OEF Update, Nov. 27, 2009: Forces Detain Militants, Strike Taliban Compound; Update on Missing Helicopter

Dispatches from the Front:

KABUL, Afghanistan, Nov. 27, 2009 -- An Afghan-international security force detained a Taliban district commander and other militants during the search of a compound in Kandahar province Thursday. The commander is a direct subordinate of a Taliban shadow governor in the region.

The joint security force targeted a compound near the village of Tzukazai, southwest of Kandahar City, where intelligence sources reported the commander to be located. The joint force searched the compound without incident and detained the militants, one of whom was identified as the Taliban commander. No Afghan civilians were harmed in this operation.

In a separate operation yesterday, another Afghan-international security force killed one enemy militant in Ghazni province while pursuing a Taliban commander linked to several other local commanders and responsible for numerous attacks in the area.

The joint security force raided a compound near the village of Chaprakh in the Andar district where intelligence sources reported militant activity. While moving to the targeted compound, the joint force engaged and killed one enemy militant who displayed hostile intent. The force searched and secured the compound without further incident and no Afghan civilians were harmed.

In another operation today, an Afghan-international security force uncovered and destroyed a sizable militant weapon and munitions cache in Kandahar province.

After intelligence sources reported militant activity in a compound near the village of Hajji Rahmoddin in the Zhari district, a joint security force searched the abandoned compound and discovered numerous containers of homemade explosive, RPGs, hand grenades, multiple boxes of ammunition, and an artillery round inside the compound structures. The joint force used precision aerial fires to destroy the weapons and munitions stored within the compound. No Afghan civilians were harmed.

In a separate operation, ISAF struck a known Taliban compound in a remote area of eastern Afghanistan Thursday. A Taliban commander known for attacking innocent civilians in the Kunar region, as well as international forces and bases, was the target of this precision strike. Assessment of the strike continues.

International Forces, ANSF Provide Medical Care for Boy Wounded by Insurgents:

Afghan National Security Forces and international forces provided immediate medical care for a boy wounded by insurgents near Spedar Pass in Paktika province, Monday.

As the joint force returned to its base after conducting a free medical clinic for families in Rabat, Paktika province, the military vehicle convoy stopped when a man along the road asked for their help. The man said his eight-year-old nephew sustained multiple gunshot wounds from insurgents at an illegal checkpoint to the north. An ISAF medic stabilized the boy and he was medically evacuated by air for further medical treatment.

Missing MI-8 Helicopter Update:

ISAF forces have helped identify the crash site in eastern Afghanistan of an MI-8 helicopter missing since Monday night. For further information on this topic, please contact Supreme Global Service Solutions.

ISAF Casualties:

ISAF suffered no fatalities in the last 24 hours.

(Compiled from NATO International Security Assistance Force news releases.)