NATO And Afghan Forces Kill 25 Insurgents And Commanders

Kabul, Afghanistan – NATO and Afghan forces killed 25 Insurgents and at least three of their commanders in separate incidents around the country according to Coalition leadership on Wednesday.

According to the Associated Press, an Afghan security operation on Tuesday in Mehterlam, the capital city of eastern Laghman province, killed 15 insurgents. According to this report, the insurgents’ commander, identified as Qari Almas, was also killed in the raid.

Tuesday also saw the deaths of five insurgents in eastern Ghazni province: three in eastern Logar province and two in southern Helmand province.

These killings involved what the US Department of Defense referred to as “precision strikes.” NATO confirmed that the strikes also killed Khan Mohammed, a Taliban commander in the region.

According to USA Today, the US led International Assistance Force has approximately 100,000 troops in the country with 66,000 of those from the US. It is expected that the US will withdraw 34,000 within the next year along with scale-backs from its allies.

Earlier this month, President Obama notified the US populace he plans to have the aforementioned force reduction complete as early as spring 2014. This has led to many questions as to whether or not Afghanistan’s fledgling forces will be able to assume complete responsibility in the face of the Coalition withdrawal. If the recent success of the raid is any indicator, it seems that they may be more ready than previously assumed.

Afghanistan’s security forces are scheduled to take up the primary responsibility for their nation’s security in the spring.

What are your thoughts? Is Afghanistan ready to see the end of US and Coalition presence on a large scale?