Forces Protect Afghans During Elections

Afghan and the coalition forces protected the Afghan citizens from numerous attacks planned for the Sept. 18 parliamentary elections and in the days surrounding them, military officials reported.

In more than a dozen security operations, Afghan and the International Security Assistance Force troops captured and killed numerous insurgents, many in the process of planting roadside bombs or conducting other attacks meant to disrupt elections, officials said.

Combined forces conducted more than 15 operations in seven Afghan provinces prior to and during the elections, which resulted in seven insurgent leaders captured and five killed, all of whom were actively planning attacks against the elections, they said.

"The insurgents threatened to carry out spectacular attacks during the elections; however, they failed,” said Army Col. Rafael Torres, ISAF Joint Command Combined joint operations center director. “Afghan forces with their coalition partners disrupted the insurgent's plans and tightened security throughout the country. We're happy that the Afghan people were afforded an opportunity vote and make their choices known."

In Badghis province:

-- A combined Afghan and coalition security force on Sept. 17 detained a suspected insurgent believed to be planning a vehicle-borne bombing attack near a polling center. The arrest came after Afghan police spotted a suspicious motorbike in a village bazaar. The motorbike had a container filled with explosives and a laptop computer battery attached to it. Coalition forces detained a man carrying a remote control and a mobile phone in the vicinity. The force handed the man over to Afghan authorities for processing, and a coalition explosive ordnance disposal team disposed of the explosive device.

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