Taliban Ambush Kills 3 Czech Soldiers

A Taliban suicide bomber killed three Czech soldiers as they were patrolling the Parwan’s provincial capital of Charikar today. The Taliban claimed credit for the attack, and said it occurred after Afghan and Coalition forces conducted a night raid. Resolute Support, NATO’s command in Afghanistan, confirmed that three Czech soldiers were killed, and one American and two Afghan National Army soldiers were wounded in the attack. The Czech Republic, one of 29 NATO nations, joined the Alliance, March 12, 1999. The Czech Republic contributes more than 280 service members to the Resolute Support mission.

The Taliban, in a statement released on its official website, Voice of Jihad, claimed that 15 US soldiers were killed “following a nighttime raid.” The Taliban routinely inflates the number of Afghan and foreign casualties that are inflicted during its operations. The Taliban has successfully targeted Czech soldiers operating in Parwan in the past. In July 2014, a Taliban suicide bomber killed four Czech troops in an attack in Charikar.

Parwan province hosts Bagram Air Base, the largest NATO facility in Afghanistan. The Taliban has teamed up with al Qaeda to attack Bagram Air Base several times in the past. The Taliban remains active in Parwan. Of Parwan’s 10 distrcts, five (Kohi Safi, Sayd Khel, Shinwari, Sia Gird/Ghorbund and Surkhi Parsa) are currently contested. The Taliban uses areas that it controls in these contested districts to launch attacks in both the provincial capital and Bagram Air Base. Late last year, the Taliban occupied the Fanduqistan Valley in Parwan’s Ghorbund district after Afghan forces fled following a brief firefight. The area is only 30 miles north of Kabul City, Afghanistan’s capital.

Article from the Long War Journal