Quick Thinking in Asadabad

On the night of October 16th, 2004, Staff Sergeant John Howerton and his team were on counter-rocket patrol in Asadabad, Afghanistan when a trip flare they had placed earlier was set off. The team was immediately engaged by anti-coalition militia just over 25 meters away, to which Howerton and his team returned fire and requested support. Unfortunately, the darkness and thick vegetation made it difficult for a gunship to distinguish between Howerton’s team and the enemy, so the Sergeant lit a strobe, which indicated that the enemy was too close for the gunship to attack without hitting Howerton’s team. In response, Howerton detonated the claymore mines they had set earlier, creating confusion, during which the team retreated through 1500 meters of enemy forces. Six hours later, the team met up with a larger friendly platoon, who were able to prepare themselves for any further engagement.

Troops Battle Hekmatyar Rebels

18 rebels were killed in a U.S. assault on a cave network in southeastern Afghanistan on January 28th, 2003, the largest battle in Afghanistan in over a year. The rebels were believed to be loyal to renegade warlord Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, an ally of al-Qaeda and the Taliban. The battle, which took place about 15 miles north of Spinboldak, was reinforced with air support by B1 Bombers, F-16 Fighters, as well as unidentified European support, and allowed U.S. troops to search the caves that the rebels were protecting. Because the battle was near the border, it was believed that fighters from foreign countries were involved.

Bloody Battle Near Kabul

American air forces bombed a rebel hideout near Kabul on June 21st, 2005, killing 76 insurgents in what is considered to be one of the deadliest battles since the removal of the Taliban three years ago. A dozen Afghan policemen and soldiers died in the battle, while five U.S. soldiers were wounded. Fighting also spread out from the initial battlefield on the border between Kandahar and Zabul provinces, and many insurgents were reported to be fleeing the area. Officials say terrorists are attempting to disrupt the parliamentary elections scheduled for September.