The Afghanistan NGO Safety Office Issue: 64 16-31 December 2010 ANSO and our donors accept no liability for the results of any activity conducted or omitted on the basis of this report. THE ANSO REPORT -Not for copy or sale- Inside this Issue COUNTRY SUMMARY Central Region 2 In the Central Region two few arrests and weapons observed with a local leader 5 Northern Region BBIEDs, supported by gun- seizures while AOG at- kidnapping four family Western Region 10 men, targeted ANA recruits tempt to extort locals for members of an AOG on their way to the Kabul taxes and cause damage to leader to exchange for an- Eastern Region 13 training centre with one at- local telecom towers in a other kidnapped police Southern Region 19 tacker managing to detonate routine effort to undermine officer. In Khost reports his vest on board the bus night time communications. suggest the death of the 23 ANSO Info Page killing four soldiers. The at- In Jawzjan a large, and un- Provincial Shadow Gover- tack was apparently coordi- usual, assault on the District nor (actually killed in Kan- nated with another targeting Administration Centre of dahar) as IMF pursue in- YOU NEED TO KNOW ANA recruits in Kunduz the Darzab causes civilian casu- tensive regional operations, same morning. In that attack alties while AOG attack the particularly against the • Coordinated Attacks against up to seven gunmen, includ- Taloqan Airfield in Takhar. Haqqani group while in ANA recruitment in Kabul ing two BBIED’s, seized Laghman more routine and Kunduz Out in the Western Re- control of a recruiting centre gion a large IED caused up AOG attacks continue to • NGO staff robbed in Mazar and maintained an effective to 14 civilian fatalities in target IMF supply convoy’s and killed in Kandahar siege for more than ten Kushk Khuna, Heart, while on the Kabul-Jalalabad hours. Elsewhere in Central highway. In the Southern • another targeted the Dis- Instability threatens Jala- Region AOG’s staged Region a BBIED targets labad as cross border AOG trict Governor of Shindand, activity intensifies VBIED’s in both Parwan leaving him unharmed but the funeral of a local Gov- and Wardak where they also injuring three body guards. ernment official in Panjwai, established illegal check-posts In Badghis the Kandahar while a large often wearing stolen ANSF VBIED attacks ANSF em- ‘reconciliation’ initiative uniforms. In the Northern apparently got a boost with ployees while they collect ANSO is supported by Region an NGO staff mem- up to 80 AOG turning their salaries at a local ber was robbed and assaulted themselves over to police. bank. Also in Kandahar, an by criminals in Mazar city In the Eastern Region NGO staff member was while a large force of AOG ominous instability threat- killed by a gunshot in an attacked a private construc- ens Jalalabad City, Nan- apparent criminal murder tion company elsewhere in gahar, as AOG pursue an while in Nahri Sarraj, Hel- the same province (Balkh). In intensive campaign from mand, a large IED hitting a Kunduz the aforementioned the South East. In the ensu- mini bus caused significant BBIED attack dominated the ing uncertainty criminality is (14) civilian fatalities. IED period while ANP discovered on the rise in the city. In attacks dominate the pro- a cache of more than 50 pre- Nuristan an uptick of vio- file in Uruzgan, Zabul and pared IED’s in Gortepe dis- lence is reported with AOG Ghazni the dangers appar- trict. Pro-Government mili- repeatedly shelling the PRT ent in the latter province tias operating in Khanabad while locals clash with when a large device deto- clashed with one another AOG in defence of an ab- nated injuring the four IMF again this period resulting in ducted local police man. In EOD staff who were trying one death. OP Jadid contin- Kunar a similar dynamic is to defuse it. ues across Baghlan with a THE ANSO REPORT Page 2 C ENTRAL REGION NGO Incidents KABUL Year to Date KABUL 50 This Report Period After a significant period of time 40 where the national capital wit- utes. 30 nessed an absence of high profile, It is thought that Loya Paktya’s 20 complex attacks against GOA, primary, Waziristan-based AOG 10 ANSF or IMF targets, this report- was responsible for this attack, as 0 ing period saw a high profile, with many of the most high pro- complex attack on the Jalalabad file, complex attacks the national Road against ANA recruits being capital has seen in recent years. If KABUL AOG KABUL Crime ferried in buses to the large Kabul so, it represents an expansion into Military Training Centre at Pul-e the capital of its recent suicide Labijar area of the city on the 24th. The Charki. A vehicle with two opera- bombing campaign against central VBIEDs had been reported to be part of a tives wearing BBIEDs and two ANSF facilities, seen in Loya Pak- plot to conduct a complex attack against the infantry operatives approached tya provincial capitals over the US Embassy in the city. The result was the the 9 bus convoy of armed ANA past two months. It also perhaps killing of 2 PSC guards, the injury of 3 others, recruits at approximately 0730 hrs. indicates that this AOG no longer and the seizure of 9 AK-47s, as well as the The two BBIED fighters stepped considers Kabul to be off limits, detention of 15 other individuals. IMF spokes- out of their vehicle behind the as it appears to have done for men declared that their forces came under fire convoy, and the vehicle then de- whatever reason since the com- from a nearby building while searching a park- posited the infantry operatives in plex attacks seen in January and ing lot where two cars had been flagged for front, who shot and killed the early February 2010. searching. However, the PSC argues that it was driver of the front bus, causing it This attack also had an important the IMF that first opened fire. In the end, no to veer off the road. While the impact on the freedom of move- explosives were found. other buses drove on, a firefight ment along – and safety of – the ensued between the two infantry Such accidental targeting of PSCs is not new; Kabul-Jalalabad Highway, causing indeed it was during the previous reporting fighters and various ANSF, in- all traffic coming from the Jala- cluding ANP at nearby CPs and period in Paktya that IMF air assets, on their labad side to be delayed until the way back from supporting the capture of a ANA on the disabled bus. As this early afternoon. This attack, progressed, one of the BBIED Waziristan AOG-associated tribal elder in moreover, was not the only attack Gardez district, accidentally targeted and killed operatives managed to step onto along this main artery, with a the bus and detonate, killing 4 7 PSC guards on the main Gardez-Chamkanay number of smaller attacks – which road. ANA and wounding another 10. are only marginally less problem- The second BBIED operative was atic for NGO road movements – In other significant events in the capital, an shot dead before he could deto- occurring in the Tangi Abrisham ANP officer was shot and killed in a private nate his vest, which happened to area of Surobi district. For more vehicle in District 4, Taimani, by unknown have a much greater explosive about road insecurity, see the gunmen, and a rocket launched from Chahar yield than the one that detonated. Laghman provincial assessment in Asyab landed in District 8, Karte Naw, damag- The AOG driver and infantry op- this report. ing a house but causing no casualties. In eratives managed to escape the Musayi, a former Jjhadi commander was shot There was a further high profile scene, in spite of the large volume and killed on the main district road, and an security incident in Kabul during of ANSF present in the area. In ANP vehicle hit an IED, injuring two police- this period, but this time in the all, the attackers managed to stay men. Finally, seizures of small caches of am- form of accidental targeting of alive and offer substantial resis- munition were recorded in Istalif, Khaki Jab- PSC guards by IMF, which were tance against vastly larger num- bar and Shakardara, the only incidents in these conducting a search operation for bers of ANSF for over 90 min- districts. two suspected VBIEDs in the THE ANSO REPORT Page 3 NGO Incidents KAPISA 50 KAPISA Year to Date 2 This Report Period 0 40 Incident volume in Kapisa has 30 decreased slightly with 10 inci- dent of note took place in the Ala- 20 dents of which seven were AOG- say District Centre, when a rocket initiated.. The majority were direct impacted in a residential area on 10 attacks targeting ANSF/IMF pa- 28th of December, reportedly 0 trols with a focus on Nijrab and killing two local civilians and Tagab districts. In the latter dis- wounding another three. It should trict four separate AOG attacks, be noted that numerous civilian KAPISA AOG KAPISA Crime reportedly killed one IMF soldier casualties were recorded during and wounded another three. The the present cycle. In another inci- gunmen reportedly abducted two staff mem- risk of collateral exposure for the dent, on 24th of December three bers (one national and one international) work- local population was highlighted locals were killed in an UXO re- ing for a private road construction company in during a clash that occurred in lated incident in Chaharmaghz Koh Band District.