Friday, February 28, 2014

U.S. Forces Have Been Battling Chechen Fighters For Years

A U.S. Special Forces soldier searches a tree line for insurgent activity in Afghanistan on Oct. 30, 2010. U.S. Department of Defense

The Secret Battles Between US Forces and Chechen Terrorists -- ABC News

For the last 12 years, U.S. Special Operations forces have repeatedly engaged in fierce combat in Afghanistan against ruthless Taliban allies from Chechnya, who have the same pedigree as their terrorist brethren threatening to disrupt the Winter Olympics in Russia, current and former commandos tell ABC News.

"I'd say Chechens were a fair percentage of the overall enemy population early in Operation Enduring Freedom," recalled an active-duty senior Special Operations officer, referring to the Pentagon's name for the Afghan war, in which he was among the first ground operatives.

Since the U.S. war in Afghanistan began after September 11, elite U.S. troops' border battles with Chechen jihadis based in Pakistan's tribal safe havens have mostly stayed hidden in the shadows of a clandestine conflict. Special Operations missions are classified secret by default and rarely publicized.

Read more ....

My Comment: Russian forces have been engaged in warfare with Chechen rebels for years .... and they have also experienced (on many occasions) situations where the Chechen militants always preferred to die rather than surrender. I am surprised that there are still some who are alive on the Afghan-Pak border.

No comments: