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Subject:
The Australian: Aussie commandos battled Taliban
tjkhan
9/27/2006 7:32:09 AM
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| Aussie commandos battled Taliban
27sep06
AUSTRALIAN commandoes battled hundreds of Taliban fighters and the nation's helicopters braved enemy fire to evacuate wounded coalition soldiers in the toughest fighting experienced by Australian troops since Vietnam.
The brave action of Australian troops during a 10-day action involving 500 coalition forces in a small Afghanistan valley was revealed by defence commanders for the first time today.
The offensive was launched by Australian helicopters which landed coalition forces directly on a compound in a bid to capture an enemy commander - resulting in a ferocious battle with hundreds of Taliban.
At one crucial point in the fighting, Australian helicopters braved a torrent of enemy fire to evacuate the wounded soldiers of other coalition partners.
Australian commandoes on the ground then joined the fighting with the 500-strong coalition force, fighting pitched battles with the enemy where they were forced to surround their vehicles which were being peppered by enemy fire.
Astonishingly, no Australians were killed.
Major General Mike Hindmarsh, the head of the Australian Defence Force Special Operations Command, has revealed details of the battle for the first time.
?Apart from a number of concussions from exploding RPG (rocket-propelled grenade) rounds and minor shrapnel injuries, there were no casualties,? he said.
?The vehicles on the other hand were peppered with bullet and fragmentation holes.?
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