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Taliban Commander Killed in Mosque Shootout

   VOA News 26 December 2009

   NATO  officials  in  Afghanistan say a heavily armed Taliban commander
   sought  refuge  in a mosque before starting a shootout that led to his
   death.
   NATO  says  international  and Afghan forces tracked down the militant
   commander  to  a  compound, just outside the town of Pirdad, in Wardak
   Saturday.
   When  the joint NATO-Afghan forces approached, the commander fled to a
   nearby mosque, refused to surrender and eventually opened fire.
   The officials say he was armed with grenades and hundreds of rounds of
   ammunition.
   He was wanted for buying weapons, components for explosive devices and
   for helping plan various attacks.
   NATO  officials  also  said a U.S. soldier died Friday from a roadside
   bomb in southern Afghanistan.

   Some information for this report was provided by AFP, AP and Reuters.

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