March 03, 2010
Taliban cave network found in Pakistan mountains (Over looking Bajaur: Updated Bumped Sticky)(UPDATED: Video added)
Something tells me this wasn't meant for the grunts.
Pakistan's army has discovered a complex network of 156 caves used by the Taliban and al-Qaeda dug into rocky mountains close to the Afghan border.A person could stay hidden for years in a complex this big.........just saying.The tunnels, which are thought to have been created over five to seven years, were carved into sheer rock within view of the snow-capped peaks of eastern Afghanistan.
The network was found during an offensive against Islamist militants in the country's semi-autonomous tribal areas in which 75 militants were killed.
lMaj Gen Tariq Khan said the caves served as a key militant headquarters until troops overran the complex in the offensive."There were Egyptians, Uzbeks, Chechens and Afghans killed in the operation," he said.
Bedding including pillows and mattresses were found in the caves in Damadola, in the Bajaur tribal region, suggesting inhabitants had camped out for significant periods.
Maj Gen Khan added: "Al-Qaeda was there. They had occupied the ridges. There were 156 caves designed as a defensive complex.
HUGE UPDATE:(Matt Damon) I knew a cave complex this big housed a HVT....comfirmed!
DAMADOLA, Pakistan—Pakistani forces have seized a key al Qaeda and Taliban stronghold along the border with Afghanistan that once served as a hideout for Ayman al Zawahiri, second-in-command to Osama bin Laden.Update by Abu Fatima, video added:The capture of Damadola, a district in the Bajaur tribal region, is a major success in Pakistan's counterinsurgency campaign. The area had long been dominated by insurgents operating on both sides of the Pakistan-Afghanistan border
