Contact

Yesterday was one of those days which cause friends and family concern but which have little to no impact on myself, my workers, or the conflict in Afghanistan.   There were multiple attacks in Gardez and Jalalabad which are the two cities in which I currently head work for cash projects. The suicide bomber who detonated himself outside of police station 1 in Gardez blew out the windows of my Gardez office which is across the street from the police station but fortunately my guys escaped unscathed. Once I determined we had everyone accounted for I sent terse messages instructing them to go get some damn pictures but they were not up for that saying the police would shoot them unless they a press pass. What a bunch of sissies; these guys are professional smugglers but can’t get me some damn pictures when I need them. The Shem Bot did little better when he went to evacuate his guys from their office which is about ¾ of a mile away from the Jalalabad Air Field. The Afghan Security Forces were still looking for a third active shooter and would not let him through their police cordon. Did the Bot get pictures of that?  Nope; “left me camera at work mate” which is like saying the dog ate your homework.

Press photo of yesterday's post incident police cordon
Press photo of yesterday’s post incident police cordon

Good help is hard to find but it must be harder for the bad guys because the two complex attacks which they tried to launch yesterday were poorly executed and  amateurish. At the cost of eight suicide bombers they killed three NDS intelligence officers and three ANP police officers. That is positive math for attrition warfare enthusiasts; at this rate we will run out of Taliban by 2037 if we can just hold on that long.

The enterance to the Jalalabad airport which is also home to both the Afghan and American Army base. The attackers were detected several hundred meters down the road behind me
The entrance to the Jalalabad airport which is also home to both the Afghan and American Army base. The attackers were detected several hundred meters down the road behind me

Having spent time this morning walking the ground where the Jalalabad attack went down it is hard to come up with any rational thought process which would have put two suicide vest wearing riflemen and an RPG gunner on foot, walking up the busiest road in the region to attack the front gate of the Jalalabad airport.   There was a VBIED discovered later in the day further down the road from the airport (not yet reported in the news) which was in an abandoned Alto sedan. It had ten 60mm mortar rounds, four 82mm mortar rounds and fifty pounds of additional explosives all rigged to explode with a typical VBIED trigger system.   The vehicle was discovered hours after the attack but it is safe to conclude that it was going to be used in some coordinated manner with the three stooges who attacked up the busiest road in Eastern Afghanistan.

This was taken this morning after exiting the air port - yesterday's incident occured a good 250 meters to my front. These three retards - or Taliban suicide attack force - whatever; were detected by the ANP as they tried manuver to the gate through the parked trucks. No doubt the sight of 200 truck drivers running for their lives was a good tiup off. The Army and their private guard force helped out the ANP with a spirited volley or two but it is hard for me to see how they could have had clear lines of sight or fire. Unless the attackers ran out into the open field off to the left in this phot - people tend to do stupid things in a gunfight and maybe that is what these clowns did.
This was taken this morning after exiting the airport – yesterday’s incident occurred a good 250 meters to my front. These three retards – or Taliban suicide attack force – whatever; were detected by the ANP as they tried maneuver to the gate through the parked trucks. No doubt the sight of 200 truck drivers running for their lives was a good tip off. The Army and their private guard force helped out the ANP with a spirited volley or two but it is hard for me to see how they could have had clear lines of sight or fire. Unless the attackers ran out into the open field off to the left in this photo – people tend to do stupid things in a gunfight and maybe that is what these clowns did.

Bill Roggio has the best write up on the incidents and he links these two attacks with a series of assaults against government targets going all the way back to the January 2008 attack on the Sernea Hotel. None of those attacks were carried off in an adroit manner – one of the factors which must be remembered in the dog days ahead is that when it comes to actual fighting the Taliban are just not that good. How six of them were uncovered, wearing Burka’s no less, and gunned down outside of the government compound in Gardez is again perplexing.

This is the government quater in Gardez City. Police Station 1 where the attackers were discovered and killed is directly behind me. Why try to get into here through a check point when you could just walk in un molested from any other direction?
This is the government quarter in Gardez City. Police Station 1 where the attackers were discovered and killed is directly behind me. Why try to get into here through a check point when you could just walk in unmolested from any other direction?

There are exceptions of course, and one of them is the RPG mechanic who was working the upper Tangi Valley in Kabul Province last summer. He could put the English on an RPG grenade consistently scoring first round hits on fuel tankers running up the valley to Kabul. Looks like he has found a new hide in the eastern end of the Tangi Valley of Kabul Province. Tangi means dam in the Dari language so every province with a dam has a “Tangi Valley.” On the Jalalabad – Kabul road the Tangi valley feeds you into the town of Surobi which is what we would term a ‘contested area.” Last year there were a series of attacks on fuel tankers east of Surobi by an RPG gunner who was talented so we started calling him The Mechanic. He consistently scored first round hits from a hide in the mountains overlooking the road. Once he started hitting trucks frequently the number of trucks getting hit on the road rose dramatically. Know why? Good cover for fuel thieving which is a cottage industry in Afghanistan.

We hadn’t scene any activity from The Mechanic for many moons and thought the French might have bagged him because they’ve been hard on the Taliban since the ambush.

It looks like the RPG Mechanic has found a sweet spot on the east end of the Tangi Valley. Once again - this is a technically diffiicult gunner sot executed perfectly. Hate to see this asshole back again - but the boy can shoot
It looks like the RPG Mechanic has found a sweet spot on the east end of the Tangi Valley. This was a technically difficult shot executed perfectly. Hate to see this asshole back again – but the boy can shoot

It is going to be a long frustrating summer.

7 Replies to “Contact”

  1. You know what Tim? I’m damn glad that you write these posts. IF we read and considered everything the MSM feeds us to be truth, there wouldn’t be one iota of support for our military actions ANYWHERE!! You and all the others who give us the real picture of what is happening, give those of us who care about the real truth, hope…

    btw, heard you finally made phone contact. Would’ve loved to have been a fly on the wall for that conversation. 🙂

    Keep these posts a’coming!

  2. Dude, thanks for your excellent post. Ive been getting a lot of worry flak about wanting to get back to Jbad for an election party at the Tiki Bar ! Now I can share this to help balance the MSM “news” -Flash… “Jalalabad Under Attack! ”

    But that RPG mechanic on hwy1 worries the hell out me if he starts shooting nondescript corollas… 😉 i cant drive as fast as u – tho i did try once.

  3. Great post Tim. Reads nothing like the BS on FoxNews, CNN, etc., etc, back in The States…. Nothing but sensationalized crap back here, which I’m sure you know. I’m certainly not an “attrition warfare enthusiast”, but your point is well taken. Stay safe brother. Look forward to seeing your next post and spreading the word of common sense.

  4. Thanks for giving us the details. Solid, incisive writing. Sorry the dog ate their cameras! I’ve done a blog recommendation of yours on my site. The post is up now.

  5. Awesome post – – and I can’t believe no one had a camera on them. I would have been so on that – – who needs a press pass when you can flirt with the police. I was always told if you act like you know what you are doing and are where you are suppose to be, no one will ask you any questions.

    However, one of my co-workers has said having a camera and looking like a ‘tourist’ while working there can be dangerous. Is that true?

    Regarding the RPG guy – – maybe he trained some people. If he’s good and smart, he may have had the foresight to pass some of that knowledge and skill on.

  6. The RPG Mechanic sounds a bit like “The Archer” from Clancy’s Cardinal of the Kremlin. Bound to be smart people wherever you go. Probably a few in the Taliban as well. Hope we grease em’ before they do something smart….
    You detail the ineptitude of the enemy and of the tactics of the US Army. What in the Hell is Petraues doing?

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