PAN, May 28, 2012

US troops arrest 4 civilians in Faryab: official

By Marif Shafi

A woman with her child in the Afghan village of Darbart cowered in a doorway during a night raid in April 2009. (Photo: Tyler Hicks/The New York Times)

US troops arrested four civilians during an overnight operation in northwestern Faryab province, where one policeman and two militants were injured during a clash, officials said on Sunday.

The US Special Forces from the Bagram airfield in central Parwan province carried out the operation on the house of a local resident named Makhdoom Habibullah in the Deh Naw village of Sabz Posh district, Abdullah Masoomi, the district chief, told Pajhwok Afghan News.

The foreign troops fired several rockets into the house and then arrested four people, who were guests, he said, adding the detainees worked with the Roshan Telecommunication Company.

Col. Baryalai Parwani, an official at the police headquarters, said they had no information about the operation unilaterally conducted by foreign forces.

On April 8, Afghanistan and the United States signed an agreement on Afghanising nighttime operations. Defence Minister Gen. Abdul Rahim Wardak and International Security Assistance Force Commander Gen. John Allen inked the memorandum of understanding (MoU) in Kabul, giving the Afghans lead in night operations, a critical security responsibility.

Meanwhile, the Andkhwi district chief, Sultan Sanjar, said one militant was killed and two policemen and a second militant were wounded after the rebels attacked a police post in jungle area near the border with Qaram Qul and Daulat Abad districts.

But Col Parwani said a policeman and two militants were injured in the attack.

Characters Count: 2197