Militants killed in anti-Taliban offensive
International and Afghan troops killed 11 militants when a raid in Afghanistan’s volatile south turned into a gunbattle with Taliban fighters, US forces said today.
Fighting broke out during last night’s raid targeting a key Taliban insurgent in a village in Helmand province, the military said in a statement.
The forces came under fire from militants inside a compound as they advanced and returned fire.
The US military said the insurgent targeted in the attack was involved in making bombs that were used for roadside attacks in northern Helmand province.
One insurgent was captured and 11 killed in the fighting in Lashkar Gar district, west of the provincial capital of Kandahar.
The statement said one militant tried to use women and children in the compound as human shields, but the force managed to shoot the man without harming the civilians.
A village elder told coalition forces the Taliban forced them to shelter the group for the night, the statement said.
The US is sending 17,000 additional troops to Afghanistan to stamp out the resurgent Taliban who have taken de facto control of the south and continue to mount attacks through much of the rest of the country.
Senior US officials say President Barack Obama also plans to deploy 4,000 trainers to build up Afghan forces as part of a new strategy to be announced later today.
