Tuesday, 30 June 2009U.S. forces in Afghanistan said air strikes have killed at least 12 militants allegedly involved in sneaking foreign fighters from Pakistan into Afghanistan.
A military statement said the overnight strikes in eastern Khost province hit a pair of bunkers linked to Taliban militant leader Siraj Haqqani.
Police officers search through debris of police checkpoint after a suicide attack in Torkham, Nangarhar province, 30 Jun 2009Also Tuesday, at the main border checkpoint in eastern Afghanistan, officials said a male suicide bomber disguised as a woman attacked the Torkham crossing. Authorities said the burqa-clad bomber blew himself up at the women's crossing point, killing a police officer and a child and wounding at least 10 people.
Meanwhile, the new commander of all NATO troops said he wants the allied force to pursue policies in Afghanistan that focus on protecting the Afghan people.
Admiral James Stavridis told reporters at his change-of-command ceremony in Germany that he also wants to find alternative ways NATO allies can contribute more resources to the fight in Afghanistan.
While the United States is nearly doubling the number of American troops in Afghanistan, most NATO countries have been unwilling to contribute more combat forces.
As the NATO military chief, the admiral will command troops from all services and all alliance countries, working closely with the new U.S. commander in Afghanistan General Stanley McChrystal.
General McChrystal recently announced a change in U.S. strategy in Afghanistan that focuses less on killing insurgents and more on protecting and winning the trust of Afghans.
Some information for this report was provided by AP.
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Tuesday, 30 June 2009
VOA News
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