Mohmand Valley raid

The Mohmand Valley raid was a joint US/Afghan operation targeting an Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant - Khorasan Province (ISIL-KP) compound in the Achin District of Nangarhar Province, that lasted from the night of 26 April to the early morning hours of the 27th, 2017. The raid resulted in the deaths of two US Army Rangers from C and D Companies of the 3rd Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment, and the death of Abdul Haseeb Logari, the leader of ISIL-KP, alongside several leaders, and up to 35 other militants according to The Pentagon.

Mohmand Valley raid
Part of the War in Afghanistan (2001–present)
Date26 – 27 April 2017
Location
Mohmand Valley, Achin District, Nangarhar Province, Afghanistan
34°04′24.01″N 70°37′52.37″E
Result

US/Afghan victory

Belligerents
 United States
 Afghanistan		 ISIL-KP
Commanders and leaders
Unknown Abdul Haseeb Logari †
Units involved

United States Armed Forces

Afghan Armed Forces

  • Afghan Special Security Forces (Kteh Khas)[6]

Military of ISIL

  • Khorasan Province
Strength
50 Army Rangers
AC-130 gunships
F-16 fighter jets
AH-64 Apache attack helicopters
Drones
40 commandos		 Unknown
Casualties and losses
2 killed (possibly friendly fire)[7]
1 wounded		 36+ killed including several leaders (per U.S.)[8][9]
Achin District
Location of Achin District, where the raid took place

Background
Main article: 2017 Nangarhar airstrike

On January 11, 2015 Hafiz Saeed Khan a former member of Tehrik-i-Taliban and the Afghan Taliban alongside other former Taliban leaders pledged allegiance to Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi, forming the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant – Khorasan Province and becoming the group's emir. Seven months later the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan pledged allegiance to ISIL and claimed membership in the Khorasan group. Immediately after its formation the United States and Afghanistan targeted the group in airstrikes and raids. The group also suffered major setbacks while fighting the Taliban.

In July 2016, Hafiz was killed in a US drone strike, around eight months later the Afghan and US military began its offensive against the militant group in Nangarhar Province in March 2017.[10]

Less than two weeks before the raid on April 13, 2017 and less than a mile away from the location of the raid, the US military dropped the largest non-nuclear bomb, a GBU-43/B MOAB on an ISIL-KP tunnel network once used by the Mujahideen during the Soviet–Afghan War in the 80s and Osama Bin Laden during the invasion of Afghanistan in 2001. The strike killed 96 militants according to an Afghan official.[11]

At the time of the raid the group had been reduced to an estimated 700 fighters, down from 3,000 fighters at the group's peak, according to US officials.[12]

Target

The target of the operation was a compound in the Mohmand Valley located less than a mile away from where the US dropped the MOAB bomb. The compound was believed to have housed Abdul Hasib, a former Taliban commander before switching alliances to the Islamic State - Khorasan Province, he would eventually become the group's leader after his predecessor Hafiz Saeed Khan was killed in a US airstrike. Abdul had overseen several attacks against the Afghan Government including the March 2017 Kabul attack on a military hospital that killed nearly 100 people. Commanders decided to conduct a joint US/Afghan special forces raid over an airstrike because woman and children were believed to have been in the compound.[13][14]

Raid

At around 10:30 on the night of 26 April, 50 U.S. Army Rangers from 3rd Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment, alongside 40 Afghan commandos from the Special Security Forces (Kteh Khas), were inserted near the target site by helicopter.[15] Almost immediately after landing the force came under heavy fire from multiple directions by entrenched enemy positions with the firefight being described as "close quarters with enemy fire coming at 360 degrees". As the joint American/Afghan force pushed through the difficult terrain under fire, they called in airstrikes from AC-130 gunships, F-16 fighter jets, AH-64 Apache attack helicopters and drones. Early in the firefight two Army Rangers were critically wounded, possibly as a result of friendly fire, team members later denied the assertion.[16][17] The two wounded were medevaced by helicopter where they would later die from their injuries. Another Ranger was grazed by a bullet but left the battle on his own choosing.[18] The raid lasted for more than three hours up to about 3:30 a.m. and resulted in the death of the attended target with the Pentagon calling it as a success in degrading the group's ability to fight.[19][20][21][22][23][24][25][26][27]

Casualties

Among the dead were two Army Rangers identified as 22 year old Sgt. Joshua Rodgers of Bloomington, Illinois and 23 year old Sgt. Cameron Thomas of Kettering, Ohio. Both of them enlisted in the Army out of high school and were on their third deployments. Their rewards and decorations include the Army Good Conduct Medal, Army Achievement Medal, Army Service Ribbon, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, Afghanistan Campaign Star, and the NATO Medal.[28][29][30] Abdul Hasib, several more of the group's leaders, and about 35 other militants were killed in the raid The Pentagon stated.[31]

Aftermath

On April 28, Afghan forces conducted an operation in the Mohmand Valley, reportedly killing 20 ISIL-KP militants the MoD said.[32] Abdul Hassib would be replaced by Pakistani militant Abu Saeed, who would be killed by a US drone strike in Kunar Province on July 11, making him the third ISIL-KP emir killed since July 2016.[33] On May 7, the US Military confirmed Hassib’s death in a press release.

Army Ranger, Staff Sgt. Michael Young, a squad leader in C Company, 3rd Ranger Battalion, was credited for saving the lives of 22 Rangers during the raid. He was subsequently award the Silver Star in April 2018 for his actions.[34][35]

References
  1. https://www.cnn.com/2017/05/07/middleeast/isis-leader-killed-in-afghanistan/index.html
  2. https://www.reuters.com/article/us-afghanistan-islamic-state/head-of-islamic-state-in-afghanistan-confirmed-killed-idUSKBN1830TR
  3. https://indianexpress.com/article/world/us-military-confirms-death-of-isis-afghanistan-leader-4645466/
  4. https://abcnews.go.com/International/leader-isis-afghanistan-killed-april-raid-pentagon/story?id=47261842
  5. https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/top-isis-commander-afghanistan-was-killed-raid-where-rangers-died-n756066
  6. http://www.thedrive.com/the-war-zone/10114/this-shadowy-afghan-unit-fights-alongside-americas-most-elite-forces
  7. Sisk, Richard. "Two Army Rangers Possibly Killed by Friendly Fire in Afghanistan". Military.com. Retrieved 11 January 2019.
  8. https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2017/may/8/abdul-hasib-head-isis-afghanistan-killed-us-afghan/
  9. https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/asia/isis-commander-afghanistan-abdul-hasib-killed-special-forces-a7723376.html
  10. https://www.thebureauinvestigates.com/stories/2017-07-28/islamic-state-in-afghanistan-us-military
  11. Woody, Christopher. "The 'Mother of All Bombs' blast site is still off-limits, but here's who it may have killed". Business Insider. Retrieved 11 January 2019.
  12. https://www.theatlantic.com/news/archive/2017/05/isis-afghanistan-abdul-hasib/525807/
  13. https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/07/world/asia/abdul-hasib-isis-leader-killed.html
  14. https://heavy.com/news/2017/05/sheikh-abdul-hasib-dead-death-killed-isis-afghanistan-leader-raid-cameron-thomas-joshua-rodgers/
  15. Trevithick, Joseph. "This Shadowy Afghan Unit Fights Alongside America's Most Elite Forces". The Drive. Retrieved 11 January 2019.
  16. "Rangers Reject DoD Claim Of 'Friendly Fire' In Afghanistan Deaths". Task & Purpose. 28 April 2017. Retrieved 11 January 2019.
  17. "Mattis honors Army Rangers killed in Afghanistan". Army.mil. Retrieved 11 January 2019.
  18. https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/least-2-u-s-service-members-killed-anti-isis-raid-n751826
  19. "The Pentagon Investigates Possible Friendly Fire Deaths In Afghanistan". NPR.org. Retrieved 11 January 2019.
  20. "2 Army Rangers killed in Afghanistan". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 11 January 2019.
  21. Hennigan, W. J. "Pentagon says two Army Rangers may have been killed by friendly fire in Afghanistan". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 11 January 2019.
  22. deGrandpre, Meghann Myers, Andrew (7 August 2017). "Army Rangers killed in Afghanistan were possible victims of friendly fire". Army Times. Retrieved 11 January 2019.
  23. "Friendly fire may have killed 2 Army Rangers in Afghanistan". PBS NewsHour. 28 April 2017. Retrieved 11 January 2019.
  24. "Friendly fire may have killed Army Rangers during ISIS raid in Afghanistan". CBS News. Retrieved 11 January 2019.
  25. "Pentagon says friendly fire may have killed two US soldiers in Afghanistan, not Isis". The Independent. 28 April 2017. Retrieved 11 January 2019.
  26. "Two U.S. Army Rangers killed in anti-ISIS raid in Afghanistan". NBC News. Retrieved 11 January 2019.
  27. Cooper, Helene (27 April 2017). "2 U.S. Service Members Killed in Afghanistan, Pentagon Says". New York Times. Retrieved 11 January 2019.
  28. Barrie Barber. "For Kettering Army Ranger, service was 'all he lived and breathed'". Dayton Daily News. Retrieved 11 January 2019.
  29. LENORE SOBOTA. "Bloomington soldier killed in Afghanistan praised". Pantagraph.com. Retrieved 11 January 2019.
  30. Nordland, Rod (11 June 2017). "All 6 U.S. Combat Deaths in Afghanistan in 2017 Were in Fight Against ISIS". New York Times. Retrieved 11 January 2019.
  31. https://www.theatlantic.com/news/archive/2017/05/isis-afghanistan-abdul-hasib/525807/
  32. https://www.tolonews.com/afghanistan/20-daesh-militants-killed-nangarhar
  33. https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-afghanistan-islamic-state/head-of-islamic-state-in-afghanistan-killed-pentagon-idUSKBN19Z26G
  34. https://www.armytimes.com/news/your-army/2018/04/13/rangers-heroic-actions-saved-dozens-led-to-silver-star-medal/
  35. https://www.stripes.com/news/army-ranger-awarded-silver-star-for-actions-in-deadly-terrifyingly-chaotic-fight-in-afghanistan-1.521975
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