Military briefing on recent fighting in Paktika

Описание: (29 Oct 2003)
1. Various of Coalition forces briefing
2. SOUNDBITE (English) Colonel Rodney Davis, Coalition spokesperson:
"The Afghan Militia Force (AMF) was conducting a patrol approximately 44 kilometres south of Shkin firebase, in the Gomal District of Paktika province when it made contact with a 20-25 member anti-coalition element at about 7:45am local time. A coalition rapid reaction force from the firebase reinforced the AMF fighters. Coalition close air support including an A-10 Thunderbolt II aircraft and Apache aircraft, a helicopter specifically, fired on the enemy forces destroying one vehicle. Coalition personnel and AMF personnel exchanged small arms fire with anti-coalition elements for about six hours until the enemy elements retreated. According to AMF authorities, six Afghan militia soldiers were wounded. There were no CJTF-180 (coalition) casualties."
3. Journalist
4. SOUNDBITE (English) Colonel Rodney Davis, Coalition spokesperson:
"I couldn't tell you anything about CIA operatives because I'm not the CIA spokesperson. I have to refer you to the Director, Mr. George Tenet or some of his employees. But I can tell you quite a bit about the coalition."
5. Wide news conference
6. SOUNDBITE (English) Colonel Rodney Davis, Coalition spokesperson:
"If you are asking me have we come across Al-Qaida operatives in the vicinity of Shkin, the answer is certainly "Yes". And I don't want to be more specific because it is very difficult to determine a person's nationality. And they aren't too supportive in terms of responding to your questions when they are not alive. So this is a very difficult thing to determine. But we can draw some conclusions based on physical appearances and that type of thing."
7. Wide news conference ends

STORYLINE:

A spokesperson for the US-led coalition forces fighting Al-Qaida and Taliban remnants in Afghanistan on Wednesday refused to comment on the deaths of two CIA operatives in an ambush in eastern Afghanistan.

The CIA said on Tuesday that William Carlson, 43, of Southern Pines, North Carolina, and Christopher Glenn Mueller, 32, of San Diego, California were killed Saturday near the village in Shkin in Paktika province while "tracking terrorists."

Both were veterans of military special operations forces, the agency said, who were working for the CIA's Directorate of Operations that conducts clandestine intelligence-gathering and covert operations.

The ambush happened on the same day and in the same area as a six-hour firefight where US-led coalition forces and Afghan militia killed 18 fighters.

Six Afghan militia were wounded in the fighting, where coalition warplanes and helicopters were called in for airstrikes.

The US firebase in Shkin, close to the border with Pakistan, is a regular target of attacks by forces opposed to the US-led coalition on terror.

The attackers in that battle belonged to the al-Qaida terror network, US military spokesman Colonel Rodney Davis said on Wednesday.

Davis also said coalition and Afghan militia had come under a surprise attack on Monday near another base in Paktika province near Orgun, 175 kilometers (105 miles) south of Kabul, sparking a two-hour battle before the
unknown number of hostile forces retreated.

Three US soldiers suffered minor shrapnel wounds and have returned to duty.

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