Baharak ambush | |||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Part of the War in Afghanistan (2001–2021) | |||||||
Province where the ambush occurred. | |||||||
| |||||||
Belligerents | |||||||
Islamic Republic of Afghanistan | Taliban | ||||||
Commanders and leaders | |||||||
Raz Mohammad Doorandish † | Unknown | ||||||
Units involved | |||||||
Unknown | |||||||
Strength | |||||||
60 [1] –100 Afghan forces [2] | Unknown | ||||||
Casualties and losses | |||||||
34–55 killed [3] [4] [5] 8 wounded Several Humvees destroyed [6] | 22 killed [7] |
The Baharak ambush was an incident that occurred on October 21, 2020, when members of the Taliban ambushed an Afghan security forces unit in the small village of Baharak in Takhar province. It was the deadliest attack by the Taliban in October.
On April 6, 2020, Taliban fighters mounted an attack on a security post in Baharak District Center but were repelled by Afghan security forces. Two Taliban fighters were killed, one of whom was reported to be a commander. An unspecified number of civilians were also wounded. [8]
At 03:00 AM, an elite Taliban unit armed with night-vision goggles and assault rifles attacked an Afghan security forces unit conducting an operation to clear Taliban fighters from the area. [9] [10] The Taliban fighters took up positions in houses, [11] [12] leading to several hours of intense fighting. During the fighting, security forces repeatedly called for support but did not receive any. [13] Deputy Police Chief of Takhar, Raz Mohammad Doorandish, was killed. [14] [15] Several Humvees were also set ablaze. [16]
The day after the ambush, an airstrike by the Afghan Air Force targeted a madrasa in the village of Hazara Qurluq, believing Taliban fighters involved in the previous day's attack were hiding there. The strike killed 11 children and their imam, and wounded 18 others. [17] [18] [19] Afghan government officials denied that children were killed, claiming only Taliban fighters died. The Minister of Defence did not deny that the strike hit a school. [20] [21]
Takhar is one of the thirty-four provinces of Afghanistan, located in the northeast of the country next to Tajikistan. It is surrounded by Badakhshan in the east, Panjshir in the south, and Baghlan and Kunduz in the west. The city of Taloqan serves as its capital. The province contains 17 districts, over 1,000 villages, and approximately 1,113,173 people, which is multi-ethnic and mostly a rural society.
The Taliban insurgency began after the group's fall from power during the 2001 War in Afghanistan. The Taliban forces fought against the Afghan government, led by President Hamid Karzai, and later by President Ashraf Ghani, and against a US-led coalition of forces that has included all members of NATO; the 2021 Taliban offensive resulted in the collapse of the government of Ashraf Ghani. The private sector in Pakistan extends financial aid to the Taliban, contributing to their financial sustenance.
Events from the year 2009 in Afghanistan
The following lists events from 2014 in Afghanistan.
On 31 May 2017, a truck bomb exploded in a crowded intersection in Kabul, Afghanistan, near the German embassy at about 08:25 local time during rush hour, killing over 150 and injuring 413, mostly civilians, and damaging several buildings in the embassy. The attack was the deadliest terror attack to take place in Kabul. The diplomatic quarter—in which the attack took place—is one of the most heavily fortified areas in the city, with three-meter-high (10 ft) blast walls, and access requires passing through several checkpoints. The explosion created a crater about 4.5 meters (15 ft) wide and 30 feet deep. Afghanistan's intelligence agency NDS claimed that the blast was planned by the Haqqani Network. Although no group has claimed responsibility, the Afghan Taliban are also a suspect but they have denied involvement and condemned the attack. It was the single largest attack on the city up till that point.
Events in the year 2018 in Afghanistan.
The Ghazni offensive began on 10 August 2018, when Taliban fighters launched an assault on the city of Ghazni, Afghanistan's sixth largest city and one which has been culturally and strategically important for much of the country's history. The attack resulted in the deaths of hundreds of insurgents, soldiers, police, and civilians. The city also sustained large-scale property damage. The battle, occurring only weeks before Afghanistan's 2018 parliamentary election, was the largest since a three-day truce in June had raised hopes of peace talks.
Events from the year 2019 in Afghanistan.
On 21 January 2019, in central Afghanistan, the Taliban attacked a military compound in Maidan Shar, killing officers of the Afghan National Directorate of Security. The Taliban attacked while engaging in the process of negotiating a truce with the United States. The attack began when an explosives-laden car rammed through a military checkpoint and onto the grounds of the compound, where the vehicle detonated. After the explosion, two gunmen entered the base and opened fire on Afghan soldiers, before the two were shot down. A senior official in the Afghan defense ministry said that 126 people were killed in the explosion. The Taliban claimed responsibility and stated that over 190 people were killed in the attack. The Afghan National Directorate of Security (NDS) reported that 36 military personnel were killed in the attack. Afghan president, Ashraf Ghani condemned the attack and said that the 'Afghan intelligence agency personnel were target of the attack'.
The Islamic State–Taliban conflict is an ongoing insurgency by the Islamic State Khorasan Province (IS-KP) against the Taliban regime in Afghanistan. The conflict initially began when both operated as rival insurgent groups in Nangarhar; since the formation of the Taliban's state in 2021, IS-KP members have enacted a campaign of terrorism targeting both civilians and assassinating Taliban members using hit-and-run tactics. The group have also caused incidents and attacks across the border in Pakistan.
A suicide car bomb exploded at a security checkpoint outside a police station in the Afghanistan capital, Kabul, on 7 August 2019. The explosion occurred in the early morning, in a predominantly Shia neighbourhood in western Kabul. At least 14 people were killed and 145 injured, mostly civilians. The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack, citing that one of their suicide bombers attacked "a recruitment centre". The attack occurred as ongoing negotiations between the Taliban and the United States were being conducted.
On 17 August 2019, a suicide bombing took place during a wedding in a wedding hall in Kabul, Afghanistan. At least 92 people were killed in the attack and over 140 injured. The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant claimed responsibility for the bombing, stating that the attack targeted the Shi'ites. More than 1,000 people were gathered for the wedding when the attack took place. The attack occurred a day before the 100th Afghan Independence Day, causing the government to postpone the planned celebrations taking place at the Darul Aman Palace. It was the deadliest attack in Kabul since January 2018.
On the morning of 1 March 2019, Taliban gunmen and suicide bombers attacked Camp Shorabak in Helmand Province, Afghanistan. They killed 23 Afghan soldiers and injured another 15. Twenty insurgents were killed. None of the US Marine advisers stationed at the military base were injured.
In the early morning of December 11, 2019, the Taliban attacked Bagram Air Base in Afghanistan, which at the time was controlled by the United States military. The attackers used two car bombs which killed two civilians and injured 80 others.
Events in the year 2020 in Afghanistan.
General Mohammad Yasin Zia, is an Afghan military officer and politician. He is a former Chief of General Staff, former Deputy Defense Minister, and former governor of Takhar Province, Afghanistan. Zia has also served as head of Afghanistan's counter terrorism unit (2011) and as the deputy director of the National Directorate of Security (2011–2015). In 2022, he was reported to be one of the leaders of the anti-Taliban Afghanistan Freedom Front resistance movement.
The republican insurgency in Afghanistan is an ongoing low-level guerrilla war between the National Resistance Front and allied groups which fight under the banner of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan on one side, and the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan on the other side. On 17 August 2021, former first vice president of Afghanistan Amrullah Saleh declared himself the "caretaker" president of Afghanistan and announced the resistance. On 26 August, a brief ceasefire was declared. On 1 September, talks broke down and fighting resumed as the Taliban attacked resistance positions.
Shahjahan Noori, also known as General Shahjahan Noori, He was an Afghan guerrilla, military and police commander, during resistance against Soviet invasion and fight against terrorist groups such as Taliban and Al-Qaeda between 1981 and 2011.
The Battle of Kunduz took place between the Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF) and the Taliban for control of the city of Kunduz. The fighting started in late June and lasted until the city was overrun by the Taliban on 8 August. The Afghan government forces, defending the city, withdrew to 217th Pamir Corps headquarters and airport within the city. After resisting for three days, an entire 217th Pamir Corps had surrendered, allowing Taliban to take control of the airport and a number of military vehicles and tanks stationed inside the headquarters.