News
Monday, September 27, 2010
NATO choppers entered Pakistan to kill insurgents
KABUL: Two NATO helicopters had killed 30 insurgents on Pakistani soil on Friday after a rare manned pursuit across the border from Afghanistan, NATO forces said on Sunday.
Two Apache attack helicopters from the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) crossed the border from eastern Afghanistan on Friday after the insurgents attacked a remote Afghan security outpost in Khost province.
ISAF spokesman Sergeant Matt Summers confirmed that the helicopters had attacked after crossing into Pakistan. He did not comment on which countries’ forces were involved, but the US is the only coalition member that uses Apaches.
The US regularly uses pilot-less drone aircraft for missile strikes in Pakistan’s borderlands, known to be a haven for terrorist groups, including the Afghan Taliban, who launch cross-border attacks from Pakistan’s northwest. However, manned military flights across the border are extremely rare.
ISAF said in a statement issued late on Sunday that the helicopters were following its rules of engagement when they crossed into Pakistan. Two Kiowa helicopters returned to the area on Saturday and killed at least four more insurgents, the statement said.
ISAF was not immediately able to confirm whether the Kiowa helicopters had also crossed the border. US forces make up the majority of ISAF troops in Afghanistan’s east.
The drone flights have caused resentment in Pakistan, where anti-American feeling runs high. US officials say the pilot-less drones are one of the most effective weapons against terrorists. The strikes have killed senior Taliban and al Qaeda figures.
A new book by veteran US journalist Bob Woodward claims that the Central Intelligence Agency also has a 3,000-man “covert army” of elite, well-trained Afghans, who conduct secret operations in Pakistan, according to the Washington Post. The newspaper obtained an advance copy of the book, which is due for release today (Monday). Despite the presence of almost 150,000 foreign troops, violence is at its worst across Afghanistan since 2001. reuters
Courtesy www.dailytimes.com.pk