Afghan Special Operations Forces seize and destroy Taliban materials in Helmand

HELMAND PROVINCE, AFGHANISTAN

05.07.2018

Story by Lt. Amy Forsythe 

NATO Special Operations Component Command-Afghanistan

BAGRAM, Afghanistan -- 7th Special Operations Kandak Commandos stormed several known Taliban compounds in Nahr-e Saraj district, Helmand province, Afghanistan, May 5, 2018. During the nighttime operation, the Commandos destroyed a Taliban communications cell and staging area.

Specialized in the execution of nighttime raids, the Commandos conduct persistent offensive operations targeting Taliban fighters and their weapons of indiscriminate violence. Commandos also seized and destroyed an Iranian 60mm mortar round, 500 rounds of Soviet-era anti-aircraft rounds, 20kg of narcotics, small weapons, ammunition, grenades and landmines.

Taliban insurgents use compounds like these to store weapons and equipment, plan attacks and produce drugs that fund their terror activities in the region. Recent Commando operations and air strikes have hit Taliban revenue streams in Helmand hard, seizing and destroying drug caches and millions of dollars in lost revenue.

“Afghan partners have maintained incredible tempo and the Taliban is on the back foot.” said
former TAAC-S Commander Brigadier General Roger B. Turner, Jr. in a recent interview. “The Taliban in Helmand could not exist without external support.”



Established in 2015, Resolute Support (RS) is a NATO-led, non-combat mission to train, advise and assist the Afghan National Defense and Security Forces (ANDSF), who assumed nationwide responsibility for Afghanistan’s security following the conclusion of the previous NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) mission. Its purpose is to help the Afghan security forces and institutions develop the capacity to defend Afghanistan and protect its citizens in a sustainable manner.

For more information, email Resolute Support at [e-mail], or via telephone at [phone]; after hours (2030-0830 AFT) at [phone].

Additional photos are available on the Resolute Support Headquarters DVIDS page, which is at: https://www.dvidshub.net/unit/RS-HQ

• Date Taken: 05.07.2018
• Date Posted: 05.15.2018 05:32
• Story ID: 276446
• Location: HELMAND PROVINCE, AF