2 local Taliban leaders detained in Afghanistan

Two local Taliban leaders and three suspected insurgents have been arrested in operations in different Afghan provinces, in the latest raids part of the counter- insurgency campaign in the war-hit country, the coalition forces said Monday. "An Afghan and coalition security force arrested a Taliban leader and detained one other insurgent during an operation in Nawah-ye Barakzai district, Helmand province, today," said the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in a press release. The leader is accused of coordinating ambushes against Afghan and coalition forces and is believed to have a history of directing subordinate fighters to engage in attacks utilizing improvised explosive devices (IEDs), rocket-propelled grenades and various other types of weaponry, it added. The security force also seized a stockpile of IED-making materials as a result of the operation in the province, 555 km south of Afghan capital of Kabul. In neighboring Kandahar province, 450 km south of Kabul, the joint forces arrested a Taliban leader and detained one other insurgent Monday morning. "The leader is believed to be an IED specialist with a cell of fighters under his command." Earlier in the day, they also arrested an insurgent in charges of having links with a Taliban leader in Baraki Barak district, Logar province, 60 km south of Kabul. "The leader is alleged to be responsible for directing insurgent activity in Baraki Barak. He is also an influential figure in the Taliban network there, ordering IED operations in addition to direct and indirect fire attacks." The Taliban insurgent group, which has been waging an insurgency of more than one decade, has yet to make comments. The Afghan forces in partnership with ISAF troops have intensified operations against Taliban and other militant groups recently. But the insurgent groups responded by bombings. On Saturday, Taliban carried out two suicide bombings in Kabul and eastern Khost province killing one policeman and 20 civilians, including a woman and eight children.