U.S. Air Strike Targets Taliban Kidnappers

Taliban Denies Report That The Leader Of S. Korean Kidnap Plot Was Killed

(CBS/AP)  U.S. air strikes targeting a meeting of Taliban leaders killed a high-ranking commander involved in the kidnappings of 23 South Koreans two months ago, Afghan officials said Tuesday.

Mullah Abdullah Jan, the Taliban commander of Qara Bagh district in Ghazni province, was among 12 killed in the strike on a mud-brick housing compound overnight, said Ghazni provincial police chief Gen. Ali Shah Ahmadzai.

However, a Taliban commander of a neighboring district in Ghazni told CBS News Tuesday that the man behind the kidnapping was not killed, and was not even in the province at the time of the air strikes.

According to Mujahid Rehman, the Taliban commander in Ander district, next to Qara Bagh, a subcommander was killed in an overnight attack on a house, but he was not linked to the South Koreans' kidnapping and was not from the area.

Rehman told CBS News by phone from an undisclosed location that a less-senior leader was killed along with two other militants in the house around midnight, but the rest of the dead were civilians from the area. He said a total of "eight or nine" people died in the attack.

The commander who goes by the name Mullah Abdullah Jan spoke to CBS News by phone just 24 hours before the air strikes in Ghazni province, and he said he was not any where near Qara Bagh.

Rehman said the subcommander who was killed over night had escaped an earlier attempt on his life just two days earlier, fleeing a house before it was stormed by Afhgan forces.

Despite the claim that the government had not killed as high-value a target as stated, Rehman conceded a newfound worry among militants in southern Afghanistan.

"There is a concern among Taliban leaders that intelligence of the Afghan government and the Americans is improving," he told CBS News.

Rehman said that after the recent killings of two other commanders from Ghazni province, the militant group had "changed the security of top commanders. We are trying our best to protect our commanders."

According to the government reports, Jan was the fifth Taliban commander allegedly involved in the abductions who was killed in recent days. If the government information proves accurate, he would be the highest-ranking militant connected to the incident killed so far.

Jan has confirmed to CBS News in past conversations that he played a key role in the plot.

Neither the U.S. military or NATO's International Security Assistance Force had any immediate comment.

Afghanistan's Interior Ministry on Sunday said police had killed three Taliban commanders allegedly involved in the abductions. Another, a Mullah Mateen, was said to be killed in fighting earlier in the month. Mateen's death was corroborated by Rehman on Tuesday.

Meanwhile, NATO reported that another of its soldiers had died in an explosion in Afghanistan, where violence has soared this year amid a Taliban-led insurgency.

There have been several military operations in Ghazni since the release of the last of the captives on Aug. 30, possibly reflecting the desires of the Afghan government or U.S. and NATO forces to assert authority over the rebellious southeastern region following the abductions.

Two of the Korean hostages were slain soon after the kidnappings on July 19. Two women were released later during the Taliban's negotiations with South Korea. The remaining 19 were freed after further Taliban-South Korean talks.

An explosion Monday killed the NATO soldier and wounded another in southern Afghanistan, the alliance said Tuesday. The NATO statement did not provide any further details about the incident or the nationality of the victims.

In Helmand province, meanwhile, a gun battle in Garmser district Monday killed six suspected Taliban, while nine others were killed in an air strike in Kajaki district, the Ministry of Defense said.

More than 4,300 people - mostly militants - have died in insurgency-related violence this year, according to an Associated Press tally of figures from Western and Afghan officials.

[lars008-2009]

don%u2019t you just hate these stupid silly little fascist nazi terrorislamic muslims pretending to be liberal Americans%u2026%u2026 and begging for the usa to leave iraq%u2026..lol%u2026.. they must be really getting their arses kicked%u2026. Hahahahahahaha

and these fascist nazi terrorislamic muslim collaborators

[lars008-2009]

Posted by FeelFree1 at 02:15 PM : Sep 18, 2007

More innocent civilians executed by some coward in an airplane, in the other disgraceful and unnecessary fascist nazi terrorislam led war of aggression.

there you go haji,,, fixed it for you,,, lol

[feelfree1]

More innocent civilians executed by some coward in an airplane, in the other disgraceful and unnecessary U.S.-led war of aggression.

[lars008-2009]

LOOK WHO IS TARGETING CIVILIANS!!!

Qaeda warns of attacks ''worse than 9/11''
http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=070530102648.wuwa6k96&show_article=1

Hizbullah Deputy Sec-Gen Sheikh Naim Qassem: We Have Jurisprudent Permission to Carry Out ''Martyrdom'' Operations, Fire Missiles on Israeli Civilians From Ayatollah Khomeini
http://memri.org/bin/latestnews.cgi?ID=SD154907

Switching Sides: Inside The Enemy Camp

But then in 2000, well before his arrest, something happened which would make Abas question everything he believed in: a fatwa, a religious edict, was issued by Osama bin Laden.

"It should be understood that killing Americans and Jews anywhere found are the highest act of worship and the highest form of good deeds in the eyes of Allah," Simon quotes bin Laden.

Abas and his fellow commanders were ordered to read the fatwa to their men and make sure they carried it out. The others obeyed, but Abas refused. It was his moment of truth. He firmly believed that jihad was to be fought only on the battlefield in defense of Islam; he had always been taught that the killing of civilians had nothing to do with holy war and that it was forbidden.

The fatwa justified killing non-Muslim civilians everywhere.
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/05/04/60minutes/main2761108.shtml?source=RSSattr=60Minutes_2761108
American Al Qaeda Member Threatens Attack
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/05/29/terror/main2865282.shtml

[lars008-2009]

it is fascist nazi terrorislam stupid%u2026.

non muslims of the world unite... fight against the tyranny of the fascist nazi terrorslam imperialist empire of the darkside...

I was a fanatic...I know their thinking, says former radical Islamist
By blaming the Government for our actions, those who pushed this "Blair''s bombs" line did our propaganda work for us.
More important, they also helped to draw away any critical examination from the real engine of our violence: Islamic theology.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/news.html?in_article_id=465570&in_page_id=1770

Bless the Beasts and Children
Fascist nazi terrorslam kills every man woman and child in the village again%u2026 typical mo for terrorslam%u2026
http://www.michaelyon-online.com/wp/bless-the-beasts-and-children.htm

Our Prophet commanded us to fight the kaafirs when we are able and to attack them in their homelands and to give them three choices before we enter their lands: either they become Muslim and be like us, sharing our rights and duties; or they pay the jizyah (poll tax) and feel themselves subdued; or they fight, in which case their wealth, women, children and homes become permissible as booty for the Muslims.
http://islamqa.com/index.php?ref=13759&ln=eng&txt=before%20islam%20arabia%20pagan

the truth about fascist nazi terrorislam...
http://www.terrorismawareness.org/what-really-happened/

[telecom_1]

The wicked will be judged and cut off from the earth. Long live the American President.

[jairod]

The taliban and al qaeda operate like the mafia and other dispicable organizations bent on wrecking havoc. The hide their true intent behind the guise of religion, but in fact it is nothing less than an evil. If they believe in a supreme being, then why do they kill others that believe as they? It is the work of demons, yes, the devil in its many forms has allied with the taliban and al qaeda to destroy the muslims. Yet, they, the muslims, understand that the devil can take many guises and yet refuse to believe that one of their own, osama been lying, is the chief operative on this plane for the satan. Like satan, been lying has others to do his dirty work, being too much of a coward to act. So, he kills children, regardless of whether they are muslim or not.

[pwrslm]

I just find it strange that CBS employs people to hang out with the Taliban. You know, the guys that supported 9-11 and protected AQ....

So why are they putting cash into the Talibans hands? Obviously, putting correspondents in with these types help support thier cause.

Isnt that treason....

[s1ckd09]

Silly me... I came here to see if there is was any praise regarding this operation. I guess no bad news is bad news for some of you.

Way to go, troops!