show support and welcome home their shipmates.

NMCB-11 was deployed to U.S. Central Command to conduct general, mobility, survivability engineering operations, defensive operations, Afghan National Army (ANA) partnering and detachment of units in combined/joint operations area - Afghanistan in order to enable the neutralization of the insurgency and support improved governance and stability operations.

Among the numerous missions, the battalion conducted were a large-scale road construction project in southern Helmand province in which they partnered with the ANA, a village stability platform mission in support of Marine Special Forces, construction of helicopter landing zones, in partnership with the Italian army, to facilitate timely medical evacuations, and construction of buildings and facilities for an ANA recruit training command.

Despite being faced with the dangers of operating in a combat zone for the length of the deployment, the Seabees of NMCB-11 are fortunate to have all returned. Thorough training and preparation in the months leading up to the deployment undoubtedly contributed to the battalion's success.

Following a brief stand-down period to allow sailors time to rest, spend time with family, and take care of personal matters, NMCB-11 will reorganize and begin a homeport period filled with training and tactical exercises designed to prepare them for the next deployment and increase their in-rate knowledge and skills.

For more news from Naval Mobile Construction Battalion 11, visit www.navy.mil/local/nmcb11/.

Unique Wisconsin Guard unit embarks on specialized mission to Afghanistan

By Vaughn R. Larson

Wisconsin National Guard Public Affairs

The 16-member 104th Security Forces Advise and Assist Team (SFAAT) received a salute from Gov. Scott Walker, Maj. Gen Don Dunbar, adjutant general of Wisconsin, and other senior Wisconsin National Guard leaders during a sendoff ceremony Monday (Oct. 1) at Joint Force Headquarters in Madison.

The unit will serve in an advisory and mentorship role to the Afghan National Police concerning internal and external security missions. Lt. Col. David Larson, the 104th SFAAT commander, said the mission is part of the transition required for the Afghans to assume greater responsibility for their security.

"This importance is disproportionate to the size of the group," Larson said. "And it's disproportionate to the short time of our existence - just about three weeks."

Wisconsin Army National Guard Command Sgt. Maj. George Stopper advised the unit to draw on its strengths and make the most of its time during mobilization training at Camp Shelby, Miss.

"We've grown accustomed to having 12 and 24 months lead time for any of these missions that pop up, and that really wasn't the case here," Stopper acknowledged. "So to you and your families, I say 'thank you' for supporting the Wisconsin National Guard. Thanks for moving forward and taking on this huge mission."

Brig. Gen. Mark Anderson, commander of the Wisconsin Army National Guard, told family members that few states were considered to support this mission.

"Wisconsin [was] one of them because of the type of Soldier that we continuously send downrange," Anderson explained. "And when we put together the notice for this SFAAT team, we had multiple Soldiers volunteer for each and every position. We were able to pick from the best of the best."

This will be the first deployment for Staff Sgt. Don Runaas, a combat medic with the 13th Medical Detachment. He had been preparing to deploy with the 97th Agribusiness Development Team, but the mission requirements for that unit changed and he found himself among the Soldiers who would not deploy to Afghanistan.

"I was offered this on the last drill of the 97th ADT," Runaas said, adding that it took about half an hour to decide to accept the new mission. "I'm looking forward to the experience and learning new things."

Dunbar said that this mission underscores the intrinsic value of the National Guard.

"We're trying to partner with a nation that really doesn't have well-developed institutions," Dunbar said. "The U.S. Army said we need to take some of these capabilities that exist and partner with some of the brand new institutions they're building in Afghanistan. And where do they turn? To your National Guard. They turn to these 16 Soldiers and say 'We think you can go overseas and educate and you can mentor some of these brand new Afghanistan soldiers.'

"What a great idea, and what a great statement of trust and value in the National Guard," Dunbar continued. "The trust is not misplaced - the trust is exactly where it should be."

Larson acknowledged after the ceremony that the increase in "green on blue" attacks - Afghans in uniform attacking NATO troops in Afghanistan - is a concern, but that each case is different.

"It's part of our training program," he said. "The area we're going into, the incidents have been relatively few. But that doesn't mean we're not going to maintain situational awareness."

Larson said that it appears to him Afghanistan has made progress over the past four years.

"I can see some of the components in effect now that had been talked about when I was there," said Larson, who augmented the 101st Airborne force protection mission from 2008-09. "I think we're moving along with the strategy. I think we're going a lot of good things over there and for the most part it's [going] pretty much according to plan."

Walker observed that the model for the eagle on the 101st Airborne shoulder patch - such as the one worn by Larson - was Old Abe, the Civil War-era mascot of the 8th Wisconsin Volunteer Infantry Regiment. The governor said that patch illustrates Wisconsin's proud military heritage.

"You are, as Brig. Gen. Anderson mentioned, the best of the best," Walker said. "You are part of a proud tradition - a history - of Soldiers from the state of Wisconsin. We know you're going to do us proud."