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U.S.: Raids have taken out 900 Taliban leaders - USATODAY.com
U.S.-led military forces have captured or killed more than 900 Taliban leaders in the past 10 months, making it harder for the insurgency to maintain its offensive capabilities, according to the U.S. military in Afghanistan.
"We are getting indications that the (insurgency) is struggling to find replacements for leaders," said Maj. Sunset Belinsky of the International Security Assistance Force, which oversees coalition military operations in Afghanistan.
"In several cases, insurgents have actually refused to take over the leadership positions, have had difficulty finding technical experts, such as IED (improvised explosive devices) facilitators, gun runners and bomb trainers," she said.
The decapitation of leadership comes amid stepped-up raids by U.S. special operations units in Afghanistan. The raids have netted insurgent leaders, weapons and drugs used to finance actions against coalition forces, NATO says.
Among them:
•On March 1, U.S. and Afghan troops in Kandahar seized 20,000 pounds of bombmaking fertilizer, 15 heavy machine guns and ammunition and five rocket-propelled grenade launchers with 200 rounds. The ammonium nitrate fertilizer could have been used to make 400 IEDs, according to the Pentagon's Joint IED Defeat Organization.
•On Feb. 24, troops in Kandahar captured two Taliban leaders who had supplied insurgents with weapons.
•On Feb. 21 in Nangarhar province, troops destroyed drugmaking labs and seized 10,000 pounds of opium and heroin, which were used to finance attacks
U.S.-led military forces have captured or killed more than 900 Taliban leaders in the past 10 months, making it harder for the insurgency to maintain its offensive capabilities, according to the U.S. military in Afghanistan.
"We are getting indications that the (insurgency) is struggling to find replacements for leaders," said Maj. Sunset Belinsky of the International Security Assistance Force, which oversees coalition military operations in Afghanistan.
"In several cases, insurgents have actually refused to take over the leadership positions, have had difficulty finding technical experts, such as IED (improvised explosive devices) facilitators, gun runners and bomb trainers," she said.
The decapitation of leadership comes amid stepped-up raids by U.S. special operations units in Afghanistan. The raids have netted insurgent leaders, weapons and drugs used to finance actions against coalition forces, NATO says.
Among them:
•On March 1, U.S. and Afghan troops in Kandahar seized 20,000 pounds of bombmaking fertilizer, 15 heavy machine guns and ammunition and five rocket-propelled grenade launchers with 200 rounds. The ammonium nitrate fertilizer could have been used to make 400 IEDs, according to the Pentagon's Joint IED Defeat Organization.
•On Feb. 24, troops in Kandahar captured two Taliban leaders who had supplied insurgents with weapons.
•On Feb. 21 in Nangarhar province, troops destroyed drugmaking labs and seized 10,000 pounds of opium and heroin, which were used to finance attacks
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